A lifetime of friendships

Meeting and connecting with new people is a significant aspect of doing people photography. After a while, you create strong bonds with the people I photograph. I don't always, but sometimes I am asked to do family portraits.

I have several models who have eventually had families. I have photographed weddings of my former models, their children, and even family portraits. Eventually, the daughter of one of my former models started modeling.

I'm also a parent, so watching her grow and have her own family gives me a sense of the proverbial circle of life. It's incredible to see it unfold. I have been fortunate to be a photographer for quite some time, so I can see it, and it makes the ups and downs worth the effort.

I had just moved to a new town and a new high school. I did my photography because I could watch from afar without interacting with the other kids. The irony is that creating photos and watching from far away made me 'closer' to each of them, and I got to know them better through my photography.

When I got to college, I became more comfortable with my surroundings and photographed people; this is when I started photographing women. I'm a man, and so my desire to photograph female models seemed natural, but it always felt more than that.

I found my niche and decided what I preferred to do. I honed my craft and practiced, and I improved. I did portraits and wedding photos to supplement my desired photo niche. From my beginnings in Sacramento until now on Guam, I have met and kept friendships with clients and models. The tradition of photographing continues to this day.

I met Ash just recently, and since I will be going to Sacramento next year for my niece's wedding, I will definitely be doing more work with Ash. I leave Sunday for the Philippines and have scheduled a couple of shoots with two new models and an old model friend.

I still keep in touch with former models from the '90s and '00s that I worked with and occasionally take photos for their needs.