The usual story of a box camera as a kid applies to me.  My dad taught me how to develop and contact print the 620 roll film. We also developed a few rolls of color slide film.  Next came an Olympus OM 1 when I was around 20.  Then life demanded I earn a living, so photography went away for almost 45 years.

I worked in electronic manufacturing in Maryland for a few years, them moved to El Paso, Texas.  I set up a stained glass studio, did commissions and taught classes. Then on to Arizona, where I picked fruit.  Back in El Paso, I was introduced to hot air ballooning, got a license, and went to work flying a promotional balloon in Tennessee. I spent the next 25 years flying balloons all over the US, Mauritius, and Kenya.  Somewhere in those years I got a stock brokers license and sold stocks for a few years.  Back in the US, I quit ballooning, got a Microsoft certification, and started an IT services company.  I retired in 2017.

I  had used some point and shoot cameras over the years and was always disappointed with the results.  One day I saw an ad for HDR software and was excited at the possibility of creating a southwest landscape with sky and foreground both properly exposed.  I got a Canon T3 to see what I could do.  Then a T6i and a used long lens.  I was having fun, so decided to invest in some better gear. Sony had just announced the A7 III, I pre-ordered one and some lenses.  The A7III went for a swim in the North Atlantic Ocean. I replaced it with an A7IV. Recently, I upgraded to two new Sony lenses, the 70-200 f4 and the 20-70 f4.

I learned Photoshop and started making some decent images.  Eventually I tried Capture One and switched to using it for developing my images.

I am a member of the Enchanted Lens Camera Club, based in Albuquerque New Mexico.  I live in Corrales NM.