My Story (in part)
My foray ever deeper into nature photography began with a simple morning walk with my wife in a local park. I had recently stepped away from a highly stressful work environment and was in great need of decompressing.
We saw red-winged blackbirds feeding on cattails in the crisp fall air and I said I should bring a camera and make images of them on our next walk.
From that rather simple step, I began to look for other nature subjects in other locations and before long I was waking up at 4:00 am, loading up gear and heading out to state parks, nature preserves, lakes and other places to photograph the local flora and fauna.
Nature photography has become the initiating spark to move me toward a renewed understanding of my relationship to Nature, what I believe about the world and my place in it, and a deeper understanding of the Holy. In this way, photography has become a form of prayer, meditation and a means for contemplation. Mystical.
My nature photography is part of a life-long journey to tell stories that create positive change.
It is intimately connected to my belief in the sacredness of all life, including a strong belief that Nature itself is sacred and, as Fr. Richard Rohr has eloquently stated, the first revelation of the Holy.
About Me
I am a writer, photographer, and producer of documentary films and videos about the efforts of people to overcome poverty conditions through small scale development in nations with developing economies. As a result, I have been fortunate to travel widely across the world.
Currently I devote much of my creative time in woodlands and other natural settings making images of birds, butterflies, insects, mammals and landscapes toward the goal of sharing this beauty with others, and encouraging them to plant native plants for pollinators and the insects which thrive upon them.
I completed course work, field study and volunteer experiences to become a Certified Tennessee Naturalist.
Formerly I was General Secretary of United Methodist Communications, providing communications services to the global church. I have worked as a freelance writer, radio talk show host, TV newscaster, and Director of Communications for Church World Service and the Division of Overseas Ministries of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA.
I led Church World Service to establish a national media campaign called Share the Joy which garnered a national Emmy nomination. I also led The United Methodist Church media campaigns known as Igniting Ministry and Rethink Church, and was instrumental in creating the Imagine No Malaria campaign in collaboration with the Gates Foundation, the United Nations Foundation, and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which raised $75 million for malaria prevention and treatment around the world.
I am an ordained Elder in The United Methodist Church and have served local congregations in Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska.