Selected photographs

Where the light was worth the walk

36 frames from a decade of shooting: slot canyons in Zion, the Na Pali coast, Tahoe in winter, redwood understory on the Central Coast, surf at San Clemente, and the occasional backyard visitor. Shot on Sony, finished in Lightroom.

Archive edit

36 published frames

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Lone umbrella-crowned tree on a coastal dune with the surf line and cumulus behind it — North shoreKauai, Hawaii2022

Deep slot of the Narrows with the river running out of shadow toward a lit wall high above — The NarrowsZion, Utah2021

Backlit figure walking a dirt path at low sun, reading as silhouette and long cast shadow rather than as an identifiable face, with the bare tree and hillside framing her. Person used as scale and form inside a landscape — Long shadowAliso Creek, California2018

Mushroom-shaped sea rock with the sun cresting its edge into a clean sunstar — Sea rock at sundownCrystal Cove, California2020

Dripping spring with maidenhair fern and falling water strands frozen against dark rock — Hanging gardenThe Narrows, Utah2021

Best canopy frame in the batch: redwoods radiating from a central vanishing point with backlit crowns, clean and dramatic — CanopyRoaring Camp, California2019

The best straight portrait in the batch: sharp on the eyes, warm open smile that is flattering rather than mid-laugh, golden late-light bokeh of redwoods behind, and the magenta robe separating cleanly from the background. Chosen over 0087 from the same sitting, which has a weaker expression and a cluttered deck behind her — PortraitSanta Cruz, California2018

Joshua tree trunks crossing in an X with clean sky between and a tan hillside layering behind — Joshua treeJoshua Tree, California2019

Twin-track grass road runs straight into the spired Makana ridge — Makana ridgeLimahuli, Hawaii2022

Tight study of golden cross-bedded Navajo sandstone — Cross-bedded sandstoneAngels Landing, Utah2021

Weathered driftwood stump as a sculptural subject on warm-lit sand, with the surf line curving away behind it — DriftwoodKauai, Hawaii2022

Best of the palm sunsets: sun dropping into a cloud band above a visible ocean horizon, palms framing both edges, clean layering — Palms at sundownOceanfront Park, California2026

Corridor of hoodoo walls closing in on both sides, warm reflected light on the sandstone, clear sense of place — Hoodoo corridorBryce Canyon, Utah2021

Stacked lo'i terraces read as pure graphic banding, cleanest and most abstract of the terrace frames — Lo’i terracesLimahuli, Hawaii2022

Backlit fern fronds glowing against a dark forest floor — Forest floorHenry Cowell, California2018

Sea arch punched through the lithified headland, naupaka green sweeping in as foreground — Sea archMaha’ulepu, Hawaii2022

Tight macro of a honeybee swarm on a branch — SwarmCalifornia2021

Gnarled exposed root system gripping slickrock — Juniper rootsAngels Landing, Utah2021

Woman walking away along a curving rail line toward a steel trestle, framed left by a massive redwood trunk. Back turned so she reads as form, the orange skirt the single warm accent in a green-grey forest, and the track curve carries the eye into depth. Soft even forest light, no expression risk. The strongest human-in-landscape frame in this batch — The lineRoaring Camp, California2019

Hawaiian monk seal hauled out on sand, raking side light picking out the wet hide against dune texture — Hawaiian monk sealKauai, Hawaii2022

Windswept bare tree silhouetted against a flat ocean horizon — WindsweptBadlands, California2022

Looking straight up into frost-rimed pine crowns radiating against deep cobalt sky — First snowBig Bear, California2021

Rail line curving into a dark redwood corridor toward a lit opening — Rail into the redwoodsRoaring Camp, California2019

Steller's jay cleanly isolated on a bare branch against pale sky with soft pine bokeh and generous negative space — Steller’s jayBig Bear, California2021

Backlit autumn vineyard rows converging to a low sun, leafy branch framing the top corner and a hill closing the right edge — Vineyard rowsSan Luis Obispo, California2021

Open mussel shell on wet sand in raking light with a long cast shadow — Mussel shellSanta Cruz, California2019

Surfer low and crouched on a clean green wave face, backlit water going translucent behind him, whitewater feathering along the lip. Real surf photography: single isolated subject, uncluttered water, strong colour separation between the figure and the wave. The one frame here that would hold beside published coastline work — Green roomSan Clemente, California2023

Empty wave breaking, shot tight and low: backlit teal-to-green curl with the lip throwing spray across the top third. No subject needed, no horizon clutter, no sky to blow out. Reads as a deliberate water study rather than a snapshot — Inside the waveSan Clemente, California2023

Cormorant in full wing-spread drying posture on a pale boulder, silhouetted cleanly against bright green water. Sharp, well-isolated subject, a decisive gesture rather than a bird just standing there, and no fence or man-made element anywhere in frame — Heron, wings outCalifornia2024

Roadrunner perched on a branch, distinctive silhouette held clear of the background, spring-green bokeh behind. Better separation than the alternate 1764, which has more twigs cutting the body — RoadrunnerCalifornia2024

Raptor perched on a bare branch against clean blue sky, clear subject shape with the tree used as a framing element rather than clutter. Reads as a deliberate wildlife frame, not a snapshot. Needs a 100% check for sharpness on the head before it ships — HawkCalifornia2024

Giraffe bending its neck into an S-curve to graze — GiraffeSan Diego Safari Park, California2023

Tilted sedimentary strata raking diagonally across the frame with white surf breaking along the seams. Real graphic structure, soft overcast light that holds detail in both the rock and the foam, and a geological subject that reads as a deliberate photograph rather than a holiday view — Tilted strataSan Luis Obispo, California2024

Sea arch isolated in turquoise water with surf wrapping its base and a distant headland setting the far plane. Clean subject separation, good water texture, no signage or structures. Competent coastline work that holds beside the published set — Sea archLaguna Beach, California2022

Snow-laden pine as a clear subject against a deep blue sky streaked with cirrus, untracked snow foreground, distant ridgeline giving depth. Nothing man-made in frame. Compositionally looser than 0711, so it is the second Tahoe frame, not the first — Snow-laden pinesTahoe, California2023

A broad pepper tree at sunrise with the sun bursting through the gap under its canopy. Real structure: the trunk anchors centre-right, the low sun rakes across dry grass in the foreground, and layered cirrus gives the sky detail rather than a blown-out field. Clear single subject, warm directional light, and genuine front-to-back depth from foreground grass through the tree to the hazy ridgeline. Sky holds tone throughout, no fence, pole or signage anywhere in the frame — Pepper tree, sunriseCalifornia2022