Photographed Family Portrait in Laguna Beach, California on October 1, 2017.

PRSA of Orange County held their annual PROTOS Awards Gala at The Colony House in Anaheim, California on September 28, 2017.

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the ACT of photography all the PICTURES you have seen, the BOOKS you have read, the MUSIC you have heard, the people you have LOVED.” - Ansel Adams

Ansel Adams is talking about what is described as the “photographer’s eye.” It’s a culmination of one’s life, the quality and style of the art that they have seen, sensed, heard, and read about, and their teachers and what they studied and who they hold in esteem.  It’s also about what they personally have done on their own path, with whom they have done it, who they are in their souls, and continue to become, that the photographic artist brings to each image he or she creates.  It’s deeply knowing that making a great image comes from what is inside the artist, not just a technical exercise, or a stroke of luck, but a mindful journey for the photographer and his subject.