The character of the American West is rooted in the remarkable nature of the land. Immense in scale, vast in distance, uncommon in variety. It takes time to experience the West, to understand how the land evolved, to comprehend the story. Land formed by seismic upheaval, shaped by weather, revealed by the fine grace of light.

The magnificent backbone of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges cleave the West into divergent environments. The Western Divide. The land to the west is governed by the Pacific with lush rolling hills, oak woodlands, verdant forests, and tall grass meadows. The land to the east lies in rain shadow with arid sagebrush deserts, cut by ancient drainages, framed by jagged peaks, and polished smooth by water and swift dry air.

These divergent environments are the great contrast of the West. Arid and Wet. Bare and Lush. Jagged and Rolling. Spare and Plentiful. Vast and Delicate. Brown and Green. Orange and Blue. Bristlecone and Redwood. Saguaro and Ponderosa. Ocotillo and Oak. Sagebrush and Grass. Deserts and Forests. Mesas and Meadows. Canyons and Valleys.

I treasure moments of quiet wonder in these brilliant lands where natural elements fill my senses. I think visually and understand the world in terms of geometry, space, form, scale, detail, material, color, texture, and light. I see these elements in the natural land forms of the West and craft photographic images that reflect these elements in natural composition.

These lands are my Studio.

The Western Divide Studio.