Finding Me Mo’
A Self-Portrait with my Nikon F3 print
Shooting photography for as long as I have, there was always a quiet sense that something was missing… the tangible, the real, something you could hold onto. My love for cameras started early. At five years old, I wanted one of my own, captivated by my dad’s Nikon and the magic it seemed to carry. By the time I crossed into professional work in 2006, I was fueled by excitement and a deep hunger to learn everything I could… from the exposure triangle to off-camera lighting, from the mechanics of image-making to the realities of running a business.
Over the years, my work spanned both sides of the industry. Commercial assignments… what we call B2B (business to business)… headshots, corporate events, company portraits. And direct-to-client sessions… family portraits, graduations, celebrations, milestones. Meaningful work, important work. But somewhere along the way, like many creatives, passion can become entangled with production, deadlines, and the need to sustain a livelihood.
I realized I was missing the art. The love. The feeling that photography was not just a service, but an expression.
a polaroid my of my niece.. Kota
Reintroducing film into my life changed that. Film demands presence. It slows everything down. It brings intention back to the moment… for me and for the person in front of the camera. Each frame carries weight. Each image becomes something tangible, something lasting.
My shot on my first roll of Ilford 400 with my Nikon f3
Today, that approach has found its way into my portrait sessions. I create photographs for people who want more than just pictures… people who want to be seen, to preserve something real about who they are in this moment of their lives. Not overly staged, not artificial, not manufactured for the endless scroll, but honest, timeless imagery that feels like you.
Image of myself captured by my Nikon F3 with Porta 400
In a world saturated with quick content and disposable visuals, these portraits are meant to endure… pieces of art that live on your walls, in your hands, and in your story.
That was the missing part for me. And for many of my clients, it becomes the piece they didn’t realize they were searching for too.
A Self Portrait shot on Polaroid at the Texas Stateline
