For more than a quarter century, I have enjoyed telling stories with still images. Along the way, I have had a number of teaching opportunities that have made me realize I want to concentrate my efforts and career on teaching photography at the college level.
In that pursuit, I earned a Master of Fine Arts in Photography from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.
I have been involved with San Antonio College in my visual education for what seems like most of my life: as a student, student publications adviser, Macintosh technician and photo adviser. The department of journalism-photography there practices hands-on, experiential education.
I started shooting when I was 13 years old, and though much of my official duties have been in photojournalism, I have sought to develop a broader approach to photography through travel, essays and related art studio work. Though I am not conscious of searching it out, I find a defining quality of my work is humor.
I want to further my photographic skillls to design a photographic program that teaches both digital and wet photography at the same standard and merge the teachings of photojournalism and art as one. I have repeatedly heard art photography is a tilted lens and an out-of-focus photo. I believe it is much more. Even while building my professional skills, I found I wanted to teach, so I took every chance offered. Five days a week, I work with college photojournalists. One night a week, I help adults learn to produce photographs using the latest consumer digital cameras.
I spend my summers with high school kids teaching them photojournalism in a residential “journalism boot camp” that produces a newspaper distributed to high schools in San Antonio.
I understand photojournalism is changing, but I don’t think the basics will. Cameras and software will always evolve, making a photographer’s job easier or faster. Photojournalism and photography are my vocation, but I love education. I want to teach people how to produce better stories through better images.
