What made you decide on photography? Was it something you were always interested in, or did you love for it "develop" over time?
In 2003, LaVina had a tumor removed from her head about the size of a baseball, it was benign and was located between the scalp and skull. Her doctor suggested I get a "vice" so the camera was the logical choice. I had gotten "deep" into photography while scuba diving so a few years later when LaVina had a stroke the diving ended and started focusing on photos as a "vice", or more like an escape from reality. I did my first art show in 2005, the rest is history.
What is your favorite subject to work with and why?
This will sound weird but I love shooting rodeo, that is my favorite, bull riding, barrel racing, tie down roping and bronc riding are my favorite rodeo events. I like real rodeos like we have in June, the junior rodeos are a little too long as far as I am concerned but they are still fun to shoot. When it comes to portrait photography, my favorite is young families with well-behaved children, and maternity photos, I can be really creative with both. I also like shooting the class photos at Llano Christian Academy each year, those are really fun, and doing sports photos for the paper and well, if the camera is to my eye I love it!
I see you out with your mom a lot eating. Do you take her out on a regular basis?
Don't know how it got started but when I first moved to Llano we started eating out on Friday after she got her hair done, it is now on my calendar every Friday. Angela and Kim know not to schedule anything for me from 12-1 on Friday, this is date time with my mom.
Describe yourself in 5 words.
Phlegmatic, perfectionist, workaholic, fun, and intense.
What do you love/dislike the most about your field?
I love being creative with my photography… not Photoshop creativity… but just doing something different. Like the photo I recently took of a cheerleader holding the moon or the bridesmaids holding the groom, and an
engagement picture using Scrabble pieces. What I dislike? BAD PHOTOS. When I work really hard to take the best photos possible and they come out bad, out of focus or grainy. Each photo has to be perfect, and well, I have discovered they are not and that bothers me. One other thing that really gets me is when I do a photo session and there is a tree limb that looks like it is sticking in someone's ear, or a smokestack that is sticking out of a subject's head.
So, how do you like your new job at the Chamber?
I Llove it, if there was ever a job and a person that were made for each other, this is it. I so Llove this little town we live in, from the hills around us to the river, the bluebonnets in springtime, the eagles in the fall, there is no other place in the world that I would rather be! …well, one… Cayman, Brac.
Describe Llano to a complete Stranger...
This is easy, I do it daily. We have a river that divides our town but we have a beautiful bridge that connects us, we have the friendliest people living here, they will literally give you the shirt off their backs. Llano is a giving community that thrives because of its people, when we had the toughest water restrictions in the country in 2011 Llano showed it's resiliency using 2/3 less water than it normally does. Our shops are as unique as they are in that town to the southwest of us, and a lot less expensive, plus we have something they don't. We have Cooper's BBQ, Inman's BBQ, and Lairds BBQ. We are the BBQ capital of Texas. Need a place to stay for the weekend? Llano has some top notch Bed and Breakfasts that will pamper their visitors all weekend long. Then there is the hunting, while I personally don't hunt I do love to eat deer, so anyone having a little extra, I can be found at the Llano Chamber of Commerce. And my favorite thing to tell people, if you don't want to do anything but sit on a river and fish, buddy, you have found paradise, you will find no other place in the world where you can have more fun doing nothing!