“I couldn’t wait to develop the fi lm and see what
I had. Back then there was a wait time between
taking the photo and actually seeing it. I miss
that time. You had something to look forward
to, something exciting could be there. It was
a little bit of suspense that the digital world of
photography has taken away.
“I became a photojournalist and worked for
newspapers and magazines in California and
Georgia. In 2006 I won the Georgia Press
Photographer of the Year award, but newspapers
were in decline and eventually I found my way
back to doing weddings and family portraits and
saw photography really as a hobby.
“I smoked from around 17 years old to 37. I
fi nally quit with the help of my friend Bill Cade
and transitioned into vaping in 2013-2014. I’m 42
now and am as healthy as I’ve ever been.
“I was a stay at home dad, and at night I had
some time to myself. I noticed the vapour trails
coming off the RDAs when the cap was off and
thought, I can shoot this with gels. It would be
just like my rave photographs.
“Taking all the knowledge I had learned as a rave
photographer, I started experimenting with it. I
took the photos down to a local shop and they
asked me if I had ever heard of Instagram. “You
mean the photo fi lter app?” I asked. I had no idea
about the community aspect of IG. I was shown
some coil shots and after that I was hooked. I
created the name right away, saw the opportunity
and I’ve been posting daily ever since.
“Vaping resurrected my life, not only saving me
from smoking-related issues, but bringing me
back into photography again. Add Instagram to
the mix and the rest is history.
“For anyone looking to get into vape photography,
my advice is to be creative. Be yourself. Find your
angle and use it. Don’t be afraid of critique. And
ask questions.
“Vaping
resurrected my
life, not only
saving me from
smoking-related
issues, but
bringing me back
into photography
again"
“I share a lot of behind-the-scenes videos and
photos because there’s a lot to learn. I’m still
learning, I hope I never stop learning.”
Be sure to check out @Vappix on Instagram
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