Life as it is. Or rather, life as I see it. Or maybe it is life as I want to see it. That is what I try to capture with my photography. Life. Very few of my photographs are staged or posed. I use no filters. Very few have any post-editing. I try to capture what is interesting, intriguing and beautiful about life at it is happening.
I love light and dark and their juxtaposition. I love the colors of life, rich and deep. With the advances in photographic technology, it makes it more possible, though still often difficult, to capture those things as they come to me, without having to create or manufacture them.
Most of my shots are taken extemporaneously, as I am out in the world living life. The majority use ambient lighting. I try to keep from using a flash or any additional lighting than what is in my environment, be that the depth of the Everglades or a loud, smoky nightclub.
Why call it “Soul of Miami”? Certainly not all these photos were taken in Miami. It is more a personal statement for myself. I have a soul of Miami. That is, I found my soul in Miami. Before I moved to Miami, I always felt out of joint, like I did not belong and did not know what I was doing. When I came to Miami a few years ago, it was like I found my home. And I take that soul of Miami wherever I go. It informs my outlook, and therefore my photography. I never felt like I was an artist until I came to Miami. But when I found my soul, I found my art.
I do not really think of myself so much as a photographer, but more as a visual storyteller. In one snap of the shutter, I try to capture the story of a place and time. Not just the moment of the shutter-snap, but the entirety of that place and that situation.