In the beginning…

In 2014, I was living and working in Germany and I had the opportunity to do quite a bit a traveling. During a visit to the beautiful city of Dresden, I used my Samsung S4 smartphone to take a photograph of a Lego Star Wars stormtrooper minifigure in front of a building. And just like that, my first foray into photography was born.

I started an Instagram page called Stormtrooper Travels and spent the next 3 years photographing a variety of Lego minifigs at destinations across Europe. While it may have been a creative idea, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. It was the epitome of amateur hour. I eventually upgraded from the S4 to a legitimate camera, a Canon EOS Rebel SL1/100D. It did nothing to improve the quality of my photos, but it did EVERYTHING in terms of pushing me further into photography.

I eventually moved back to the US, fell on hard times, and sold my camera gear. After a couple years of nothing but the typical smartphone photo snapping of various life events, I landed in Missouri and re-introduced myself to photography. It started with your run-of-the-mill iPhone photography, and about a year later I purchased a used Canon 5D Mark III and really began diving into the craft.

If you can’t tell already, I’m entirely self-taught, and I don’t for one second consider myself anything other than an amateur photographer. I do it because I love to document memories, capture beautiful scenes, and tell stories. All I want to do is share those captures with the world. Another motivation for me is exploration and adventure; that can mean anything from a trip to parts unknown, to simply learning a new skill or improving your craft. So with that being said… welcome, thank you so much for joining me on this adventure!

-Rick