My family were camera buffs. Many an evening was spent looking at slides of our adventures in nature. My first camera was a Brownie.  Then I moved on to someone's discarded Minolta, which led to picking up a Photomic Nikon from a wealthy kid in high school who wanted to upgrade.

A professional level camera led me to countless hours in the darkroom, working for my high school and college papers. That led to a job as a stringer for the Rockford-Register Star, the second largest paper in Illinois next to the Chicago Tribune. From there, freelance work.  I actually made money.

I've had a large format camera down to a tiny Rollei with a Zeis lens. That little camera didn't have a viewfinder. I did 'hyper focal distance shooting,' which means guessing. Amazing shots with that little guy and an increased confidence in shooting.

Now I'm using my iPhone a lot.  I just love the instant feedback and capacity to edit on the fly.

It's shaping what I see and the mundane comes so much more alive.