This is my little princess Emerson on Christmas morning in her princess pajamas, playing with princess jewelry, princess mermaids, princess-like fairies and various other princesses of all shapes, sizes and princess-dress colors. She’s not the least bit interested in any of the sports stuff Santa gave her. Her mama is thinking of painting a princess on a basketball, but we both know that’s a real long shot (no pun intended).

This Holiday Season let’s remember those who struggle even harder…

Merry Christmas Gizi. We miss you. Here is a little bit of her life on Flickr.com…

This was a blue sky, but chilly August day on the east coast. The waves were changing the direction of light every few seconds and the offshore breeze created rainbows in the sun as the waves broke.

I thought I wanted to learn to surf but what I ended up doing out there in the surf was what I love most, shooting photographs…which for me is like catching the ultimate ride.

This is Emerson’s first trip to Cape Hatteras and her first experience in the ocean. Soon she shall have a surfboard and a waterproof digital camera.

I can’t avoid shooting kids in windows. There is always someone who wants to be a ham. RT 66 New Mexico

I have been photographing at Cape Hatteras for over 20 years. The rejuvenation factor there is huge…for me AND the pups.

Emerson is learning how to shoot. With as many pictures as I’ve taken of her, she probably feels like the paparazzo follow her everywhere she goes.

She’s having fun now getting behind the camera. She has a couple of kid-friendly cameras and I also let her play with my old digital ones. The shutter lag with digital can make taking pictures of fast dogs a challenge, but she’s persistent. And I’m…proud.

If you get closer you’ll see the subtleties of a young face in a whole new way.

I love shooting kids with a Lensbaby. They just came out with a great new lens. It is called the ‘Composer’. There is a lot more repeatability with the new one than the older models.