Sometimes people ask how I get the photos I take. Some are very up close and personal. It’s mainly access, I believe. I don't know why, but I have never been afraid to ask…”Can I see that up close?”, or “Is it ok if I take your picture” or “How in the world do you learn how to ride bulls?”

If you’re interested, and if you bother to show up and bother to try, then my experience has been…people will respond. One of my favorite films is “Almost Famous”. I’ve watched it more times than I can count, and while it’s about rock and roll, it’s also about just showing up and sticking with it. The young writer is going to write the story but can’t do it without being there. He can’t be a fan, or he’ll just write the fan story, not the real story. And that’s what much of photography and photojournalism is about.

Certainly there are choices. There are photos I did not take because they were so personal no one would understand them. And there are photos I have taken that no one else has ever seen. And photos I have taken and destroyed. Each has its moment and cause for being, and then it’s my call as a human being as to if they will be seen and by whom. I am sure we all face these decisions and dilemmas in what we do.

But the point is, if you don’t show up, you never get into these interesting life situations. You never get to see the scenes or smell the dirt or join the conversation, or at least overhear it. So that’s one thing I like about photography…by just showing up, I have gone some truly amazing places. Often I have the photos to show you, and sometimes, I won’t.