As a teenager I was drawn toward photography as an art form. My initial attempts were a major disappointment because of a lack of understanding of the basics of photography. Although I continued to take photographs for many years, they were simply snapshots. It was after I began my career as a physician at Northwest Permanente that I started working on developing skills to “make photographs.” I took basic photography classes at Portland Community College followed by attending a variety of photography workshops.  Since my retirement from Northwest Permanente in 2001, photography has taken an important role in my life.