I'M SITTING HERE AT BIZZART GALLERY IN BISBEE ARIZONA RECALLING WHAT IT WAS LIKE THOSE MANY YEARS AGO WHEN I RECEIVED MY FIRST SLR CAMERA, A MANUAL FOCUS MINOLTA, AND BEGAN TAKING PICTURES. I IMMEDIATELY WENT OUT AND SHOT A COUPLE ROLLS OF BLACK & WHITE FILM, SENT THEM OUT FOR PROCESSING, THEN WAITED ANXIOUSLY FOR THEIR RETURN. UPON RECEIVING THE CONTACT SHEETS, I TOOK THEM TO A FRIEND, TOM VAUGHN, AN EXPERIENCED PHOTOGRAPHER WHO, AT THAT TIME, WAS THE PHOTO CURATOR AT THE BISBEE MINING & HISTORICAL MUSEUM. I SHOWED THE CONTACT SHEETS TO TOM AND ASKED FOR HIS OPINION AS TO MY ABILITIES AS A PHOTOGRAPHER. TOM'S ANSWER WAS, "GO OUT AND SHOOT ABOUT A THOUSAND ROLLS OF FILM, THENCOME BACK AND SEE ME." IT TURNED OUT TO BE GOOD ADVICE. DECADES LATER, I HAVE BEGUN TO UDER- STAND WHAT TOM REALLY MEANT. IN THE QUARTER CENTURY PLUS THAT I HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN PHOTOGRAPHY, IF I HAVE LEARNED NOTHING ELSE, I HAVE LEARNED THAT PATIENCE HAS ITS VIRTUES. AFTER DECADES OF PRACTICE, EXPERIMENTATION AND STUDY, I STILL FEEL LIKE I'VE BARELY SCRATCHED THE SURFACE. EVERY DAY, I LEARN SOMETHING NEW. WHAT I HOPE TO DO WITH THIS BLOG IS TO SHARE SOME OF THAT KNOWLEDGE. I HOPE TO POST BLOGS ON THIS SITE AT THE RATE OF ABOUT ONCE A WEEK. SO, PLEASE STAY TUNED.