Hey.

I'm Mike.

(and that's my dog, Dora)

Engineer turned photographer...

My path that has led me to where I am today is a long one (here's the cliff notes version)...

I haven't always been a photographer / videographer (at least not professionally). In fact, it wasn't until just recently that I made the career switch. I took a pretty non-conventional route into the world of photography, by getting a degree in Mechanical Engineering first!

About me: I was born in Houston, Texas where I lived until I was 7. My family then moved to Richland, Washington where I grew up, graduated high school and started my degree in Mechanical Engineering at Washington State University (Go Cougs!). During the middle of my degree I studied abroad in Geelong, Victoria, Australia and did a semester at Deakin University. I fell in love with the country and 6 months later I moved to Australia to finish my schooling, and in 2009 I graduated from Deakin University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, graduating with Honors (or Honours, as the Aussie's spell it). Soon after, I moved up to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and began working in the construction industry while utilizing my degree. After 8 years of working in the construction industry and paying off my student loans, I decided that I was ready for something else.

I was ready to go explore more....

Essentially, I wanted to take a different path in my life. I decided to revisit my passion for photography and videography, and pursue those passions with the hopes and intentions of turning them into a career which would allow me to live a new life with more freedom and flexibility. So I saved up some money, quit my job, and began my next chapter... adventure.

After I quit my job in 2018 I headed straight for the ski slopes of Japan (skiing is one of my big passions, and if you're a skier then Japan should be on your bucket list!), and spent three wonderful months skiing and traveling around the beautiful country. From there I headed to Whistler, British Columbia, Canada to finish off the ski season, before buying an RV in Houston, Texas and embarking on a 7 month road trip of the USA during the summer of 2019. I went to all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums and watched a game in each one (I'm also a big baseball fan!). I was also able to visit around 40 National Parks and Monuments, where I began honing my skills in landscape photography. It was a bucket list trip for sure! I eventually settled in South Lake Tahoe, California right before the winter of 2019 to start working as a photographer for a Heavenly Ski Resort in South Lake Tahoe. Lake Tahoe is truly a magical place. After 2 seasons of skiing and 18 months living in Lake Tahoe, I embarked on a surfing safari in my RV with several friends down to the peninsula of Baja in Mexico for 6 weeks, spending nearly everyday in the water learning to surf and enjoying the relaxed lifestyle. I loved it down there so much, after the trip ended I packed my things and headed down to Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico a few weeks later. I spent the last 4 years going back and forth between Baja and the US, exploring and continuing to pursue everything photography. As of May 2026, I have now moved to Denver, CO,

While traveling and adventuring over these last 7 years, I started taking my photography more seriously. I invested in the necessary gear and equipment and began teaching myself the ins and the outs of everything photography. Now, I'm excited to be living here in Colorado and exploring and discovering a new place again. And I'm ready to continue creating my landscape photography in these mountains. And to go skiing, of course!

I do still travel around quite a bit, spending time back and forth between the US and Mexico, or wherever the wind blows me... the question always seems to be:

"Where to next?"