Aloha and thanks for stopping by.

In addition to being an amateur photographer, I am also a professional software engineer, recreational web developer, blogger, Maui aficionado, (fading) social media contributor, lifelong hockey lover, and most importantly, a recently new father. Talk about a full plate.

But onto the photography.

It was 2006 when I purchased my first, serious camera setup (Canon 20D + Kit Lens and 70-300mm telephoto). My wife and I were headed to the island of Maui for the first time, and I was determined to capture as many memories with it as I could. When we returned from our two weeks in paradise, we had started a new love affair with the Valley Isle, and I had begun amassing my stockpile of Maui imagery.

Yet, for the next few years, photography was just a vacation hobby for me – aside from the occasional hockey game here and there. The time in between annual trips was spent sharing my Aloha for Maui online and not behind the camera as much as you’d expect.

Fast forward to September 2009, and we found ourselves back on Maui for the inaugural Maui Photo Festival and Workshops. It was the first time I ever attended a photography workshop, and it was a great shot in the arm for this growing hobby of mine. Things started getting more serious for me. I was beginning to breakout of my comfort zone of shooting limited subjects, and I suddenly had over a dozen photographer contacts that I was following and conversing with on almost a daily basis thanks to Twitter and Facebook.

The Game Changer

Already on the cusp of devoting more of my ever shrinking free time to photography, it was the preparation for the arrival of our first child that pushed me over that line. The responsibility of capturing our son’s earliest moments and his inevitable firsts was staring me right in the face, and I knew then I was all in.

And that’s when it happened.

The day after our son was born, I captured this image.

It was that moment – during an already amazing time in my life – that gave me such a huge confidence boost. Suddenly, I was saying to myself, “I can do this.”

Since then, I’ve been on a tear, much like the little guy we chase around the house all day. I’ve started working with studio lighting setups, began organizing my images and optimizing my workflow with Lightroom, reading as much as I can get time to, and of course…shooting, shooting, shooting.

When everything is firing on all cylinders (sometimes, anyway) I’m able to plan a photo shoot with my wife and son, get things setup, shoot, process, and be sharing photos with family and friends the next day.

Mahalo!

Thanks again for stopping by and learning a little bit about me and my work.

I really hope you enjoy the site.

– Kris