The first steps of my creative journey started in my garden. I documented as many macro flower and insect details as I could for one year. I wanted to know my plants in a different way, to look at them with the eye of an emerging artist. I started in my garden and then expanded into the nearby woods, fields, ponds, and streams. At the end of that time, I gathered my favorite images into three photo books that I self-published. I selected photos that illustrated the key components of design. The concepts of lines, shape, color, form, repetition, texture, scale, and space came alive through my lens. These books are the record of those on-going studies. Nature has always been my favorite teacher.