Your Bio
Welcome!
Thanks for visiting my photo site. In 2008, my passion for scuba diving and travel had me begin to take my photography more seriously, invest in good equipment, and devote myself to try and push my images to something beyond a typical snapshot. And without getting all philosophical or striving for any arty pretensions, I hope that at least some of my images succeed, evoking something, whether it's a mood or an emotion, a connection to a place, event or even an animal, or just maybe to reconnect with the wonder and beauty of the world around us. For me, this is clearly an ongoing process, an opportunity to learn, discover, and be surprised.
I have been fortunate to have had some excellent teachers and mentors as well as traveled with and run across others of great knowledge and skill who have pointed (sometimes pushed) me down the path. I am honored to have had many of my underwater images recognized in several international photo competitions, published in Scuba Diving and Nature's Best Photography magazines, on permanent display at the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Oceanography Institute, as well as hung in the San Diego Natural History Museum, the Oceanside (Ca.) Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC.
The purpose of this site is twofold. First, to present the images I'm really proud of or that others have deemed worthy. These "Portfolio" galleries provide a great starting point into my areas of interest. The second purpose of the site is to share with friends, family and traveling companions a more extensive collection from a given trip or event, sort of a photographic journal of my travels and adventures.
A note about the galleries: "Underwater" speaks for itself, but may include "people" or "landscapes" from the same trip. Of course, I was probably "traveling" at the time. And "underwater" necessarily implies "nature", although not necessarily vice versa. And many of the HDR shots were taken while "traveling" to pursue "underwater", "nature", "landscape" or "people" images. I may even split the galleries if the trip had two distinct aspects. So the categories only loosely define the images you'll find there.
Finally, if you're interested in an image for yourself or friends, please know that I donate all cash proceeds from my photography to charitable causes, usually ocean and wildlife conservation. So think of a professionally printed, limited edition, signed image as your special gift for helping preserve both wild life and wild places. I'll be adding updates as to the amounts and the organizations as they're made. Please feel free to contact me at philsokol@yahoo.com for any special requests.
Thanks again!
Phil
Thanks for visiting my photo site. In 2008, my passion for scuba diving and travel had me begin to take my photography more seriously, invest in good equipment, and devote myself to try and push my images to something beyond a typical snapshot. And without getting all philosophical or striving for any arty pretensions, I hope that at least some of my images succeed, evoking something, whether it's a mood or an emotion, a connection to a place, event or even an animal, or just maybe to reconnect with the wonder and beauty of the world around us. For me, this is clearly an ongoing process, an opportunity to learn, discover, and be surprised.
I have been fortunate to have had some excellent teachers and mentors as well as traveled with and run across others of great knowledge and skill who have pointed (sometimes pushed) me down the path. I am honored to have had many of my underwater images recognized in several international photo competitions, published in Scuba Diving and Nature's Best Photography magazines, on permanent display at the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Oceanography Institute, as well as hung in the San Diego Natural History Museum, the Oceanside (Ca.) Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC.
The purpose of this site is twofold. First, to present the images I'm really proud of or that others have deemed worthy. These "Portfolio" galleries provide a great starting point into my areas of interest. The second purpose of the site is to share with friends, family and traveling companions a more extensive collection from a given trip or event, sort of a photographic journal of my travels and adventures.
A note about the galleries: "Underwater" speaks for itself, but may include "people" or "landscapes" from the same trip. Of course, I was probably "traveling" at the time. And "underwater" necessarily implies "nature", although not necessarily vice versa. And many of the HDR shots were taken while "traveling" to pursue "underwater", "nature", "landscape" or "people" images. I may even split the galleries if the trip had two distinct aspects. So the categories only loosely define the images you'll find there.
Finally, if you're interested in an image for yourself or friends, please know that I donate all cash proceeds from my photography to charitable causes, usually ocean and wildlife conservation. So think of a professionally printed, limited edition, signed image as your special gift for helping preserve both wild life and wild places. I'll be adding updates as to the amounts and the organizations as they're made. Please feel free to contact me at philsokol@yahoo.com for any special requests.
Thanks again!
Phil
