At least a dozen years ago, in the mountains of northern Utah, I was exploring a section of a creek that doesn't get visited very often. I came to a location that had two very small waterfalls pouring into two modest-sized pools, and some boulders that had been carved by the creek into interesting shapes. Those were features that I'd seen at other places along the creek, but in that place, they were arranged together in an appealing way that made the scene look somewhat different. It made me casually think, This is one of the more interesting stretches of the creek, and fairly pretty too. I had no idea on that first visit that it would turn into the location where I've done more photography than at any other in my life—by far.
The wonder I felt whenever I thought about how much there was to discover and photograph in such a short length of creek eventually made me curious about how short it actually was. At first I vaguely thought it was probably about 35 or so feet long, but that number eventually seemed too small. Forty-something feet, then? I realized that no number would ever feel like a good guess unless I decided on specific beginning and ending points. One day I stood on the biggest sculpted boulder and looked at the furthest points upstream and downstream where I had set up my tripod or held my camera in my hands. They weren't hard to identify—I'd used each of them multiple times. I looked from one to the other three or four times, and thought, Probably about fifty feet. But then I really wanted it to be three feet more than that, because "fifty-three feet of creek" had such a fun sound to it. So I settled on 53 feet as my official guess.
Late that night, back home at my computer, I didn't have any trouble finding online aerial imagery that was detailed enough for me to mark those furthest upstream and downstream points. I traced the creek between the points with an easy-to-use Measure tool, and then looked at the number. It was a very small, almost meaningless number because the tool was set to show the distance in miles. I changed it to feet, and
On later visits to the creek, I found myself increasingly drawn to that particular place, and before long I had mostly abandoned my goal of checking out a new section of the creek with each visit. The amount of time I devoted to photography at that site also grew steadily.
I very gradually realized that the pool between the two waterfalls was just long enough to make all the surface of the water glassy smooth before it passed over the lower waterfall, but not long enough for the waves made by the upper waterfall to flatten. And the shape of the pool seemed to be quite ideal for stretching those small, glassy waves into exquisite parallel ripples. It took me even longer to realize that the pool's character was largely a result of the position and close arrangement of three smoothly sculpted boulders, which also shaped and channeled the lower waterfall in interesting ways that changed with the seasonal rise and fall of the creek's water level.
Those features and variables, combined with the usual changes of lighting caused by clouds and the daily movement of the sun and the shadows, showed me such a great variety of appearances, moods, and water behaviors that I knew I would never run out of new views and details to see and photograph there.
53 feet of creek?
then I could hardly believe the number I saw displayed: 53.02 feet.
I knew that my selection of the starting and ending points wasn't likely to be
accurate even to a whole number of feet, much less hundredths of a foot, but I didn't
care at all. Seeing that number on my monitor caused a permanent increase in the delight I feel whenever I say (or think, or type)
fifty-three feet of creek.
The Artist
I'm photographer whose most frequent subjects are mountain creeks and river rapids. I never really decided on that specialty, but I got pulled into it as I increasingly realized that fast-flowing or flying water performs in more remarkable ways than I'd ever imagined. Gently flowing water also fascinates me with the colors and patterns of its reflections. And if you look over the pictures of this gallery, you'll see that many other kinds of natural features entice me to give them the best portrayal I can. I hope you'll see imagery here that for you is both beautiful and new!
From Click to Print
My creation process is centered around the idea of a distinction between photography and photography art. I am not a photo journalist sworn to present the visual facts of an event exactly as they happened. My goal is to present to you the feeling of a scene as I experienced it or envisioned it being experienced. I capture many exposures of a scene and then review, select, and edit until I feel that vision has been transferred to the screen.
From Print to Home
The selection of printers is as much a part of my creation process as the choice of an angle or digital edit. I have confidence in my printers and the quality and consistency of their work, but if a picture has not been translated from digital to print before, you can expect I will take extra time to review and potentially repeat the print to be sure it is just right.
If you have questions about the fulfillment of your order, please don't hesitate to reach out at contact@53feetofcreek.com.
Utah Valley Parade of Homes, 2026