As a photographer (or artist in general), people often ask what my favorite subject to photograph is. At first, I loved capturing outdoor scenery and being able to keep mementos from all of the places I had traveled. During high school, as I furthered my photography career, I took an interest in portraits.

Even though portraits were fun and gave me the ability to transform people, I was always scared of offending them by said transformations. You have to capture the right light, the right angle and the right expression in order to portray the subject in a complimentary and flattering way. That being said, the answer to the question of my favorite subject to photograph is nature.

Nature is always available and ready to be captured in photographic form. It comes in different forms, all beautiful in their own way — through different weather and ever-changing seasons. Most of the time, pictures still fail to do nature justice because pictures can't convey the sound, smell and touch of the physical scene. However, the vivid colors, the sky's attitude and surreal visual aesthetic of the outside world can be expressed through photography.

This picture was taken in New Zealand, a country like no other. There are no words or descriptions, phrases or poems that would be able to represent New Zealand and all within. When I show people photos from my trip, oh's and ah's are all too familiar, but I always wish I could show them so much more.

Each picture has a story, of course, that often leads to many other stories. To me, portraits of nature can offer countless stories, from the journey and experience of a geographic location to the people met along the way. I have had many wonderful opportunities to travel, and with each trip, I have noticed that I tend to gravitate towards nature and all of its wonders when I'm snapping pictures.

"What's your favorite subject to photograph?"

Nature. It's loyal, yet ever-changing and always leaves room for its own unexpected and magnificent result.