I Am the New American Society of Photographers Fellow!

Back in July, I completed one of the most challenging endeavors of my photographic career: applying for the American Society of Photographers Fellowship.

To give you an idea of what this process entails, applicants must first complete a detailed application and meet a long list of requirements. In addition, you must write a minimum 2,000-word paper chronicling your life, growth as a photographer, and the journey that led to the creation of the 25 images submitted for review.

Then there are the images themselves.

The 25 photographs are evaluated by a jury of past Fellowship recipients and highly respected photographers. The images must not only be strong individually but also work together as a cohesive body of work when displayed on a gallery wall in three rows. Narrowing down those images can be an overwhelming task when you have more than half a million photographs to choose from.

Fortunately, I had help from my good friend Gregory Daniels. His advice was simple: send him what I believed were my best 50 images. He printed them, laid them out, and evaluated how they worked together as a collection. Through several discussions and revisions, we developed a presentation that felt both cohesive and representative of my work.

Then the real fun began—and yes, that's sarcasm.

If you're ever considering applying for an ASP Fellowship, give yourself plenty of time to write your paper and then double that amount of time. I certainly wish I had. Writing the paper became a journey of self-discovery as I reflected on my life, my photography, and the path that brought me to where I am today. Once the first draft was complete, I had to cut nearly half of it away to create a more focused and compelling story that connected with the images.

That proved to be the most difficult part of the entire process.

After having a trusted friend review both my paper and image presentation, I was told that, in its current form, it probably wouldn't make it. With only one week remaining before the deadline, I rewrote much of the paper. My brother Tracy and his wonderful wife Michelle stepped in to help, and their guidance made all the difference. They helped shape the story into something far stronger than I could have accomplished on my own.

On Saturday, I received a phone call from the chairman of the ASP Fellowship Committee. He explained that many photographers require several attempts before earning their Fellowship. Then he told me I was not one of those people.

I am honored to say that I am now the newest ASP Fellow.

The emotions that followed are difficult to describe—excitement, gratitude, pride, relief, and perhaps a little surprise. This recognition represents not only years of hard work behind the camera but also the support and encouragement of so many people along the way.

I would like to thank everyone who helped me throughout this process, especially my wonderful wife, Lynn. Her unwavering support, encouragement, and love have been the foundation of everything I have accomplished. Without her, I would never have reached this milestone.

Becoming an ASP Fellow is an achievement I will treasure for the rest of my life.