“I’ve always been a water baby,” says Jim Strand, a Plymouth photographer. Strand is a retired computer production manager, but he’s had a love for photography since he was 18 years old.
Strand was stationed at Fort Lewis in Washington state for a short time in his youth. Compared to his hometown of Madison, Wis., the mountains and hills of the West Coast were a far different experience than the lakes of the Midwest. Struck by the beauty, Strand began his photography hobby, primarily focusing on pictures of nature.
Strand enjoys taking photos in the parks around him, including Three Ponds Park, his favorite residential park. Sometimes he has to fight against the natural elements to get a perfect photo. “I’ll take a telephoto lens to capture wildlife, which means when I go out, there’ll be no wildlife,” he says. “Or I’ll take a macro lens to capture wildflowers, which means the wind will ruin the photo.”
Having spent most of his life working on his hobby, Strand has been trained to look at life differently. “Photography has awakened my eye to look at life photographically,” he says. “I’m always looking for photos, even if I don’t have my camera on me.”
