About Me

My passion for photography began when I was a young boy and my father handed me a cheap Brownie box camera and taught me about black and white photography. He had worked as an editor at a few small town newspapers where he learned the basics of photography and developing. Together we turned a closet into a darkroom and my passion has continued to this day.

For the past 39 years I have worked for the travel industry and about four years ago decided to turn my life long passion for photography into a profession. Since then I have been studying with New York Institute of Photography, read countless books and magazines and hundreds of professional articles. Though I am available for special events such as beach weddings and retirement parties, as a Florida photographer my favorite is wildlife and nature photography.

Florida travel is for photographers and non-photographers alike. As a Florida Photographer here is why I have chosen Florida as my home state.

As a Florida Photographer the answer is simple. Event photography is exciting and with so many other beautiful and exciting places to visit in our incredibly unique and beautiful United States I can't be everywhere. During my 63 years I have been very fortunate in being able to visit all 50 states, most of them two or more times and I have decided that Florida is where I prefer to hang my hat.

Don't get me wrong, I still travel frequently and love every state for its uniqueness. Florida however has just about everything all of the other states have with the obvious exceptions of majestic mountains and snow. O.K., we do practice our snow removal in the Tampa Bay area about once every ten years provideing we are up before sunup on the day it arrives or it will have melted and we have to wait another ten years. Mose Florida photographers rarely get to photograph snow.

My family moved to the sunshine state of Florida from Roanoke, Virginia during July of 1959. How do you say "HOT," but I loved it. We checked out the upper keys then settled into the Fort Lauderdale area for a few months before moving a little farther north to Lake Worth.

New Year's day 1960 arrived with a high of around 80 . . . flip-flops to prevent burning my feet on the hot tar pavement, shorts and a fishing rod and I knew I was hooked. With no air conditioning we spent most of our free time outside to take advantage of the mild breezes that blow most of the year. Tony the Tiger would be quick to tell you that the ability to cruise or walk the beaches of Lake Worth or West Palm Beach anytime of the year is "GRRRREAT." Today this Florida photographer checks out Clearwater and St. Petersburg beach frequently.

As a Florida photographer my galleries will focus primarily on Florida and I will have frequent articles and updates about the many towns, such as Everglades City on the western edge of the Everglades and Steinhatchee located in the Big Bend area and known for its fishing and scalloping. Links to my other galleries of areas such as Colorado, Maine or Alaska and others we plan to visit in the near future will also be added once complete.

Let me take a moment to mention that my wonderful wife Kathy and I have traveled extensively outside the United States as well. As a young man right out of high school I enlisted in the U.S. Navy and my three years of maturing while on active duty introduced me to several other cultures, spikeing an interest in me to travel and learn about our differences.

Since then Kathy and I have made numerous trips to Europe, Asia, the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas and of course our neighboring friends Canada and Mexico. As a college graduate with a degree in psychology I am curious about people in general so as we travel we meet with the locals to learn about their cultures and I have found that people are people worldwide with a primary desire to take care of their families and careers.

O.K., back to Florida and my decision to become a Professional Florida Photographer. Soon I will be retiring from my federal government career allowing me to focus entirely on my freelancing Florida Photographer business offering affordable professional photography services primarily to Florida residents but because I love to travel I will consider assignments to other states.

All my life I have loved photography then decided about four years ago while on assignment to Key West to turn professional. Since then I have been studying with New York Institute of Photography and will be graduating soon. As a Florida Photographer my equipment is all digital with a Canon EOS 20D and soon to acquire a Canon 1Ds Mark III. Everything is portable so that I can easily travel for location shoots, especially convenient for beach weddings or aspiring models wanting pool or beach shots added to their portfolios. It's great for landscapes and wildlife too. For wildlife shoots I have added a Canon 600mm EF lens for some really uique closeups. It's great for shuttle launches as well.

Very soon we will be adding a boat designed for the shallow gulf coast waters allowing photographers unique opportunities to get in very close to marine and wildlife without disturbing what nature has provided for our viewing enjoyment. I will be using this boat for photo tours of the thousands of key islands dotting the Florida coastline.

Kathy and I are also owners of a CruiseOne travel agency. If you are looking at cruising we work with all cruise lines worldwide and can arrange the best possible cruise experiences for your personal needs.

We recommend you take time to enjoy the port area for a couple of days prior to or just after your cruise. With the exception of Jacksonville we have cruised from all of the Florida ports and can explain to you how to get the most from your visit. We have also cruised out of Los Angeles along the Baja Peninsula of Mexico and from Vancouver, B.C. to Alaska. Every cruise has been a unique and incredible experience.

When you have a special event (weddings, retirement parties, etc.) you need a professional Florida photographer to shoot, whether on land or aboard a cruise ship contact us. If you are on a tight budget we most likely can assist you.

Wishing for you only happy memories . . .

Don Stilton