Pelican Island Preservation Society info
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Pelican Island Preservation Society info
PO Box 1903, Sebastian, Florida 32978-1903
Member: Cultural Council of Indian River County and
Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce
I met my wife, Tonya, at the college where we were both studying painting and photography. Back then, I was not as confident as I am now and it was really an uphill task to make her know of my affection. But our love for what we were studying worked out the odds and we finally ended up marrying a year after we cleared college. From the proceedings we had made from our photography career we bought a house in Florida and that is where we live up to today. She wanted to drag me back to her hood in Miami but my heart was in California so she had to follow my wish. Honestly I did lots of convincing to make her change her mind and settle in Florida (I’m a very convincing man when it comes to the ladies). Anyway, let’s go into what I wanted to share with you today: our photography story as couples.
Photography and wildlife painting is our thing
Wildlife is one thing that has fascinated me right from my childhood. I love nature and that is why I chose a career in photography. My wife did not grow loving photography but her father was a renowned photographer in Miami and he wanted her daughter to keep the family history. She tells me she wanted to be a nurse but I always remind her that she would never have met me. She jokes that I’m never a great man that she wished to marry but I know she never means that. Ladies do lie so I never take offense in her banters. What we share is the love for photography and wildlife painting. I remember in my proposal to marry her I painted for her a pelican and I knew she would never turn me down. In fact, we customized our rings to have wildlife theme since this is the first thing which brought us together.
Our adventure at the Pelican Island
There are moments in life that will never go away from our memories. We may never be the best couples but one thing is for sure; we are best at our photography profession. Last year we decided to take our adventure to the Pelican Island. Of all the wildlife out there, this is one bird that we never get enough photographs. We packed our gear, cameras and never forgot the versatile telephoto lens and chartered a boat to the Island. This was our 5th marriage anniversary and we wanted to mark it with something we really enjoy. Forgive us; we are never the couples who like anniversary parities with family and friends. Our stay and experience at the island turned out to be one of the best that we ever had in our 5-year career. We got the close ups and long ranges photos we could only imagine of. When we got back home, we sold the photos for top dollar in our city’s wildlife magazine. We ended up getting some job offers with the magazine but we like doing it the freelance way since this is where the best experience comes from.
We disagree as couples but never as photographers and wildlife enthusiasts
Sometimes I tend to think that Tonya and I were never supposed to be couples. We have no common interests apart from being wildlife and photography fanatics. She likes American football and I like basketball; she dies for stand-up comedy while I love Sci-Fi. The list of different likes is not in any way exhaustible. There are times that she gets mad at me and threatens to file a divorce. But the good news is that I know how to turn her around. The trick is just to suggest a good idea of a photography picnic and she will be like “when do we go”. I did not tell you this; the visit at the Pelican Island was a get-away plan after we had disagreed on what school was best for our daughter, Tiffany. She wanted her to go to a private school and I strongly wanted a public school. But after we went for this weekend out, she agreed to my proposal and apologised for being so hard on me. I told you I know how to turn her around.
