artist statement

It is often difficult for me to formulate adequate words to describe the thoughts in my head when wandering in the woods or swimming in the sea.  That’s why I prefer photographs! These are simply just some words behind the photographs that exist here – for better or worse – but are genuine, reflecting my true feelings and experiences.

There are particular aesthetics we, as humans, are naturally drawn towards, which result from our evolutionary history in reacting to our environment and threats to our survival.   However, the excitement of discovery can be lost in a lack of insight or ability to harness, understand, or portray it in a meaningful or respectful way.   These moments, so full of potential, can be quite fleeting, literally gone in the blink of an eye.

Whether in the sea or on land, I am merely an observer, an explorer.   I see myself as a perpetual student, always arriving late to an infinite classroom, and vastly unqualified to fully comprehend the complexities and connections of life on this planet.

Yet, I have a natural curiosity about connecting dots, at least in the minuscule sliver of time of my own existence.   I firmly believe in the premise that nature is never wasteful, so everything serves a purpose.  Small things, big things, moving things, still things, the softest whispers to the deafening roars.

It is usually something graphically interesting that first catches my eye, a little spark of wonder.  Then, a conversation begins.    So these photographs are records of those conversations.

certifications

• Michigan Master Naturalist – Michigan State University
• FAA Part 107 Unmanned Pilot
• Climate Change: Science and the Global Impact – eDx, Dr. Michael Mann
• SCUBA; Open Water, Master Diver, Stress & Rescue, Dive Control Specialist, Limited Visibility – SSI

exhibitions

• The University of Michigan Hospital, Gifts of Art program – North Taubman Lobby, Feb 17-Apr 17, 2003 – Fine art nature photographs framed and matted, 28 pcs 18×24, 2 pcs 24×30
• Sterling Heights Artist of the Month, City Hall Exhibit, Apr 2003

honors

2013 ~ Science Friday Winter Nature Photo Contest Finalist
1997 ~ Nature Conservancy Wildlife and Wild Places photo contest, Honorable Mentions
1997 ~ Ford Seahorses Underwater Photo Contest, 2nd Place Diver Portrait

partial publication history tear sheets

2026 ~ Headline/featured photo – Planet Detroit, “Detroit gathering focuses on role of environmental justice in Michigan’s climate work“
2025 ~ Headline/featured photo – The Guardian, “Landmark US study reveals sewage sludge and wastewater plants tied to PFAS pollution,” by Tom Perkins
2024 ~ Headline/featured photo – Planet Detroit, “‘Hiding donors’: Attorney says Michigan anti-renewable ballot effort may have broken campaign finance law”
2024 ~ Headline/featured photo – Medpagetoday, “The Green New Deal for Health Should Not Be Kept a Secret,” by Elizabeth Cerceo, MD
2023 ~ Headline/featured photo – Carbon Brief, “How the Inflation Reduction Act narrows the gap to US climate goals“
2022 ~ Headline/featured photo – Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), “Why Congress Must Pass the Climate Bill“
2021 ~ Michigan Environmental Council Annual 2019-2020 Report – cover and interior pages
2021 ~ American Airlines – American Way
2021 ~ New Statesman (UK) article “How Nature Reclaims Places Humans Have Abandoned“
2020 ~ Lenswork “Our Magnificent Planet” selected work
2020 ~ America’s Most Beautiful Urban Parks, National Geographic
2020 ~ Featured photo essay, cover photo, and article, Michigan BLUE Spring 2020
2020 ~ Photo use, The Sun – news article on climate change
2020 ~ Inside image, National Wildlife Magazine, Apr 2020
2020 ~ Cover photo, Ranger Rick Jr. Feb 2020, National Wildlife Federation
2019 ~ Research paper illustration, A Zabala – Nature Sustainability, 2019 – nature.com, “Pollinator Policies“
2018 ~ Photo essay contributor, “Winter’s Beauty” Michigan BLUE magazine
2018 ~ Cover photo, Climate Change and Intergenerational Justice by Tracey Skillington
2018 ~ Psalms 16-month calendar 2018, Month of January
2016 ~ Headline/featured photo – BBC Earth Wolf Pack in Epic Hunt
2017 ~ Cover photo, Special Operations from a Small State Perspective, by Gunilla Eriksson & Ulrica Pettersson
2017 ~ Cover photo, Zoobooks Bears by Wildlife Education Ltd
2017 ~ Cover photo novel, Wolf’s Mouth by John Smolens, Michigan State University Press
2015 ~ Web image, Accuweather.com Lake Superior Waterspout, Alex Sosnowski
2015 ~ Cover photo, Michigan BLUE magazine Fall issue
2015 ~ Feature photos, “For Land’s Sake“, Michigan BLUE magazine
2015 ~ The Curious Nature Guide by Clare Walker Leslie, p.95
2014 ~ Inside full-page introduction, Grosse Pointe Yacht Club 100 Years celebration book
2014 ~ Cover photo, Michigan BLUE magazine Fall issue
2014 ~ Calendar photos, Farley Calendar Company
2014 ~ Photo essay contributor, “Freeze Frames” Michigan BLUE magazine, Winter issue
2013 ~ Back cover, novel Quell’attimo di felicità by Federico Moccia, Mondadori Publishing Italy
2013 ~ Cover photo, Wild Ohio, 2013 Wildlife Calendar issue, Ohio Division of Wildlife
2013 ~ Calendar photo, Farley Calendar Company
2012 ~ Featured photo, “A Fracked Photograph“, Dot Earth post by Andrew Revkin, New York Times
2012 ~ Feature photos, 60 Second Exposure, B&W Magazine BW142
2012 ~ Inside photo, Sierra Magazine, Sierra Club Mar/Apr ’12
2011 ~ Cover photo, Weekly Reader (classroom magazine for children)
2011 ~ Photo spread, Cincinnati Magazine, 20 Dream Weekends feature story
2011 ~ Cover photo, The MacGuffin, Schoolcraft College Spring-Summer issue Vol XXVII No.3
2010 ~ Cover photo, Michigan BLUE Magazine Winter Issue
2010 ~ Inside photo, Sierra Magazine, Sierra Club Jan/Feb ’10
2009 ~ Calendar page cover photo, Mutual Of Omaha Wild Kingdom, July
2008 ~ Inside photo, Opossums children’s book by Sally M. Walker
2007 ~ Cover photo, Whisper in the Woods (Michigan Governor’s Edition)
2006 ~ Back cover, Whisper in the Woods
2005 ~ Underwater photograph, interview, “Catch your dreams while you still can,” by Kimberly Hayes Taylor, Detroit News, March 28, 2005
2001 ~ Diving article photos, The South End, Wayne State University newspaper
1999 ~  Opinion column photographs, Orchard Ridge Recorder

Corporate & Hospitality Wall Art 

Grande Cheese Home Office and Research Center, Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin – 18 Pieces, Fine art nature photographs matted and framed

These pieces accompany more than 200 other pieces of artwork in this stunningly gorgeous, Gold LEED-certified state-of-the-art facility.   All celebrating nature and Grande’s commitment to sustainability.

Dow Corning Business Services Center, Uptown Bay City, Michigan, 47 pieces, fine art nature prints, 20×30 to 30×45

The pieces at this new Dow building and welcomed highlight of the Uptown area celebrate the Great Lakes region, nature’s intimate details, and Michigan’s scenic landscapes.

Tellus Luxury High Rise Apartments, Arlington, Virginia, 10 pieces, 12×18 & 16×24 framed art prints for offices and common areas

Business Workspaces, El Dorado Hills, California, abstract art print 30×40

Healthcare & Hospital Nature Art

University Health Systems, San Antonio, Texas, Blood Donor Rooms, 10 pieces, nature wall art 16×24

Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital, West Bloomfield, Michigan, Feng Shui designed expansion centered on evidence-based design  – patient lodges, maternity/prenatal care, hallways, visitor areas, 70 pieces fine art nature prints, multiple sizes and mountings to 24×36

Henry Ford Hospital Detroit, Michigan, Radiology, 3  landscape art prints mounted on Sintra 36×48

Henry Ford Macomb Hospital, Clinton Township, Michigan, 3 leaf prints 24×36, framed/matted

St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Whitewater Urgent Care Unit, Pontiac, Michigan, 3 pieces Michigan nature prints 16×24

St. John’s Medical Center, Escanaba, Michigan, 3 pieces nature prints 20×30

Carle Center for Philanthropy Hospital, Urbana, Illinois Tomography Unit, backlit panel 5 ft x 3 ft

Ward Orthodontics, Lansing, Michigan, 4 pieces, Landscape photography on canvas 40×60

For over 20 years, Mark’s photography has been published in various magazines, calendars, newspapers, greeting cards, and books.  It is licensed for advertising, financial, travel, television, film, and education industries.

His work appears in many healthcare settings such as hospitals, pain centers, dentist offices, and mental health treatment centers, where the calming influence of nature photography is favored.

Inquiries from art consultants, architects, and art planning commissions are welcomed.

Distinguished worldwide clients include:

National Geographic, BBC, New York Times, The Guardian, NRDC, Sierra Club, Spellman Brady, Henry Ford Health Systems, OSF Healthcare, Kinzelman Art, Zoobooks, Michigan BLUE, University of Michigan Press, Eleanor Curtain Publishing, Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, and many others.

cameras

I always liked this quote by Brooks Jensen;

“Never forget that all the great photographs in history were made with more primitive camera equipment than you currently own.”

Even a subset of photoGrafs makes this case.  😉

However, people innocently ask, “What camera do you use?” because it is a natural impulse perhaps to associate better photos with better gear, as if it provides any insight into creating any particular image. (spoiler alert – it doesn’t. ) It helps to a degree.  No doubt, photography can be gear-intensive and photographers gear-obsessed.  The often-used quip that a camera is only a box that captures light is also overly reductionist and ignores the contributions some technologies make to creating new and exciting photographs.

If people must know, I use mostly professional Nikon and Fuji cameras and a variety of OEM and third-party lenses.  Camera body choice is primarily a personal preference that fits the functions you need it for. These days, most of them are great.

For lenses, nobody can argue with the love for great glass. Use the best you can afford.

Aerial photos are using a sUAS (small unmanned aerial system, aka drone), for which I am an FAA Part 107 certified remote pilot, except for a few that were taken from a hot air balloon.

I follow the philosophy that exposure is only the starting point in the execution of an idea or feeling.  I develop my work using professional tools like Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop, and various plugins like Tony Kuyper’s Luminosity Masking.  I even print my work on stuff older folks might know as paper to bring images into the real world, if only to survive that eventual EMP strike.

code

My website is self-designed using Divi from Elegant Themes, self-administered, and constantly tweaked and cursed at. It seems it is never truly finished. Often, I can’t leave well enough alone. So, as the saying goes, “pardon my occasional dust…“

There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes of maintaining a website, more than anyone (except other web designers) typically realizes.

backups

It is critical to back up your photos and data, whether online or on your computer at home or the office.  After trying many services over the years, I’ve ended up at the one that is the easiest for me to use, without throttling or any of the other “fine-print” restrictions:  Backblaze.

USE THIS LINK, you can get a free month (and earn me a free month).

other stuff

This site occasionally has some affiliate links, which may provide our dogs with a few extra treats via a commission if a purchase is made.   See my affiliate disclosure page for more information.