My name is Tom Grubbe (pronounced groobie) and I live in Redlands California. I was born in Des Plains, IL August 22nd 1963 and have been a musican from the age of nine (a lead guitarist in many rock and roll bands) but never really thought about photography as something I might like. I moved to San Jose CA from Chicago IL got a software engineering education in order to get a "real job". Having given up music for a career in software development I was making steady money but was missing something from the creative side.
I started photography in December of 1997 after being influenced by a few of my fellow engineers from work who had taken up the craft and thought I might be good at it. Once I started I was completely hooked, even obsessed by creating images. It didn't matter how bad they were I just needed to take photos.
I bought a Canon EOS Elan II, some good Sigma lenses, a Gitzo tripod and a bunch more accessories. Like many people I started out using print film but quickly moved to transparency (slide) film to help to learn exposure and to have more control over my photography. I have since bought the Canon 1V for 35mm stuff and a (now obsolete) Canon 10D digital. Until recently my main focus had been on medium format photograhy using the awesome Pentax 67II (which I lost in the ocean at Big Sur). As of April 2009 I retired my film cameras for a Canon 5D Mark II as my primary setup which has totally changed my shooting style. I'm now shooting a much higher volume of good shots than I was with the 6x7 system and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.
Over the years I found several photo critique sites which you can browse from my Links page. Getting critiques and giving critiques has been a great way to learn technique and improve overall. I have to admit, since joining flickr in 2009 I've seen an exponential improvement in my work. I think flickr forces you to always do your best work and stay sharp. There's a huge amount of talent there and I'm inspired everyday!
Although I've mostly done landscape and seascape photography up until now I hope to learn portrait, stills, architecture, commercial and other specialities in the field. There is a great deal to learn and I'm always searching for ways to improve my photographic skills.
I recently began working with zenfolio.com in order to provide you with high-quality prints of my work (from mpix) as well as other merchandise such as calendars, greeting cards, stationary, etc.. In addition, I've had the good fortune to license several of my best images with the Getty Images stock agency for commercial and editorial use.
All of the photos on this site were taken with the following camera setup and accessories: