Canon EOS 5D Mark III

When James (Jim) Johnson retired from a 25-year career as a software developer for IBM, he had already been working as a contract technical editor for Microsoft. After his retirement, technical editing and writing became his primary source of income to cover the cost of his "toys", most of which were computer equipment and photographic equipment.

Jim's involvement with cameras began in the mid '50s when he needed to record the interior of caves in Kentucky. At the time, the greatest challenge was to provide adequate illumination in a manner that did not defile the caves; thus he purchased a Leica 3F camera (which was the norm at that time) and experimented with numerous lighting sources. He was later able to add a nice piece of brass-and-glass manufactured by Canon during the post-war occupation. That 100mm telephoto lens was every bit as sharp and capable as the Leica lenses. And so began an appreciation for Japanese camera equipment. There have been numerous Nikon cameras and lenses over the years, but Jim's peers are ardent Canon enthusiasts, so he now enertains himself by exploring the latest Canon products.

Jim and his wife Heather live on the California coast with their home overlooking the Morro Bay estuary. The coast, the bays, and the mountains combine to host a vast array of botanical subjects which are the focus of Jim's current photographic interest.