THE STORY BEHIND THE CAMERA
I’m Mike. I started walking because I had to. At 412 pounds, with Type 2 diabetes and three back surgeries behind me, every step was first about getting my health under control.
Then the miles added up. The number on the scale came down. And somewhere along the way, the walks stopped being only about what I was trying to lose. I began paying closer attention to what was still around me: trails, light, water, birds, family, and those blink-and-you-miss-it moments that make a day feel bigger.
A camera gave the walking a purpose I could enjoy. I traded snacks for snapshots, collected the occasional bad joke, and found a reason to keep going outside. Walking With Camera is that story, from the first camera to the first real photo that made the whole thing click.
THE BEGINNING
My first camera was a Canon Rebel XT, bought around 2006 or 2007. I mostly used it in auto mode with the kit lens. It was a camera for trips, family memories, and the kind of pictures you take because you do not want to forget the moment later.
The camera came first. The walking story came later.
THE TURNING POINT
Type 2 diabetes, three back surgeries, and July 2024 brought the truth into focus. I had started at 412 pounds, and the doctor’s warning to get my health under control was the push I could not ignore.
That night I started walking. Not because it was dramatic. Because it was necessary.
LEARNING TO WALK AGAIN
At first I could barely walk 20 minutes. I used benches, rest areas, and any break I could find. The mall was a safe place to keep trying, and slow laps turned into longer ones.
The setting was not glamorous, but it worked. Sometimes the best training plan is a shopping mall and a stubborn streak.
FINDING THE OUTDOORS AGAIN
My first outdoor walk was at Prince William Forest Park. I had also hiked there as a kid in the 1980s, so it felt like returning to a place I already knew.
The trails were harder than the mall. My back and legs made sure of that. I adapted with equipment, especially my Walkstool, and learned that resting is part of the walk too.
THE IDEA WAS BORN
I took on about 20 miles of the Bull Run Occoquan Trail, split across two days. I started taking iPhone pictures of landscapes, trees, objects, and the journey itself.
The duck photo was terrible. Truly terrible. But it gave me the idea that photography could become the reason to walk, not just something I did after the walk.
WALKING WITH CAMERA BEGINS
I bought a Canon R7 and the RF 100-400mm lens and started learning photography for real. My first official camera walk was at Neabsco Creek Boardwalk, where I sat for hours learning settings and figuring out how the camera worked in the field.
I was very patient. The camera was not always as patient with me.
THE FIRST WALKING WITH CAMERA PHOTO
It was sunset. I almost thought the day was a failure. Then a goose came about 25 feet away. I adjusted quickly, captured the image, and realized I had found the thing that would keep me walking. That photo now hangs above my living room TV.
Sometimes the whole project starts with a terrible duck photo and a goose that decides to show up on time.
WHERE IT IS TODAY
I can walk many miles now. I’ve lost around 162+ pounds, and the camera has become my reason to explore.
Walking With Camera is still personal. It is still about health, but it is also about the places I see, the people I love, and the small moments that stay with me after the day is done.
