There is just something about the common being. My education pretty much came from the streets, just connecting with people, different cultures. I gained the wealth just engaging at that level. I'm still like that. I continue to document everyday people versus the stars.

For the most part, as a society, we are not happy with ourselves.

Philip Jones Griffith documented the Vietnam War, and through his images that were published in Time Life Magazine, it showed me the horrors of war and at that time, I wanted to be a war photographer, based off his work.

There was a time in my life that I may not have been that nice, and now I'm in a position to contribute to the education of young people, and teach them to be compassionate, be more loving, more caring, to not use profanity, to not pollute the environment - these are things that I address in my photography. I

Photography is humbling, it really is, and it really allows for me to atone for some of the missteps I've made throughout the course of my life.

The images of war inspired me to create, to go to different situations and communities, to document the human side of people, to show a side that we don't see.

My camera is my compass; it's guided me to so many different places.