Santa Barbara
BARNABY CONRAD III is the author of the popular books ""The Martini, Cigar,"" and ""Absinthe,"" His articles have appeared in more than thirty publications, including ""Smithsonian, The San Francisco Chronicle, Art in America,"" and ""Travel & Leisure,"" He lives in San Francisco, California.Marc Muench was born in Santa Barbara, California, where he now resides with his wife, Stefanie, and their three children. He has been a professional landscape and sports photographer for over 20 years. After completing his studies at Pasadena Art Center College of Design, Marc immediately began photographing for book publishers such as Graphic Arts Center, Browntrout Publishing, and Time Inc. His photographs have appeared in numerous magazines, books, calendars, and postcards, and in 2003, he was designated as a Kodak Photo Icon.Marc is now the artist-in-residence at dgrin.com for Smugmug, where he contributes on a regular basis to the    Muench University    critique thread. He is also the photo editor of the National Parks Guide, published by The American Park Network. The guides contain many of his images taken throughout the United States National Park system.Marc recently completed a year-long video project on Catalina Island for the Catalina Island Conservancy. The five-minute video highlights the new Trans Catalina Trail, capturing dynamic landscapes, wildlife, and hikers exploring their way across the Island.Marc  ™s goal is to convey the drama and the power of nature  ""to share the    experience     "" in his photographic images. And his images show that, without a doubt, Marc has achieved his goal time and time again.