Jan Cox was born in Wisconsin to creative parents who loved to travel. Her father also loved photography and had built a dark room in their home in one of the walk-in closets. But as the family grew he had to give up that room and so began taking colored slides. Part of the family fun was watching slide shows of the places they had been.

When Ms. Cox was about 10, she received her first camera, a Brownie box camera. She was hooked. She has always had some kind of camera from that time on. After marriage to her husband, John, they too traveled throughout the United States, photographing scenery along the way. Many trips were between Wisconsin and San Jose area of California where they moved after college graduation. Later they moved to the Sierra of northern California.

Busy with a career in teaching, photography was used mainly to mark the important happenings in their lives: the birth and growth of their two children, family, friends, and vacations and the beautiful scenery of their area.

It wasn’t until she retired that Ms. Cox became serious about photography. She took several classes and worked on her photos, and her joy in photographing grew when she received a Canon DSLR that had a macro lens and a zoom all in one. She loves taking macro photos of flowers along with landscapes. In her mountain home, she took part in local art shows such as “Art Around the Lake” and was a member of a cooperative gallery where she sold her framed photos, calendars and cards.

When the Coxes became snowbirds in Arizona, Ms. Cox joined the Camera Guild of Sun City, entered the competitions, helped with First Fridays, took classes that are offered on many subjects and is now on the board of directors and is the education chairperson for classes. She takes part in many of the Grab and Go trips offered by the club. Ms. Cox says she is still trying to learn all the ins and outs of her newest camera.

For Ms. Cox, photography is a way of expressing the emotions she feels when out in nature, absorbing the beauty that exists in our world. “Capturing that which fills me with joy is the greatest gift I can ever give to myself,” she said.