My name is William Overton Payne Snead, III. For the better part of my life, I have been called “Snead” or “Sandy” and sometimes other names. It all works.

I am a Washington & Lee School of Law graduate. I practiced Law (and occasionally taught law school) for the better part of 37 years. That is another way of saying that I have had my head stuck in a pencil sharpener for the better part of 37 years. For the practitioner, there is precious little time for anything else, and anything else, for me, was in the form of counter-weighted stress: running long distances and blue water sailing. I left the practice a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers… a recognized master of the trial lawyers craft. There was nothing more for me to prove.

Today I am a nature photographer. It is a joy to say that. I am not a master of my new craft, not even close. Mostly self-taught, I am endlessly a beginner with something new to learn every day. This website is a statement of my belief that nature and photography can be generous to us all.

While I have no formal training in nature photography, it is fair to say that I was never totally unprepared for the unique challenges of this discipline. To wit: having lived under a Marine Corps issue helmet during the 1967-68 monsoon seasons in the Cua Viet, Con Thein and Khe Sanh, and having survived years of off-shore squalls and nor’easters sailing the North Atlantic coast, there is no such thing as bad weather when it comes to photography. It is just another image to capture. After having spent years sweating jury deliberations, waiting on nature to do wonderful stuff is not a chore; it is a delight.

I live with my wife, Pat, and Labrador, Cappy, In Medfield, MA., Vienna, VA., and on my boat, “Keiki”. I have two great kids, Erin and Patrick, and five very interesting and talented grandchildren: Will, Palmer Grace, Quinn, Payton and Lily.

Website Dedication

This website is dedicated to the memory of Robert Marshall, my friend “Moon”. Robert, an award-winning producer, writer and editor - a visual media genius - took a personal interest in my work and encouraged me to publish. We started the journey together with a few images, a lot of laughter, and some whiskey. He was taken from us quite suddenly, long before our ongoing corroboration was a wrap. He is greatly missed. May you always go where laughter is the loudest, my friend.

And I throw roses at the feet of my new and very talented friend Kate Gordon of Lexington, Virginia - “The Maven” - who came to revive this project, fortified with patience and humor, in equal amounts.