About the Artist

Ray's Family Portraits

Ray served as a U.S. Army Paratrooper Scout in a Recon Platoon, in the 1st Airborne Battle Group,  327 Infantry, 101st Airborne Division. 
Ray's Army Years   101st Airborne Association Oregon

Several years after leaving the Army he attended college. Upon graduation from college in 1968 with a major in photography, Ray had already been working as a professional photographer part time for over two years. 

Having an art background in his younger years, photography came easy for Ray. He received top honors for his work while in College.  He won "Photographer of the Year" for his graduating class.   

After College Ray has continued attending numerous professional photography, art & design, schools, classes and conferences. 

Fine Art, both drawing and painting, are areas  of interest. Today Ray uses his artistic skill, not only to create beautiful photographic portraits, creative commercial photography, pencil drawings and and oil painting,  he now uses his skills creating "Special Effects Photography", with Adobe's Photoshop software program.

Ray started his photography career with a large prestigious studio operation in Los Angeles California, rising to General Manager of a chain of ten studios and one of the largest professional color labs in the country. Managing three company studios and Portrait Studios in the Prestigious  Robinson Department Stores throughout Southern California were invaluable experiences. 

He also worked a short time in the Motion Picture industry, as a still photographer on a major motion picture Mt Saint Helen's a movie about the Mt Saint Helen's volcano eruption staring Art Carney and David Huffman.  Mt St. Helens Film Link

Ray has photographed commercial assignments for some of the larger corporations and businesses in the country.

Ray opened his first Studio in Costa Mesa, California in 1973. In 1982 He located his studio in Fullerton California in the up scale Villa Del Sol. The Original "Hotel California". 

Westbrook Studio Location photos

Five years later, needing more room for his expanding business, he moved to a large studio facility  in the Anaheim Hills area of Orange County, California.  Drawing customers from as far away as San Diego (100 miles to the south) and Oxnard (100 miles to the north)  Ray's photography studio flourished.  

Former owner of Aerial West, Orange County, California, an Aerial  photography company.   Ray holds a Commercial Pilot license with an Instrument Instructors Rating and has been a licensed pilot for over 45 years. Ray currently flight instructs  and continues his Aerial Photography business here and throughout Oregon. Past member of the Christian Missionary Pilots Assciation.
{Airplanes}

Ray was President and co-founder of ACSS  Inc. (Access Computer Software Systems), and in 1987 he developed a Computer software program "Studio Access" which became the premier management program for the portrait photography studio industry for over a decade.

Ray has won numerous awards for his photography and contribution to the professional photography industry.

His work has hung in museums and some of the finest and most expensive homes and mansions in Southern California. He is a Certified Professional Photographer by the Professional Photographers of Southern California.

Ray has instructed other professional photographers at such prestige  photography schools as; 

West Coast School of Professional Photography at the Brooks Institute of Photography  in Santa Barbara, California.

Triangle Institute of Photography in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

Golden Gate School of Professional Photography in San Francisco, California.

He has lectured other professional photographers at numerous state and regional conventions. This has earned Ray the degree of "Photographic Craftsman" from the Professional Photographers of America.

In 1990 Ray semi-retired from his large studio operation and re-located his business' to Oregon, to the beautiful town of Sweet Home.

Since he was a child, Ray has had a deep love for animals.  
He has raised and owned everything from horses to chickens and everything in between.  As a professional photographer, he has been photographing domestic as well as wild animals for over 40 years . He now offers a line of "Wild Animal Portraits" for sale with the unique Westbrook Artistic touch (see Photos for Sale). 
{Rays Horses}       {Ray and Sheila's Animal Family}

Ray is a Christian, and has studied and taught the Bible for over 30 years. When living in California he attended Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa for over two decades. 

He was one of the first to offer Christian Posters. View Posters. 

While living in Bend, Oregon  Ray had teaching programs on Christian radio station KSBC Sonshine 92.  From this experience Ray wrote a movie script called "Final Warning"

Ray has also published a book called. "How to Get to Heaven the easy way".