I'm a software engineer and have been since the days when we were called programmers, so I'm knocking on a bit. I needed to find something to take my mind off of the stresses and strains of living/working/paying bills and decided to try to teach myself photography. I'm learning as I go along and find it really helps to deal with the stress and anxiety, especially if I can get outside and photograph plants and animals I find (birds and insects mostly).