Occupation: I’m a freelance photographer. Usually I do travel and wildlife photos, and occasionally, weddings.

Family: My wife is Aimee. We’ve been married about 1½ years. I have two brothers and three sisters, and my father, Richard, lives in Southbury. My grandparents, Fred and Ann Seman, were in Newtown since the 1930s, and now my grandmother lives in Florida.

Pets: We don’t have any pets right now.

How long have you lived in Newtown? My whole life. I graduated from Newtown High School in 1986.

What do you like to do in your free time? I like to snow ski, play volleyball, and tennis. I practice yoga. And I love to travel. I’ve been going around the country, mostly each fall, ever since 9/11. I wanted to do something, and I was too old for the armed forces, but I do photography. I packed up my car, put a couple of American flags in it, and I traveled to universities, national parks, state capitals, and places of interest. The I’d ask people I met to hold one of the flags and photograph it. I traveled to all 50 states, and ended two years ago in Alaska. My last picture was taken on the 4th of July, on a fishing boat there. I’m trying to get a book of the photographs published now. The proceeds will go to support the Oklahoma bombing memorial and the four 9/11 memorials. Ninety percent of the people I approached said Yes. I have a preview of the photos on my website, thepatrioticspirit.com. I love the movies, too, and have actually been in six movies as an extra, when I lived in North Carolina.

Do you have a favorite actor? Probably Tom Cruise. I liked him in Jerry McGuire. That movie has a lot of positive stuff in it.

Do you have a favorite travel destination? It’s a toss up. Either Paris or Vienna. Those are two beautiful places, where the architecture is incredible. I’d move to either place in a heartbeat.

What is the best thing about Newtown? The best thing was growing up here, playing sports, and knowing people my whole life. There is always someone you can call on. It’s a friendly town and has a lot of history, and my family has been here a long time. Newtown is close to Boston and New York City, too, and that’s nice.

If you could spend a day with anyone, whom would you choose? Ben Franklin, because of his knowledge and inventions. He was one of the people who started this country, and with all of the ideas he had, his name should be more famous than the presidents’.

Do you have a personal philosophy? Treat others for whom they are, not for how much they are worth. You only live once, so you might as well be nice.

Do you have a guilty pleasure? I like dark chocolate. And a good pint of beer.