Young shutterbug has eye for nature.

Byline: PROFILE by The Register-Guard

Name: Clayton Gray, 12, Springfield

Claim to fame: Budding photographer, soon-to-be seventh-grader at Briggs Middle School.

Early shots: Clayton's grandfather Bob Shaw, who lives in Salem and used to teach photography at Chemeketa Community College, first handed him a camera when he was 3 years old. Clayton snapped some shots of his family. When he was older, maybe 6 or 7, he had his first chance to use a digital camera. He took 152 photos of everything from his feet to the area under the sink.

Nature lover: Though he has shot birthdays and a wedding, he prefers to photograph nature. Animals are prettier and nicer than humans, he says. Nature is also good, he says, because "it's not gray, usually. It doesn't usually smell like pollution." He has captured his best images on vacations with his grandparents to Victoria, British Columbia, and Yellowstone National Park. A tall, thin kid with braces, he describes himself as "a little bit" peaceful and occasionally rowdy.

Contest experience: On his grandfather's encouragement, for the past two years he's entered photos in the Oregon Salon of Photography in the 12-and-under division at the State Fair. He edits, crops and prints his own images, then takes them to a blueprint shop to be mounted on foam core. So far, he's won two honorable mentions and one second-place ribbon. He also entered the adult category and though he didn't win a prize, two of his pictures were displayed. At the fair, one judge had this to say about his photo called "Big Butterfly:" "Wonderful textures & details! Nicely composed, too. The spots and lines on the branch are a big plus."

Proud mother: His mom, Sara Douglas, displays his prize-winning photos in her living room. Her dad, Shaw, also uses Clayton's photos in a calendar distributed to family members. She says her brother-in-law has taught Clayton how to track animals on hunting trips, which helps him in photography. "Uncle Randy shoots with his rifle and Clayton shoots with his camera," she says.

Other interests: Outside of photography, Clayton's No. 1 interest right now is video games - he was playing `Pikmin 2' Tuesday. He also enjoys being outside, riding bikes, swimming, going to open gym at the National Academy of Artistic Gymnastics and reading `Sonic the Hedgehog' comic books. This summer he's taking violin lessons. He will get to experiment with underwater photography on a trip to the Sunshine Coast in western Canada, where he and his friend Zach will go kayaking and rafting.

- Serena Markstrom

CAPTION(S):

Clayton Gray, 12, amateur photographer, says he likes to take pictures of nature because `it doesn't smell like pollution.'