Born in 1957 in Embudo, near Taos, New Mexico, Don spent his youth in Los Alamos and Chimayó. Growing up in these places fostered in him a love for the natural landscape and a deep appreciation of his cultural roots in the Rio Grande valley - subjects that have remained a focus of his work throughout his life. Don completed an undergraduate degree at the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to manage an ecological reserve in Big Sur, California. There he and co-author Paul Henson completed The Natural History of Big Sur, which includes dozens of Don's photographs. Don returned to New Mexico in 1988 to complete a Masters degree in cultural geography and soon after completed his second book, Sabino's Map: Life in Chimayó's Old Plaza, also illustrated with his photographs.
