Alex Vance (or AlexV, as Buzznet may known him by) is a lifelong Beverly Hillbilly. Over the many years he’s been active in our community, he’s shared tidbits of information about his life as a lawyer in Los Angeles. Through our interview with him, we scratched past the surface of his humorous personality to discover the origin of his wit, how his snapshot photography has changed, and which Buzznet member would totally die in a plane crash. –Mark Oshiro, Community Manager, panasonicyouth

You've been around Buzznet for four and a half years. Admittedly, Buzznet's changed a lot from the early days of photoblogging, yet you've continued forward with sharing your life through photos. What (or WHO) has kept you here all these years?

I've made a lot of good friends on Buzznet, and I want to keep up with them. Also, I find that Buzznet has the best format for commenting on others' pictures, and then commenting on the comments. For example, I can embed HTML links in my comments, linking to another photo or an animated gif. The ball really gets rolling in the comments.

Also, I like the fact that I'm interacting with people from all over the world.

A great deal of what you blog about (both in photo and video form) is humorous. Where does your sense of humor come from? Has it always been a staple of your life?

Yes, I think humor is one of the great survival mechanisms in life. I'm not a trained art photographer like some of my friends here and I'm not into any particular music scene like most of the young Buzznetters, so I guess in Buzz-speak, "Humor is my BFF."

I think I've always tried to be funny. It's been a good way for me to break the ice with people and get whatever popularity I've ever had. I'm also a very private person, and humor is a good way of deflecting "serious" questions.

How do you think living in LA has both affected and inspired your photoblogging?

Los Angeles is the world capital of nuttiness, so there are always rich pickings of weird and wacky things to photograph. It's also very much a microcosm of the whole world, so one sees all sorts of different people thrown together and not quite understanding each other. The juxtapositions can be funny or moving.

How have your methods, goals, or intentions changed regarding what you choose to upload to Buzznet? Do you simply carry a camera around with you? What process goes into choosing what you photograph?

My methods have changed greatly. When I joined Buzznet, the best way to get a featured photo was to upload some really interesting rust covering a piece of iron. It was all very earnest, and a lot of photographers took their art very seriously. Since I knew (and still know) nothing about f-stops and shutter-speeds and all that, I was at a disadvantage.

Now its much more snapshot oriented, which suits me fine. Also, I gradually learned how to use Photoshop Elements to alter pictures, which is now a favorite hobby of mine. I find that a great way to comment on a picture is with another picture. I don't have any method other than to keep a camera handy and keep my eyes open.

Ok, that last question was technically three-in-one. Let's have some fun: Imagine your plane crashes on a island, like LOST. Which Buzznet member dies in the crash? Which members survive? Which member is the creepy native who stalks you?

I think I would probably be the one to die in the crash, if from nothing else, out of fear. I'm not a good flyer. Boz and Dawnanthony (Laciak) and Heatheristherock would certainly survive. They seem to have gotten through all sorts of unpleasantness and come up smiling. Frostedglass is the creepy native who stalks me. She has a jar of formaldehyde at the University of Vienna with my name on it.