Ernest Marquez was born and grew up in Santa Monica Canyon on what remains of Rancho Boca de Santa Monica, the Mexican land grant awarded to his great-grandfathers in 1839. His research for Noir Afloat (his second book with Angel CIty Press) was an extension of his groundbreaking work for his bestselling book, Santa Monica Beach. While exhaustively researching primary sources, he began collecting original photographs, stereoviews and memorabilia, which have since become respected as the Ernest Marquez Collection.