Rafe comes from an experimental particle physics background having participated from the early 1970’s in the construction of many of SLAC’s state-of-the-art detectors and accelerators aimed at verification of the predictions of the Standard Model of elementary particle physics. Since 2006 Rafe and his group at SLAC have focused on the complex design of the elements of the large digital camera for the “Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time.” In combination, the Rubin Observatory LSST Camera and telescope residing in Chile, form the next generation ground based optical survey telescope facility. The 3-ton LSST camera is the largest digital camera ever constructed. Having 3.2 Gigapixels, its requirements on image quality and readout speed has driven a design that must utilize new materials and technologies throughout. These range from novel laser - metrological techniques, a large SiC ceramic support structure, a high vacuum-support vessel, and a cascaded cold and cryogenic cooling system for the focal plane and electronics. Much of this development work has been carried out at SLAC and then implemented in the camera design and its interfaces to the telescope. The LSST camera is currently being commissioned and tested at SLAC before heading to Chile, where the observatory site and telescope are themselves fast approaching completion.