Thank you for spending time with me.
Up until my early 20s the only interest I really had in life revolved around boating, fishing, surfing and anything else related to water. Then my dad gave me his old Olympus OM10 and unexpectedly my life changed forever. Don’t get me wrong, I have never lost my affinity for the aforementioned, but photography became a passion. The works of Ansel Adams and Edward Weston were early inspirations, but honestly, the advice and encouragement from a local photography Christopher Chaston really pulled me up the steep learning curves. Film wasn’t cheap for a beginner.
Pre Internet, I read every book possible to “self-educate” myself and was fortunate to find one called “The Art of Seeing”. It wasn’t so much the technical jargon inside that schooled me, but the title itself. Since then, I have always endeavored to understand what I see and convey it through photography.
A little later on I landed a marketing job (why I went to college) for an international boat manufacturer and had the opportunity to work with several well known photographers within the industry. The technical side of “creating the shot” became just another building block in my art. Then I met Amy, my soon to be wife and most significant source of inspiration. At the time she was working for a law firm and their office walls were adorned with the likes of Clyde Butcher and Steve Vaughn. And you have heard the term “I want to be like Mike”, well……their names were Clyde and Steve. I was fortunate that the firm really liked my work and purchased a number of prints. Having my work hanging next to symbols of photographic success was intoxicating. It was at this moment I knew I wanted to be more than a photographer, I wanted to be an artist.
Since then I have used my talents as a professional architectural and landscape photographer. I have competed in numerous local contest and even won the Jeanne Trommel “Best In Show” award in the St. Augustine Art Association and numerous first place wins in the St. Augustine Camera Club and more recently for the St, Johns County 200th anniversary photography contest. My work has been published in a variety of local and regional magazines and has been exhibited in several galleries.
These days you will typically find me out exploring the wilds of North Florida or in my darkroom making prints. Most recently, the exploration of Alternative Processes including Infrared Photography and Palladium Printing have become “My Art of Seeing”.
Quick Bio:
Born and raised in St. Augustine, FL
Graduated BA University of Central Florida (Go Knights!)
SAMS Accredited Marine Surveyor (www.capomarine.com)
USCG Master Captain
Past President of the St.Augustine Camera Club (SACC)
Currently shooting (digital): Sony A7R, Sony a6500 and Nikon D800E
Currently shooting (analog): Chamonix FN2 (4x5), Fuji GX 6x9, Bronica SQB and various 35mm)
Paul C. Buff Einsteins, Pocket Wizards and Sekonic Light Meters
Artist Statement:
Art is the outcome from a vision and its creative expression.
As an artistic photographer I am wired with the constant need to visualize the world around me as if it were displayed on a piece of paper, and then working out the solution on how to make it reality. Imagine your eyes are the lenses for a perpetual movie camera. Occasionally, the brain converts into slow motion and a scene is composed in the mind. Does it work…Can it work? What will it take to make it work?
That is my mindset most days, especially if I’m out exploring. Other days I have a vision of a scene I would like to capture. Now let’s find that scene and make it happen. I’m most comfortable searching from my boat or hiking through the woods. I like the the exploration. Finding that vision in the natural world is satisfying. And admittedly, I like the aloneness. It de-clutters my mind and helps me focus on the vision.
The visions are usually in Black and White. Primarily, because it’s where I started, and after many years have grown to love colorless, yet tonal rich imagery. It evokes stronger emotions. And like the polarity between “all or none”, so go most reactions.
Wether it’s random or conceived, my eyes and brain are constantly on the search for the next shot.
How do I satisfy this addiction? Preferably with either an infrared or large format film camera and a darkroom print.
Some would ask, why go backwards, why create using historic techniques?
I find that it has become more than just pressing the shutter and share buttons. The process of creating, especially the “hands-on” approach of manual controls, the sound of a mechanical shutter, the crafting of chemicals, and the feel of cotton rag paper. This approach was meant for the visions in my head.
I would also add that the older I get, I am captivated with “the moment” and making it last. The time it takes to study a scene, the unfolding of the camera, the calculation and duration of an exposure, seconds till the next film rotation and even the excruciating wait to flip a developing print. It all adds up to create a single piece of art.
There is nothing more gratifying than when your vision comes to light, while floating in a wash-bath, from a days long journey and a single click of the shutter. Then pack it all up and prepare for another journey while your reward hangs drying.
This explains the photographer in me. The artist is much more complicated.
Again, thank you and enjoy. BC