Biography
I was born in 1936 in Port Washington, NY and lived in a variety of places before we settled down in Great Neck, NY. I attended St. Mary’s High School in Manhasset, NY, graduating in 1954. I have been a photographer since 1950 when my brother and I had a black and white darkroom in the bathroom of our parents apartment in Great Neck, My first camera was a 35mm Voightlander Vitessa, that I still own. I earned money in college by photographing school events and selling prints to my classmates. Photography has been a part of my life ever since. I entered the U.S. Army in 1955 and in 1958 attended C. W. Post College and then transferred to night school at Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn (now NYU Poly) where I graduated with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. I spent 30 years working in the Engineering and Construction business and designed and managed the construction of a number of very large industrial projects for companies from E. R. Squibb to Allied Chemical and Proctor & Gamble. I started my own E&C company in 1977 and later sold it to a major engineering company in Philadelphia. In the mid 1980’s I joined my wife in a computer company we started to introduce engineers and architects to AutoCAD and 3D Studio. We sold that business to 22 of our competitiors in 1998 and retired six months later.
Artist Statement
I used my photography skills documenting construction projects throughout my engineering career. I became a digital photographer in the early 1990’s and embraced Adobe Photoshop as my digital darkroom at the same time. The liquid darkroom is long gone! After my wife and I retired in 1999 our travels have taken us all over the world and we both have huge libraries of images we have brought home from throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and South America. I shoot anything that catches my eye, but lean towards abstract views. Cars have always been a passion for me and you can see my extensive work on Corvettes at my website http://www.corvette-photography.com. Another avenue I have followed is the creation of multi-image collages that transform sculptures into statements that reinterpret the piece in my own vision. They are presented here for the viewers interpretation. Throughout the 2000’s I entered the Focus On Sculpture competition at The Grounds For Sculpture and won several awards and Honorable Mentions. I have been a member of the Raritan Photographic Society since 2000 and have advanced to the Salon class after earning consistently high scores and awards during the clubs monthly judged competitions. These are often Themed Competitons which make you explore the many angles of photography, from macro closeups to street photography and beyond. This is my third show at Alfa Gallery. My work has been seen at the Raritan Bay Gallery in South Amboy and Gallery 125 in Trenton, NJ. I enjoy the freedom that digital technology brings to the photographer. All the traditional tools are there along with an immense array of new techniques that allow me to instantly see the image I have just taken and explore ways to improve it on the spot. Long exposures and high speed stop action shots used to have to wait for the darkroom to see if you actually got the shot you wanted. Not any more! Everything is possible in this new digital photography, so if it catches your eye – shoot it!
