Red River Pros: Dan Shepherd

Dan Shepherd is a Seattle fine arts photographer with a background in environmental science and plant conservation. His work has been widely exhibited in galleries as well as published in books and magazines. The balance between urban living and love of nature is an ongoing pursuit for him and a universal human theme that drives his artistic practice. His approach to photography combines his love of drawing, painting, science and nature. He currently splits his time between the visual arts and working for conservation organizations.

The Assignment

Capture colors, shapes and textures of trees through abstraction.

The Execution

"This is a multiple exposure image from a grove of trees in Alaska done in the camera. The technique is a good way to photographically achieve an abstract approach to image making. I traveled to Alaska where only a handful of tree species are native before you get to the tundra where it is too cold for trees to grow. There I hunted for great examples of particular types of trees in order to create abstract portraits of them and the landscape."

"The image consists of three exposures with the camera held horizontally, vertically and upside down. Each image was framed to include a smaller portion of trees and a bigger portion of white fluffy clouds that overlapped each section of trees. I had a preconceived concept of how I wanted to paint on the pillowy cumulus clouds to add depth and softness and let the blue of the sky dominate the image. The final image has a mysterious tranquility to it."

Post Production

"The heavy lifting of the abstraction is all done in-camera. I shoot with a Nikon DSLR, which has a great multiple exposure feature that will blend several exposures into one image file as I shoot them. My post-production is minimal with some color correction and cropping to fine-tune the image for print."

The Output

As a fine art photographer, how the final print looks is paramount. I like how my “Blinded by Science” series looks on an exhibition quality matte paper that is brighter than the natural tones with a bit of texture, such as the 64lb. Aurora Art White paper. As a conservationist, the environment is also important to me. For other projects, I have made exhibition prints on Polar Gloss Metallic 255 (formerly 66lb. Polar Pearl Metallic) and San Gabriel Baryta SemiGloss 2.0 which are fantastic papers and a good value.

Contact

Dan Shepherd's web site is at: www.danshepherdimagemaker.com. He is represented by the DNJ Gallery in Santa Monica, CA. www.dnjgallery.net.

Favorite Papers

UltraPro Satin

UltraPro Satin looks and feels just like traditional photo lab paper and features a medium depth luster finish.

Favorite Of: Jim DiVitale & Peter Randall

River Linen

River Linen adds a special dimension to your printed image with its premium quality linen surface paper.

Favorite Of: JVS & Helene Glassman

Aurora Art

Made using fine 100% cotton rag content, Aurora Art White and Aurora Art Natural offers the look and feel of fine art paper.

Favorite of: Marilyn Sholin, Matt Hoyle, Susan McCartney, & Kaitlin Walsh

Arctic Polar Satin

With its crisp blue white shade, Arctic Polar Satin ensures your images will project more brilliance. Its state of the art microporous coating will enhance details and color saturation.

Favorite of: Al Francekevich & Susan McCartney

Polar Gloss Metallic 255

Your images will take on a brilliant, almost luminescent quality with Polar Gloss Metallic 255. Everything from airplanes to flowers will look bolder, more saturated, and more real.