'Six Suns'

How did you get into photography and when did you decide to become a photographer?

When I was about sixteen, I began taking photography and painting classes in my high school. Originally, I wanted to be like Cartier-Bresson. When I went to art school, I pursued painting and, for most of my undergraduate studies, forgot about making photographs. I did this because I became more drawn to the work of painters than I was with photographers. I tried making paintings that were about light but they never quite worked.At a certain point, photography became a better tool to describe light than using pigment, and it stuck.



'Light Reflecting Off Two Mirrors'


'5:56pm'

Your series 'Visible Light' is fascinating. How did you achieve such intriguing lighting effects?

There's a lot of planning involved.
When I make these pictures,I track light over several days and make notes about its location at various times.I usually make drawings and smaller digital pictures to get a general idea of what I want. Light moves very fast so I have to be quick when making the final picture, which is hard with an 8x10. I make very long exposures and sometimes use steam or a fog machine to give the light a more discernable shape in the registered image.

What attracted you to experimenting with light rather then photographing say, landscapes or portraits?

Personally as I'm sure many people do, I feel that sunlight does play a role in my mood and behavior. I've felt this way for as long as I can remember. I'm aware that its light does affect me, but I'm still unclear why exactly. Ultimately, I chose to make photographs because it is a medium where the image is made from light itself. Making pictures helps me further examine what light may be and why we are curiously drawn to it.


'9:24 am'


'The Sun Shining Through Tress on our Kitchen Table'

Do you feel that the simplicity of using light as a basis for your work limits or extends your practice?

At times, both. Its limiting as I don't have as many actual opportunities to make pictures as I might if I had a different subject. I have to rely on the sun, which is fleeting and unpredictable, which can be frustrating when I'm trying to make it do something. On the other hand, its very liberating. There are so many questions about light that I haven't even asked.. This keeps me going as I'm constantly exploring what light does.

How can you see your work developing over the coming future?

Well, I think I'll still be making pictures, but I'm considering what other kinds of works that result from making exposures. I don't like to rule anything out.


'11:23 am'