Sherry Chandler » John Snell’s Eloquent Landscape
John Snell’s Eloquent Landscape
While I’m on — or at least near — the subject of Lexington’s Creative Camera Club, John Snell, one of its pre-eminent members, has a new book of photography due out in the fall: Red River Gorge: The Eloquent Landscape.
Looking at some of the gorgeous shots on the promo page, I was moved to ask a friend whether some of the effects might be Photoshopped. I got this reply:
[John] has specialized in the RRG for 25+ years. I suspect that much of the work in the new RRG book predates Photoshop and any effects are natural or were achieved with traditional means, i.e., filters, exposure modification, painting with light, etc. John has been a driving force in the Lexington Creative Camera Club for many years, organizing workshops, planning and leading excursions, etc. Good guy, too.
John Snell himself says:
Ever since 1980, when I traded a friend $100 and two pickup truckloads of firewood for an old Minolta camera and two lenses, my life has not been the same. Each year, I spend numerous hours lugging heavy camera equipment through various venues, most often Red River Gorge in eastern Kentucky, searching for expressions of nature that speak to me in a special way. Sometimes I succeed photographically, but many times I just enjoy the walk in the woods…
He has been generous enough to share those walks with us on his webpage galleries. He even includes little bios of the shots. I recommend browsing around there for a while.
I don’t know John Snell. I learned about his book from his brother, David. I’ve known David Snell for several years as a neighbor, fellow poet (though primarily a novelist, I think), and owner of Country Charm Bed and Breakfast here in my home town of Paris, Kentucky.
For those of you who aren’t from Kentucky, I should explain that Red River Gorge is a subject of some passion for those of us who love our natural environment. Not so many years back, this unique geological area was threatened by plans to build a dam. Fortunately, local protest was able to stop those plans, but it took several years of hard work.
I wish we could have protected our mountain tops so successfully.
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