About the Photography of Rick Summerhill

The Art of Photography

Most people have been taking photographs all of their lives. With the advent of digital photography, people have small digital cameras, or cell phones with photographic capabilities, and they carry them wherever they go, snapping pictures whenever possible. When people take those photographs, there is something that makes them want to capture a moment in time, there is some emotional impact that makes them want to press that shutter!

I believe the art of photogrpahy is to capture those emotional impacts, to tell the many stories of what lies in front of the camera, and why it is so important to save those moments for all time. To be sure, good composition, lighting, perspective, and all the other fundamental aspects of photography are crucial, but the most important aspect is the emotional impact of the piece - to tell that story, one that will never be told again!

Process

I almost always take digital photographs, using a 35mm Canon EOS 5D Mark II or a Canon T3i or a Canon S95. At times I will take film, including B&W, transparancies, or negatives. Film is always processed commercially, although B&W negatives and prints are done in house. My film camera is a 35mm Canon EOS 3, but I also use a home built box camera for B&W using a Mamiya 6x7 back.

Most of my work is done using digital, primarily color, but sometimes converting to B&W. I do minimal processing of images. I firmly believe the image should stand as taken, although I will make minimal changes, typically ones that are normally done in a darkroom. I may adjust white balance, minor color changes, exposure, cropping, and similar other types of alterations. I never change what is in the photograph - if an object is in the photo, and it is green, it remains in the photo, and it's green - no photoshop fancy tricks. Indeed, I almost always use Adobe Lightroom (version 2) for processing of photos. That means I will burn certain areas to change relative contrast issues, but I will not change the fundamental nature or impact of the photo. It stands as taken!

About Rick Summerhill

I was born in Chicago, Illinois, but moved to a more rural setting on going to college. I've lived in the country ever since, in wonderful places like Monmouth, Illinois; Iowa City, Iowa; Columbia, Missouri; Princeton, New Jersey; Manhattan, Kansas; and now Manchester, Michigan, where I plan to live the rest of my life with my wonderful wife Carolyn. My real home, however, will always be Kansas, having spent 28 years there, taking photos of the tall-grass prairies of the Flinthills. After my formal education was completed, including a PhD from the University of Iowa and a post doctoral postion at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, I've spent 20 years as a mathematician, 20 years in data networking, and now I'm concentrating on photography.

Photography is not a new avocation - I've been taking pictures for most of my life. Growing up in Chicago, my folks had a coal furnace, with a room for no other purpose than to store coal, a dusty, dingy, dirty room that would eventually require relentless cleaning. When oil heating came along, and the room was no longer needed for coal, I converted it to a darkroom. I took many B&W photos as a teenager, and I still have some of the prints, but unfortunately the negatives are gone. Over the years I've created ad-hoc darkrooms in every place I've ever lived. I have some wonderful B&W photos taken in Colorado and Kansas, but the negatives no longer survive.

Please enjoy this site, and the stories I've had the privilege to tell!