Kinnelon Library Gallery Hosts David Reyer, Photography

“It’s one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like; it’s another thing to make a portrait of who they are.”

Photography has the ability to do more than simply document a moment; it has the power to communicate a larger story…the emotions behind a person, place or situation.

When I took my first photography class, I was drawn to the work of Ansel Adams. His photographs captured the spirit of a location and he invites you to look beyond the obvious foreground to see the stark beauty of the landscape beyond. The perfect simplicity of his black and white photos sets the bar high for what it means to be an artist.

As I continued my studies, I came across Steve McCurry and realized the specific direction I want to take as a photographer. He is the ultimate story teller. Whether he is capturing a person or a place, each of his images evokes a deeper level of meaning than what initially meets the eye. You can’t walk away from one of his photographs and not feel that you understand something new about the world.

After completing my Associate’s Degree in Photography from the County College of Morris, I continued my studies at the prestigious International Center for Photography (ICP) in New York City, with the goal of becoming a photojournalist. Before graduating from ICP’s Photojournalism/Documentary program, I totally immersed myself in developing my skills as a photographer, learning the art of photography from the ground up. During that time, I worked to develop my own visual language, focusing on capturing images that help us better understand who we are on this planet. Specifically, I was interested in putting a human face on the impact of social, economic and environmental change in our world.

Many of those images will be on display throughout October at a special solo exhibit of my work at the Kinnelon Public Library. An Artist Reception will be held Friday, October 24, 2014 at 6-8 PM. The Public is cordially invited.