Ray Pfortner | Instructor, Fall
About this Artist
Ray has worked in photography for over 3 decades - as an educator, stock photography agent, book editor, consultant and photographer - in New York, California and Washington State.
He teaches for colleges throughout the NW, including the University of Washington, Bellevue and Seattle Central. He is also an instructor for artist leagues, art centers, libraries and not-for-profits from botanical gardens to historical associations.
His students range from middle schoolers to retirees. Ray’s focus is improving camera skills but especially image design, photo styling and the business of art for all art mediums. A primary objective always is sharing art to make a change, especially to the environment and our impact on it, through increased awareness and inspiration.
Ray is a Fellow and Board Member of the North American Nature Photography Association. His photography is represented by Getty Images. He is a graduate of Yale and the Duke School of the Environment.
About this Work
Hold your camera still! True or false? Yes. Haven’t we all been told to hold your camera still? From a mother, father, art teacher. For me, it was a few art teachers along the way. And from my Grandfather, always the engineer. He helped launch my photography, taking me to Europe for 3 months when I was 16. I am forever indebted to him.
The counterpoint: my Father, a commercial artist accomplished in many mediums, including photography., His advice: take chances, experiment. Paint with your camera.
Use a tripod to the hold the camera still. True or false. Yes again. A tripod does offer stability, especially important in low light. But it offers much more: refined composition, slowing us down and allowing incremental adjustments we can never make handheld between “aping” the LCD. Plus, a tripod allows us to make painting with our camera more controlled, cleaner, more beautiful.
“Painting with our cameras” has come to be called ICM, Intentional Camera Movement. (As opposed to “unintentional camera movement.”) A major trend in photography today.
I have photographed this last deep-water pier near my home on Vashon, for 31 years. This is the first time I applied ICM. Made a few months ago on a tripod to control the vertical movement of my camera. After a few hours of playing, this is my favorite. I like creating the feel of a watercolor painting. ICMs like this are only the latest iteration in the newly 200-year-old “dance” between painting and photography since photography began in 1826.
The second image of a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) taking off from the Pier some years earlier. This time panning across the water with the bird. One stock rental of the image was to illustrate a haiku. Evidence yet again of the power of pairing words with photography - and visa versa.
Is ICM everybody’s cup of tea? No. Is ICM right or wrong? Neither. We are talking about art not science. In art is there really a right or wrong? No.
So be sure to take chances. Lots of them. And experiment. Often.
