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ARTS & EDUCATION

I’ll keep on driving so

we can talk a while.

I know I could drive all

night just to stay here

with you.

At the end of the night

we’ll embrace and stare

at the star filled night.

Would it be alright if

we didn’t say goodbye

this time?

It’s All There in Black & White

w ritten by SHERIL BE NNET T TURNER

photographs courtesy of JOHN FOWLER

52 GreerNow FEBRUARY 2008

ARTS & EDUCATION

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ARTS & EDUCATION

Forty-two-year-old local photographer John Fowler has always been intrigued with light. “As a child,” he remembers, “I became conscious of the

different moods of light.” Later in high school, John could usually be found in the library, pouring over photographs in magazines. “I loved looking at pictures, especially landscapes and photographs of nature. I think that’s how, unconsciously, I learned about composition. It just started to come natural to me.” It isn’t any wonder, then, that John’s early love of light and composition eventually blossomed into a career in photography. When John was just 19 years old, he purchased his first professional camera, a Nikon FM2 35mm. “I wanted that camera,” John says, “because all the National Geographic photographers used it as a back-up because it was so rugged and dependable. No matter what happened with any other camera, they could always rely on that camera.” Later, while on the French Broad River, John’s canoe turned over and he lost all of his camera equipment - except for that Nikon. “I sent it off to the company to check for damage; they sent it back as ‘not worth the cost of repair.’ Well, I had paid around $400 for the camera, which was a lot at that time, so I borrowed a lens, shot a roll of film on the camera, and sent it off for development. The pictures came back perfect. Even now I use that camera as a back-up.” Although John has succumbed to the digital camera for commercial work, he still prefers a 35mm when shooting his fine art photography. Using mostly black-and-white film, which he develops and prints in his own darkroom, John creates images that are stunning in their tonal simplicity as

well as subject matter. “When you shoot black and white, the composition and lighting really stand out. It has a little more feel to it. Color is so expected. Now don’t get me wrong, I love color. I did a whole project that I shot in Maine that’s all color. But I think a black-and-white photograph leaves more to the imagination, and from an art angle, it has an old and timeless feel.” It was this timeless feel that John sought out and captured in his Cambridge project. “A couple of years ago, I had the

opportunity to visit England, and I spent most of my time in Cambridge taking photographs. I’ve always been drawn to closer, tighter shots - little bits and pieces of things with good composition.” One of the images in this 15-photo series, a close-up of a 900-year-old door, reflects this ideal. “I love this picture,” John says, “because you can really see the grain in the wood.” John’s Graveyards of the South project is an ongoing adventure and one that John hopes to someday turn into a coffee table book. Always on the lookout for unique southern graveyards, John says that people have really responded to the idea. “Some people have even sent me e-mails and

pictures of graveyards that they thought were really different and interesting.” Included in this series is a photo of an old Charleston graveyard located off of King Street. “It’s my favorite graveyard in Charleston because it’s not manicured,” John says. “They just kind of let things grow. It’s very natural looking.” Another find was a confederate graveyard located around Charlotte. “This graveyard,” John continues, “has a real Irish look to it with a stacked-up stone wall around it. When I went to shoot it one evening, I

It’s All There in Black & White

Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, Charleston Bridges

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ARTS & EDUCATION

noticed that someone had taken an American flag, folded it military style, and had laid it on top of a gravestone and put a rock on top of it. I thought it was neat that it was there, and that no one had messed with it. It ended up being ‘the shot.’” Charleston Bridges and Myrtle Beach Pavilion are projects that reflect John’s love for South Carolina destinations. “Charleston has always been one of my favorite places to shoot,” John says. “I knew I wanted to get a picture of the new Ravenel Bridge over the Cooper River, and I had this vision of a night shot without any cars going over it. So one night, I drag my reluctant brother out of bed at three o’clock in the morning to go shoot this bridge, but when we get over there, the bridge is completely dark. There are no lights on. I didn’t realize those lights weren’t on all the time because of the turtles

and their breeding habits,” he laughs. But John did manage to get his night shot, albeit with cars, which he admits “actually turned out better with the slow exposure.” The Myrtle Beach Pavilion project, a series of close-up shots of parts of the amusement park, was taken just two weeks before this iconic symbol of summer closed for good. “A lot of people, including me, relate to the old Myrtle Beach Pavilion,” John says, “riding the bumper cars, having a t-shirt made, taking your girl on the Ferris wheel as a teenager. I actually had a poster made up of this series that sold out at last year’s Oktoberfest in Greer.” When John is not working on fine art Himalaya, Myrtle Beach Pavilion

For more information on John Fowler’s photography,

please contact him at (864)380-9332 or visit his Web site at

www.johnfowlerphotography.com.Charleston Graveyard, Graveyards of the South

Best Friends, Myrtle Beach Pavilion

projects, some of which can be seen at the Richard James Galleries in Charleston, he enjoys shooting commercial work for architects, interior designers, artists, and product lines. Most recently, his work has been published in an advertisement in World Aircraft Sales. “I am really fortunate to be doing what I do,” John admits. “I think everyone’s dream is to do what they love for a living.” d