Del Ryder...
           A Profile

My photographs were not taken to tell a story or complete a narrative. They are single images bound only to myself and the places
I happened to be at the time. I approach my subjects with a passion for learning, a complete sense of freedom and a drive for discovery. What I recognize and capture in photographs is my way of making sense of our world.

Curiosity and Discovery

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​Growing up in upstate New York, I hiked in forests and waded through swamps just to see what was there. At 12, I got a microscope and learned that those tiny animals with the weird tentacles living in a single drop of swamp water were Hydra. That triggered more wonder: like, what might I discover in the night sky? So, I saved my money, bought a telescope and viewed most of our planets and the craters on the moon. I payed attention and learned to be patient because it led to discovery. I found Jupiter and counted 12 moons and then Saturn and counted 9 moons. I was excited about showing others what I was seeing. I had to document my discoveries. I needed a camera.

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First Steps toward Photography

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My first opportunity to get my hands onto a camera came in my senior year. Friends informed me of a newly formed high school camera club. Both my microscope and my telescope could be fitted with a camera, so I planned to use the club's camera to record those extraordinary things I was seeing. But the club was full, so I missed an opportunity to learn to use a camera. That was disappointing, but on the positive side, I completed two semesters of mechanical drawing that year and learned how to use linear perspective to create three dimensional space on a flat piece of paper. That training influenced my sense of composition in photography a few years later. 

 

First Camera and Documentary Photography

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I traveled west... so far west it's called the Far East and bought a Minolta SRT~101 SLR camera at the Navy Exchange in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. That camera changed my life. So did traveling around the world with the Navy documenting the people, places and things I saw in Japan and then Europe.​

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Early Fine Art Influence - "Camera" Magazine 

 

CAMERA, a Swiss magazine, published the work of established fine art photographers and was my first source for seeing what could be done with a camera. It inspired me to experiment with framing, design [especially the arrangement of the objects and spaces within my frame], linear and aerial perspective and depth of field effects. Photography quickly became a passion.

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Focus on Art and Documentary Photography in New York

 

​Photography was exciting. I wanted to know more. After returning from military service, I completed advanced courses in photography at Syracuse University from the College of Visual and Performing Arts and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and Journalism. Within those two schools of photography, I was able to hone my skills in both art and documentary photography. With these new skills, my career advanced quickly. I taught for the State University of New York at their Tompkins/ Cortland Campus as an Adjunct Professor of Photography in the Fine Art Department. I began to photograph throughout the New England area on several road trips and exhibited my art photography in New York and Canada. A year later I became the Director of PhotoVisions, a fine art photography gallery. During my tenure there, I curated eight photography exhibitions. I met with the Director of the Everson Museum of Art in NY to show him my recently completed series of new color photography. At the conclusion of our meeting he invited me to exhibit the entire series consisting of twenty hand printed color photographs at the museum. After the exhibit a few of my photographs from that series entered the Everson Museum's permanent collection.

 

Fine Art and Advertising Photography become Synergistic

 

I was using 4x5 and 8x10 inch view cameras for much of my artwork then, so it felt natural to begin freelancing as an architectural photographer. I quickly became known for high quality work not only in fine art and architecture, but also in advertising photography. Advertising, at that time, relied on color photography. As a student at Syracuse University, I learned to process color film and print color photographs. After gaining several advertising accounts, I opened my first photography studio. To be more efficient, I moved my Simmon Omega and Beseler enlargers and color print processors from my home into the new studio space. Personally developing and hand printing my own color photographs was natural for me and the only real way to maintain the highest quality possible for all my projects. I've always been attuned to the way color affects emotion and mood in my work.

 

Working ( and Living the Dream ) in Southern California

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Encouraged by success in working with advertising agencies representing local businesses in NY, I decided to move my photography studio to the West Coast. I opened a studio in Santa Ana and moved a year later to Irvine, California where I specialized in advertising photography that served national and international clients. With a strong portfolio of fashion, fine art and advertising work, I also began working with Los Angeles and Orange County talent agents to help build their models professional portfolios. Over the years, I won several awards for my advertising photography from ADDOC, the Art Directors and Designers of Orange County at their annual awards ceremonies.  

 

Artistic Freedom and the Pursuit of Meaning

 

I enjoyed the fast paced, collaborative world of advertising photography as a career for several years, working with teams consisting of art directors, set designers, food stylists, hair and makeup artists. All along, I remained committed to developing my fine art work since it offered something  special... complete artistic freedom. That freedom included working without preconceptions.* I'm very attuned to images that resonate in me to evoke emotion. For me, art photography fosters personal exploration and a way to merge my thoughts and emotions with the world around me.

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I live in Huntington Beach, California. I'm out with my digital camera or working on my files every day. Photography is a perfect fit and an all encompassing passion for me. You will find several jpeg renditions of my photographs displayed here. I post new fine art photographs regularly and enjoy exhibiting my fine art photographs in art galleries in Southern California. One of my goals for the future include establishing a Cooperative Gallery in Orange County for fine art photographers. I do hope you enjoy viewing my photographs as much as I enjoyed taking them. 

 

Advertising Accounts, Photography Journals and Publications 

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A partial client list of advertising photography accounts I've held include the following: Allergan, Apple Macintosh, Avis, Beatrice Hunt-Wesson, Bentley Mills, Breyers, Coca Cola, Del Mar Avionics, FireTrac, F.X. Matt Brewing Co, ICN Pharmaceuticals, Ingram Micro, Knudsen, Lawry's, Marathon Inc, Northrup Grumman, Philips Electronics, Quantum Health Resources, Ocean Pacific Swimwear, Orange Coast Magazine, Taco Bell, and TRW. Publications and journals  that have published my fine art photography include Afterimage, a magazine published by The Visual Studies Workshop, Rochester, N.Y. and Studio Photography and Design Magazine.

 

Education

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​* Zen Training and Practice ( Zazen ) Japan and U.S.

BA ( Psychology ) and  MS ( Counseling ) degrees from Syracuse University.