On The Street Photographs by John Elder
March 19 - April 12 Opening Reception: March 21 from 3 - 6 pm
STATEMENT ON PHOTOGRAPHY by John Elder I am a street photographer. My work is ongoing and dates back to 1982. I shoot with a Leica Rangefinder camera following the traditions of Andre` Kertesz, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Willy Ronis, and Gianni Berengo Gardin.
The subjects of the majority of my photographs are people, a smaller body of my street work is abstract. I photograph these images whenever and wherever I see them. I very rarely have a set agenda when photographing on the street. I shoot what interests me whether it be people or abstracts.
The majority of my photographs were taken in New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Reading, Pa., and Mexico.
My street photographs are always candid, never posed. I always shoot black and white film. My black and white prints are always printed uncropped, full frame, on the best silver gelatin, double weight, fiber-based paper I can buy. I always develop my own film and print my own work.
Excellent Street Photography demands focused vision, instantaneous reflexes, the best hand-eye coordination, and an intimate knowledge of one's camera. Frequently, there are no second shots. I intend that each of my photographs be able to stand on its own.
BIOGRAPHY John Elder John Elder was born in 1953 in North Plainfield, N. J., and graduated from Wyomissing High School in 1971. In 1969,1970, and 1971 he was Berks County Scholastic Singles Tennis Champion. In 1975 he graduated Penn State University, Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, with a BA in Political Science. He received his law degree from Syracuse University College of Law in 1978.
John took his first photograph in May 1982, after his parents gave a Nikon for his 29th birthday. A year and a half later he quit practising law to pursue photography full time. He entered Rochester Institute of Technology in the fall of 1985 and graduated with honors in May 1987, with a BFA in photography. In the summer of 1986, Elder was a staff photographer for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. He photographed numerous subjects in and around the Chesapeake Bay for the Public Relations Department. In 1987 and 1988, he was employed as staff photographer for Close Up Foundation in Washington, D. C., where he photographed national public events and Congressman and Senators at work. While working at Close Up Foundation, John was recommended by RIT Professor of Photography Guenther Cartwright for selection in EddIe Adams' First Annual Workshop. In a national competition of twelve hundred applicants, Elder was among the one hundred selected, and attended the workshop in the fall of 1988. Eddie Adams was the Pulitzer Prize winning photographer of the now famous execution photo that changed American opinion of the Vietnam War. John Elder has participated in solo and group exhibitions throughout southeastern Pennsylvania including several shows in Philadelphia. Presently, John Elder is pursuing both law and photography
