About My Work

I began photographing seriously in 1969 when I was still in high school and have since studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts and the International Center for Photography. I learned the art of large format photography under the tutelage of Michael O’Neill, a well known New York Commercial Photographer. I currently do freelance photography for Mohonk Preserve,  I Love New York,  Brown Trout Calendars,  Landmark Calendars, Audubon Calendars,  Sierra Club Calendars,  National Geographic Calendars & Books, The Nature Conservancy and many other clients. My prints are shown and sold by galleries and interior decorators throughout the country. I currently have two books out from Countryman Press,  “Hudson River Journey”, and “Adirondack High”. I have a new book “Hudson RiverTowns” by Suny Press that was launched in fall 2011.

Henry Thoreau once said, “I went into the woods to live deliberately,  to confront

only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach,  and

not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” I think it may be even harder now in these difficult commercial times to find not just the peace and tranquility that

Thoreau found at Walden Pond, but the truth in what he was seeking.

Although I have been influenced by many photographers, my own particular Mentor was Ansel Adams. His photographs were never merely “pretty,” they captured a mood or a feeling. His images were a way of life. I have learned patience,  sensitivity to light and shadow, and craftsmanship from studying Adam’s work.

I am most interested in capturing nature in dramatic yet subtle circumstances; rain, sleet, snow, or mist when the mood and quality of light is intensiified. I started working with large and medium format cameras because of their clarity and the ability they have to capture texture and detail. It also forced me to work more slowly and patiently so that I really “see” what I am photographing. As technology and cameras have advanced I have started using High End Nikon DSLRs.

I strongly believe in the artistic value of my photography, so I go to some length to promote the longevity and archival stability of my prints. I use highly archival  pigmented inks on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Pearl, a remarkably stable medium  that is highly resistant to fading. So far it has been tested by Wilhelm Imaging Research to greater than 70 years before fading. All my prints are cold-mounted with an acid-free PH neutral glue onto museum quality acid-free foam core board. I do all my own printing, mounting and framing to assure the artist’s control from start to finish. For these reasons I can guarantee my prints against fading during my lifetime.

Hardie Truesdale

truesdale56@comcast.net

www.hardietruesdale.com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hardie_truesdale/