Michael Easton

Aesthetic Background

I remember, as a child in British Columbia, spending many long wonderful summers with my grandmother in the small Kootenay town of Nakusp located on an expansive portion of the Columbia River known as the Upper Arrow Lake. In the late 1950's and early 1960's there still remained large pockets of virgin interior rain forest. These ancient trees were hundreds of feet tall and measured 6 to 10 feet in diameter at their base. The woodland caribou were abundant. Large stately cottonwood trees ringed the Arrow Lakes which rose and fell with the natural rhythm of the seasons. This was my playground and my classroom. My natural sense of curiosity was my teacher.

My childhood experiences have had a lasting effect in focusing my attention almost exclusively on subjects embedded in the natural landscape of British Columbia. Here the plants and animals are like old friends because of my familiarity with them. The forest is my neighbourhood.

Present Direction

At present, the essence of much of my work is in the search for the manifestation of the strong spiritual presence which pervades the land. For me, this quality is very strong when in the midst of the ancient giant forests. The aura and spiritual strength of these trees becomes almost overpowering. Visually, the spiritual qualities of trees such as the yellow cedar of Meares Island are subtle, but still manage to mesh with the image to produce a feeling of strength and wisdom. Other observers have their own interpretations based on their own experience. My images portray feelings and moods that are not readily translatable into words.

Technical Background

I have been cultivating the art of abstracting images from nature for over 20 years. My skills are largely self-taught through experimentation, discussions with other photographers and the continual reading of technical books on photographic methods that interest me. My photographic eye is uniquely my own without any particular mentor or teacher. My association with the Western Photographic Circle since 1987 has given me significant motivation in the pursuit of technical excellence in photographic art through a monthly peer review of prints.

Equipment

My current equipment is a Phase One camera with the P65+ digital back (a 60 megapixel chip which yields a raw file size per image of approximately 340 megabytes). My motivation for acquiring this system was the ability to have both colour and black and white from the same image; a direct to digital format eliminated the need to scan film; the current generation of Schneider and selected Mamiya digital lenses could at least match the image resolution of the P65+ digital back. The lenses I use currently include the Schneider Kreuznach 80 mm, the 120 mm Mamiya 645 digital macro and the AF APO 300 mm Mamiya 645 digital lens. I also use a carbon fibre Gitzo tripod with a Kirk tripod head and a very useful Kirk L-bracket.

All my pre-2010 images were taken with a medium format Pentax 6cm x 4.5cm which was an ideal size and weight for packing around with my wooden tripod and (heavy) Gitzo tripod head. I used 3 SMC Pentax-A lenses: a 200mm; 75 mm; and 120mm macro. My meter was a Soligor spotmeter with a UV filter. The film was Ilford Pan-F.

Current Exhibition

An exhibition of prints for sale is maintained as an ongoing display at my home/studio gallery (567 West 23rd Street, 604-988-3532) in North Vancouver.