Joe Loudermilk - Performance in Black & White Imaging

My last post was entitled 'Story of Will' and featured photos taken by Will's father, Joe Loudermilk.  As I had mentioned, Joe is my brother-in-law who has had an interest in photography for many years.  Before the digital age, Joe had his own darkroom where he processed his 35 mm camera photos and was self taught in the dynamics of photography.  He applies that knowledge to today's technology wherein the digital camera, computer and editing programs have become his darkroom.  It is here that he develops his photos into a unique style in detailed monochrome.  Joe's architectural profession assists him with his eye for composition and layout that escapes the ordinary in a photograph.  He "sees" an image and encapsulates it into a style using black and white in detailed technique.   

While Joe was here last summer, you would find him with his trusty camera looking for such images to shoot that can be found on a ranch.  The horse photo shown below is one such result of Joe's magic with black and white turning the ordinary into extraordinary.  (Click on photos to enlarge)

The same could be said when his eye sees a promise of beauty in a piece of  broken farm equipment that had outlived its usefulness and now lies in ruined metal.  His discovery of an abandoned vehicle that once carried owners and supplies on the highways of yesterday is now found hidden in a wooded setting.  

On the family's travels through Oregon, Joe spotted a grain storage facility in Condon and had to stop for a photo shoot.  Also pictured below is an image he took of wedding dresses on display in a city window store.  

These are just a few of many diversified photos that are on Joe's website for you to browse through.  There are different categories in his Gallery, including "New Image of the Week".  Gallery selections range from Architectural - to Landscape and Nature - to Places, among others.  Also included is the documentary on William, which was covered in my last post.  If you want to find out more about Joe, you can check out his biography listed on the site.  His website, beautifully done, offers an extensive variety of printed images.   The link is:   www.loudermilkphoto.com/

Joe states:  "I love creating the emotion of the performance when I am post processing my images.  Think of all the different ways a piece of music can be performed by a different artist.  The same is true when developing an image.  But you also need to have a good image/'score' to have a good performance."


I leave you with a quote from John Gay - "We only part to meet again."   Until Monday, February 2, Come! Visit me at The Turn-Up Patch....