s t e v e d a m a s c u s
p h o t o 
g r a p h y


bio        my work        my concern        our travels        youtube        videos        books        contact        blog        wander

r e c e n t    w o r k

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m y    j o u r n e y


My journey began in 1973, processing black and white film.  Unwinding a still-wet roll of film, fixer running down my forearm, dripping off my elbow.  Marveling at the images.  It was alchemy of the highest order; magic to a 12-year-old.  The die was cast and I've never looked back.

                                            
 Self-portrait at home, c. 1982        The young artist in Italy, 1975         High school photography club


To avoid boring you with un-necessary details, I've worked as a professional photographer, trade-show photographer, newspaper photojournalist, camera salesman and darkroom technician.

I would like to think my work has been influenced by Minor White, Jerry Burchard, Edward Weston and Art Kane.  I challenge myself to produce work that is uncommon in the current ocean of digital art.

When I need inspiration, I open my favorite photography books; "Darkroom" and "Darkroom 2" by Lustrum Press, "Minor White: A Living Remembrance" by Aperture and "Fred Picker's Collected Works. If those fail, I channel Dennis Hopper's character "Photojournalist" from "Apocalypse Now".

      
A big thanks to my friend Scott Emery for my Dennis Hopper photo!


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m y    w o r k


A Personal Project
My life as a photographer

            



Iceland - Portfolio II
Still more from an amazing place

            



Iceland - Portfolio I
A wonderful land of contrasts

            



Silver Salts
Some work on film

            



Basilicae Maioris
Rome, Italy

            



A Private Collection
Photos more private than public

            



Ghosts
My boyhood home; just a shadow now

            



Homage To Rothko


            



Memories
Ode to Thomas Hardy

            



Smiling Faces
Chicago Pride parade

            



Editorial Work
From my years as a photojournalist

            



Portrait work
People; always interesting

            



Accidental memories
A glimpse of family life c. 1975

            



Fetes De La Nuit
Night reveals what the day conceals.

            



Nudes In Light
The play of light...

            



Nudes In Motion
The kenitic human form

            



Postcards From My Travels
Here and there...

            



Madness
Perhaps a slow descent

            



 

m y    c o n c e r n


"The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?"
-- Jeremy Bentham

"It is man's concern for all living creatures that truly makes him human."
-- Albert Schweitzer

 

o u r    t r a v e l s


2023 - Christmas Cruise!


               



2023 - Dinner in the Diner
Illiniois Railway Museum fundraiser!

               



2023 - Icelandic Adventure!


               



2022 - Christmas Cruise!


               



2022 - Canada & New England


               



2021 - Christmas Cruise


               



2019 - Christmas Cruise


               



2019 - Canada & New England


               



2018 - Christmas Cruise


               



2018 - Cuba x 2!


               



2018 - Our Adventure to Cuba


               



2018 - Canada and New England


               



2017 - Christmas & New Years


               



2017 - Spring Cruise


               



2016 - Christmas Cruise


               



2016 - Our Cruise to the Baltics


               



2015 - Christmas & New Years


               



2015 - Summer Cruise


               



2014 - Christmas Cruise!


               



2014 - Galapagos Islands!


               



2014 - The Disney Dream


               



2014 - Spring Cruise


               



2013 - Cruise to Europe!


               



2013 - Monarch of the Seas


               



2012 - Christmas Cruise!


               



2011 - I T A L Y !


               



 

y o u T u b e    c h a n n e l s


The Film Photography Project's YouTube channel
The George Eastman Museum's YouTube channel
Wet plate photographer Markus Hofstatter's YouTube channel
Vintage lens reviewer Simon's utak's YouTube channel
Zenography's YouTube channel
Martin Henson's YouTube channel

 

 

b o o k s


Recommended reading: Darkroom 2. by Jain Kelly ed.   Darkroom 2.,   Jain Kelly ed.,   Lustrum Press
Recommended reading: Darkroom. by Eleanor Lewis ed.   Darkroom.,   Eleanor Lewis ed.,   Lustrum Press.
Recommended reading: Edward Weston: Portraits. by Aperture Press   Edward Weston: Portraits.,   Aperture Press,   Aperture Press, New York, NY, 1995
Recommended reading: Interviews With Photographers. by Danziger, James   Interviews With Photographers.,   Danziger, James,   New York: Paddington Press Ltd.
Recommended reading: Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach   Jonathan Livingston Seagull,   Richard Bach,   Macmillian & Co., New York, NY, 1970
Recommended reading: The Fine Print. by Fred Picker   The Fine Print.,   Fred Picker,   Dummerston, VT: Hill Farm Press, 1975
Recommended reading: The Legacy of Minor White. by Nathan Lyons ed.   The Legacy of Minor White.,   Nathan Lyons ed.,   Rochester, NY: Greenburg Gallery, 2008
Recommended reading: The Persuasive Image. by Art Kane   The Persuasive Image.,   Art Kane,   Alskog, Inc., 1974-1975
Recommended reading: The Photo Illustration. by Bert Stern   The Photo Illustration.,   Bert Stern,   Alskog, Inc., 1974-1975
Recommended reading: The Photographic Illusion. by Duane Michaels   The Photographic Illusion.,   Duane Michaels,   Alskog, Inc., 1974-1975
Recommended reading: The Private Experience. by Elliott Erwitt   The Private Experience.,   Elliott Erwitt,   Alskog, Inc., 1974-1975
Recommended reading: The Wisdom of Donkeys. by Andy Merrifield   The Wisdom of Donkeys.,   Andy Merrifield,   New York: Westchester Book Group
Recommended reading: Weston: The Flame of Recognition. by Nancy Newhall ed.   Weston: The Flame of Recognition.,   Nancy Newhall ed.,   Aperture Press, New York, 1963
Recommended reading: Zone VI Workshop. by Fred Picker   Zone VI Workshop.,   Fred Picker,   New York, NY: Amphoto Books, 1974

 

c o n t a c t    m e


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m y    p h o t o    b l o g


b l o g . s h a d o w p h o t o . c o m

 

w a n d e r    w i t h    m e


w a n d e r . s h a d o w p h o t o . c o m



All content © 2004-2024 Steve Damascus, who retains all rights.
No image may be reproduced, copied, stored, manipulated, used whole or as part of a derivative work
or displayed on a website without the express, written permission of the copyright owner.


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