Meet J. Christopher…

 For almost as long as I can remember, I've always had a camera in my hand. While never a career goal, I understood the timelessness of photography—that it gave the viewer an opportunity to travel back in time to a specific place, with specific people, and to a specific memory. Photography intrigued me at a very early age and I was thrilled when my grandmother fueled that spark of interest by buying me my first camera as a 5th grade graduation present when I was ten years old. It was a Vivitar Viewfinder point and shoot 35mm film camera. Sure, it was simple, but it was mine. That's where my journey with photography began.

In 2002, I crossed over into the digital age. I was on top of the world with my little HP 1.3mp camera. I was no longer limited to only capturing what could fit on a roll of film, or waiting, with fingers crossed, for my pictures to come back from the 1 hr photo lab. I could now have instant gratification. If I didn't like a capture, I could delete it and immediately shoot it again. In high school, I was routinely seen sporting my camera—for no other particular reason than to capture life as it happened.

It wasn't until college that my love for photography evolved into the passion that it is today. With the encouragement of my college roommate, I bought my first DSLR and it was as if my eyes were opened to a whole new universe. I literally began to see the world differently. Details that went previously unnoticed called out to my eyes as if they were neon signs. Seemingly mundane interactions criss-crossed, interlocked, and meshed together to form the beautiful tapestry that we call life—and it begged to be captured.

We live in a fast paced world that is only getting faster. Viewing life through my camera lens forced me to slow down and rediscover the world around me. It helped me to appreciate the little things that often get overlooked and taken for granted--a father tying his son's shoe, a quiet sunset on the beach, an elderly couple holding hands as they enjoy a stroll through the park. It is these things that I seek to capture. Like a manipulator of time, I seek to freeze and share these moments with those for generations to come. My only hope is that this glimpse into the past will inspire my audience to slow down, to enjoy life, and pause to view the world around them with a sense of wonder and awe.