Photographer's Bio
CHARLES CRAMER
A professional photographer for over thirty years, Charles Cramer revels in exploration and craftsmanship. A masterful artist, his career broadly parallels that of Ansel Adams: an early focus on music, finding inspiration in Yosemite National Park, and exploring the developing medium of photography. Charles worked in the darkroom for many years, mastering the complex Dye Transfer process. He was also one of the first landscape photographers to work with the "digital darkroom," recognizing the computer as an unparalleled means to control color and realize his artistic interpretation of the scene.
Cramer was one of a select group of photographers chosen to photograph the Australian island of Tasmania in 2008 as part of "Adobe Lightroom Tasmania Adventure!" He has been profiled in View Camera, PhotoTechniques, and Photo Vision Magazines and is featured in the books “First Light: Five Photographers Explore Yosemite’s Wilderness” and "Landscape: The World's Top Photographers.” He was a workshop student of Ansel Adams in the 1970’s and was selected by the National Park Service to be artist-in-residence in Yosemite National Park in 1987 and 2009.
Cramer is renowned for creating beautiful, luminous prints . Many of Cramer’s large-format color photographs are from Yosemite and the Southwest, but his portfolio consists of stunning images from the east coast and other areas as well. He is renowned as a master printer and his exquisite prints are held in collections worldwide.
In addition to being an outstanding photographer and printer, Cramer is in great demand as an instructor, teaching for the prestigious Ansel Adams Gallery Workshops, John Sexton Workshops and many others.
Artist’s Statement
During the last 30 years, I have wandered with my camera throughout the landscapes of the United States. I am drawn to photograph primarily by the “light” and only secondarily by the subject. I search for that special kind of light that can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. This brings me out at seemingly odd times—sunrise, sunset, during storms and snowstorms. The weather can be onerous. But when everything comes together for a photograph, all that is quickly forgotten.
The end goal of my photography has always been to make beautiful prints. I have spent a large part of the last 30 years refining my skills not just photographing the natural scene, but learning how to make the best possible prints from these images. This led me to take up dye transfer—an impossibly complex and time-consuming method to make color prints. Only recently, with the maturation of digital imaging, have I embraced another process that can rival a dye transfer print.
My goal is to capture moments in time and space that resonate and transcend the subject. Images that evoke an emotional response, while remaining faithful to the landscape.
sun to moon gallery • 1515 levee street • dallas, tx 75207 • 214.745.1199