Robert Coomer -- Who Am I?

I often find myself asking that same question.

I'm an admirer of nature and God’s magnificent creations. I enjoy hiking through the woods, strolling along a sea shore, or meandering along in a cave passage hundreds of feet below ground.

Reality Check!

Usually I find myself hanging from the side of a cliff, scrambling over slick rocks along the sea shore, or crawling in mud and water up to my neck in a cave trying to get the shot I want. Usually I'm enjoying every minute of it, even though I might be scared to death at the moment, or too preoccupied with the shot to realize that I should be! I even learned how to swim so I could photograph river caves in Guatemala.

I enjoy the challenge of finding the beauty in an everyday scene or object. That might require looking at it in a slightly different way, from an unusual angle, in different lighting, or as an extreme close up. That is why I usually find myself in one of the above mentioned predicaments.

 
Many of the images on this site are more than just what I saw through the viewfinder, they try to capture what I felt. A normal photograph will only record a fraction of a second. But in the hands of an experienced photographer, you can capture more. You start to see movement in the images, beams of light, or even multiple exposures put together to try to tell the story that was behind the photo.

I grew up in southwestern Ohio. In high school I excelled in drawing and even had a brief run as a published cartoonist and still do some cartooning. I taught myself how to use an airbrush and worked in a photo/hyper realistic style. I spent 8 years working as an airbrush artist at Paramount’s Kings Island doing t-shirts while I studied Graphic Design at the University of Cincinnati (D.A.A.P.).

I've been shooting photographs since high school, but it wasn't until design school that I started taking it seriously. I enjoyed 35mm slide, B&W and 4x5 photography as well as working in the darkroom at school. A few years ago I went digital and haven't looked back. My photography has hit high gear and hasn't slowed down. I now spend as much time out in the field shooting as possible. I've won many blue and green ribbons in national competitions, including taking the 2003 Best of Show medal in black and white cave photography at the National Speleological Society’s photo salon competition.

 

Working as a designer in Cincinnati I have combined my drawing, airbrush and photography skills to do photo illustration work. Since my personal style of art leaned towards hyper realism, photo illustration was a natural outcome.

I’m also the Editor for the Greater Cincinnati Grotto and have won many ribbons and best of show awards for cover design.

 
 © 2003 RobertCoomer   All Rights Reserved. No part of this website or it's images may be used without written consent

Pondering the face of darkness

                     - can you see it?