About Chris Carter

Sandstone Link Is (1 of 1)Chris Carter
West Coast Photography

I have had a lifetime interest in photography. As a teenager I built my first enlarger from an old plate camera and custard mix tin!  I still have one print made with that crude equipment.

During a twelve-year stint of work in East and West Africa I became a 35mm camera user, taking color slides for personal interest.  After moving to Canada I extended my interest in color slide photography and attended workshops with Freeman Patterson and Courtney Milne.

After selling our family business in 1995, I decided to resume my interest in making prints as the major expression of my photographic interest.
I studied  Black and White photography with Bruce Barnbaum and Don Kirby in 1996 and 1997. Seeing Bruce’s graphic and beautiful prints inspired me to work on building a collection of my own Black and White images of Vancouver Island and the West Coast.  I continue to work on this collection and try to make images that convey the natural beauty and spirit of the Island.  As so much depends on natural light and “being there” when conditions are suitable, the collection grows slowly, only three or four “keepers” a year.

Over the past ten years I have transferred my interest to Digital photography.
I now photograph in both Black and White and Color and all my prints are made on archival quality ink jet media using the latest inks and papers. My color panoramic prints of Comox Valley and Vancouver island scenes are becoming very popular.

In July 2008 I began to make prints on canvas, popularly known as “Giclee” prints. In reality these are prints made with a quality ink jet  printer, pigment inks on a specially coated canvas. The finished print is given two coats of artists acrylic medium for protection and color enhancement.

I have travelled by road,kayak,boat, by foot and beach combed all over the Island.  My aim is to pass on as much of the information I have gathered as possible to those that may have less time for their visits but wish to see as much as possible.

My work can be seen and purchased at http://vanislelandscapes.com and my Blog at http://vanislelandscapes.visualsociety.com