Sandra Carlock has had a long and successful career as a concert pianist, recording artist and teacher. Her love of photography, which has become an additional passion, has developed over the course of many years, starting with her first little ‘box’ camera, a Christmas present from her parents, when she was eight years old. As she traveled throughout the United States and abroad to perform, she always took a camera along – even if only a small ‘point and shoot.’ She began using an SLR ‘film’ camera, probably a quarter of a century ago, switching to digital equipment fifteen years ago. She has found herself increasingly involved in, and dedicated to, the art and craft of creating pleasing images.
Sandra was inspired by a quote from Jeff Wignall’s book ‘Landscape Photography – a Kodak Guide’: ‘Photography is an act of personal exploration. You seek to reaffirm or explore your identity in the places and subjects that you photograph.’ The thousands of photographs stored on her computer bear witness to this assertion! She also believes that understanding the interplay, in a musical composition, of the elements of line, direction, texture, pattern, tonal color, harmony and balance, discord or dissonance and dynamic range (to name just a few!) is a huge part of working out and projecting the interpretation of that composition. And she is fascinated by the idea that it is these identical features which – when unified – coalesce to create an excellent and compelling photograph.
Sandra’s photography represents a very significant element in a blending of passions which has contributed greatly to the quality of her life. {And she thanks those of you – you all know who you are – who have trailed around after her, waiting patiently while she decides how to approach and capture a shot, and who have been there as well to help lug camera gear)!
Sandra has also created two photobooks: one soft cover, Through the Looking Glass, or…How a Pianist Finds Inspiration Through the Lens of Her Camera; one hard cover, ICELAND A Study In Contrasts and finally, an ebook which is the digital version of the soft cover. Both have been printed by Blurb printing.
Sandra would like to acknowledge her recent and ongoing teachers, Karen Hutton, and Wes Hardaker! Both are consummate artists, both teach by example, helping students to find their individual ‘photographic’ personalities as they capture the world around them, seeing, perceiving, and experiencing that world! Yet, neither force their own point of view. And that is a greatly appreciated gift! Sandra worked with Karen, a Master in the Arcanum, a unique teaching and learning approach for photography, from the time it opened its doors in April of 2014 through the beginning of 2015. Since then, she has had the good fortune to be mentored by Wes Hardaker – who is also a Master in the Arcanum!
All images on this site are copyrighted, © Sandra Carlock, and may not in any way be reproduced or copied without Sandra’s express permission.