Featured Artist Rick Berk

Enjoy the spectacular photography portfolio of artist Rick Berk, who captures nature’s beauty in every landscape. Visit his website to see more.

 

 

I have been passionate about photography since I developed my first roll of film in college back in the early 90’s. But being a child of Gen X, I also easily took to new technologies and the switch to digital came as naturally as breathing.

 

 

Back in 2016, life took a few negative turns. It became clear it was time to start over. Landscape photography had always been a source of renewal for me. At this point, I decided it was going to be my focus and the foundation of that rebuild. I had relocated to Maine to start over. During the the next few years, I spent time exploring the state with my camera and photographing the landscape.

 

 

Over time, I began adding more travel around the United States to photograph the diverse landscape. These travels took me to the mountains of Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana, Death Valley, coastal Oregon, and more.

 

 

I’m constantly inspired by natural beauty. My goal is to capture the way it makes me feel. I’m in awe of the mountains, the ocean, and just the natural beauty present all over the world. And I am compelled to try and photograph it, to preserve it, in my own way.

 

 

When John Muir wrote “The mountains are calling, and I must go,” I completely understood what he meant.

 

 

I photograph every image as a RAW file, and then edit the images to bring out the emotions I felt while on location making the photo. While I don’t remove or add elements generally, this does mean that I am not beholden to presenting what some would call “reality”. I will dodge and burn the image to create the feeling I want to convey.

 

 

In addition to my conventional camera, I’ve added a drone to my kit. This allows me to create aerial imagery of the landscape. I’ve found this added point of view to be incredibly refreshing to me, and allows me to see the world in a new way. It’s reinvigorated my creativity, making the familiar new and fresh again.

 

 

Over the past few years I’ve had more and more opportunities to teach photography to others. I get a lot of enjoyment in helping others find their vision and make the photographs they want to be able to make. This may be in a group workshop I am leading or in a personal one-on-one environment.

 

 

There’s nothing quite like seeing someone grow as a photographer and make their own art.

 

Rick Berk invites you to follow on Facebook and Instagram.

 

 

Want to stay current on cutting edge business articles from Artsy Shark, plus artist features, and an invitation to the next Call for Artists? Click below to sign up for our twice-monthly email. You’ll get all this plus opportunities and special offers that you can’t get anywhere else!