Rfotofolio is pleased to share the work and words of photographer Lynn Radeka

Would you please tell us about yourself?

I was born in Chicago, IL and moved to California in 1964 with my parents when I was 13. While I was attending high school in the 1960’s I was reading – and comprehending – basic college chemistry textbooks. I wanted to be a chemist! I felt that this was my calling, my future, so I landed a job in a chemistry lab at a pharmaceutical company in southern California and did well. It turned out that the necessary classes to pursue a degree in Chemistry in college deviated far beyond what I had previously learned. More math, calculus, etc. So I was open to exploring other options.

During those years I was hearing stories after stories about this mystical place in the wild west called Death Valley. After reading all the books I could find about Death Valley at local libraries finally my parents drove my friend and me on an overnight camping trip there in 1966. The anticipation of finally seeing it was high. During that first trip I admit feeling a little “let-down”, the actual experience didn’t meet with my wild expectations. But…after I returned home, Death Valley lingered in my mind. It haunted me. Beckoning me to return. I saw a photograph my friend shot…and loved it! It was a simple photograph of rusted cans but somehow it made an impression on me. It might have been the spark that ignited my desire to come back. Again and again. 

In 1969 my parents bought me a Minolta SR-T101 35mm camera for a graduation gift knowing that I was head-over-heels enthusiastic for photography. My interest in Photography took over despite still being employed as a pharmaceutical lab technician which I left around 1972.

After multiple frequent trips to Joshua Tree National Monument, Anza Borrego Desert State Part, and Death Valley (once was a solo trip, my first ever, in a 1965 Chevy Impala Super Sport – which I nearly got stuck in deep gravel), my dad bought me a 1970 Ford Bronco, which I still have. I was finally able to get to exciting backcountry locations without multi-day hikes. Now I could tackle Elephant Hill and the Maze District in Canyonlands National Park with my 4×5 view camera and…I could sleep in the Bronco!

I was very much influenced in my early years by Ansel Adams, Wynn Bullock, Edward Weston, Paul Strand, Walker Evans and George Tice, to name a few. After meeting with Ansel Adams and Wynn Bullock in 1973, on a trip with friends John Woods and John Sexton, my decision to make photography a life-long career was cemented. There was no turning back.

My photographic images, both color and black and white, have been showcased in a variety of media. In 1989 through 1991 I was commissioned by a New York book publisher, Moore and Moore Publishing, Inc., to travel and photograph extensively throughout the American West requiring road journeys through all the United States West of the Mississippi River (excluding Alaska and Hawaii).  This resulted in five full-color books: Ghost Towns of the Old West, Historic Towns of America, Forts and Battlefields of the Old West, Legendary Towns of the Old West and Great American Hotels. One of my recent projects includes the printing of the photographs used for the black and white book Master of Light: Ansel Adams and His Influences, published by Smithmark. These were from negatives sent to me from the Library Of Congress. I made these 8×10 prints in the darkroom with assistance from photographer John Haug, using whatever darkroom methods I deemed necessary to achieve prints that were as good as possible.

The At-A-Glance/Landmark calendar Radeka-The American West featured many of my most popular black and white landscapes and details of the American West. My work and technical writings have appeared in other publications as well, including Way Beyond Monochrome (Lambrecht and Woodhouse), B&W Magazine, View Camera Magazine, LensWork, Elements, Medium Format Magazine and Frames. I am honored to be one of the 38 photographers featured in the book World’s Top Photographers: Landscape, published by Rotovision as part of their Modern Masters series.

Beginning in the late 1980’s, my black and white photographs have been published as fine art duotone posters for Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Death Valley, Grand Canyon and Zion National Parks. In addition, my photographic procedures have been shared in numerous technical articles including the Contrast Masking Kit. I also conduct workshops in Death Valley, Utah, Washington state and New Mexico and darkroom classes on specialized printing techniques with an emphasis on film contrast masking in my home darkroom. My original prints can be found in private, corporate and museum collections as well as galleries and internet sites.

In the late 80’s I was also commissioned by George Davidson of the Capitol Reef Natural History Association to create a slide show for the park’s visitor center. This required photographing locations in Capitol Reef during a variety of seasons and brought me and my late assistant Al Callju there for at least a week at a time.

In the traditional darkroom I often blend traditional styles with contemporary techniques. Beginning in the late 1980’s, I began using very effective shadow-contrast-increase masks (SCIMs) in order to coax variations of contrast in localized areas of the image, something that can’t be done with global procedures such as split-grade printing, etc. Various degrees of selenium toning, localized print “bleaching” and specialized paper selection are but a few of the other fine-tuned elements that go into the making of a uniquely original black and white photograph. My ultimate goal is to produce a unique “tactile” quality in many of my black and white images.

My photographs portray my personal response to natural and architectural subjects and to me seem to convey a Kubrickian, often formal quality. This reveals the essence of many of my photographs. My quintessential expression is through black and white photography which to me reveals the “soul” of the subject.

Who has had an influence on your creative process?

Ansel Adams, Wynn Bullock, Dennis Mcnutt, David Kachel, Jerry Weirich, and Dean Hesketh.

Ansel Adams satisfied my creative, meticulous nature that fit my OCD very well. Wynn Bullock was extremely gracious when reviewing my prints, spending a good length of time on two images in particular. Dennis McNutt is a genius “inventor” who created some pin-registration film masks and explained the procedures in a way that is easily understood. David Kachel brought to light the amazing SLIMT (Selective Latent Image Manipulation Technique) development technique and other extremely useful darkroom methods. Ron Gaut taught me amazing techniques in Photoshop using digital files and Christopher Burkett utilizes contrast masking in conjunction with traditional color materials.

Please tell us about an image (not your own) that has stayed with you over time.

Silverton by Ansel Adams. Although many people will gasp and say “what??? not Moonrise, Hernandez?”. No. I remember seeing a very large print of Silverton, maybe 24×30, in a well-lit Adams exhibit (I know, well-lit Adams exhibit is a conflict of terms nowadays) several decades ago and it was jaw-dropping beautiful. 

In 1973 when I was looking at his work prints of Portfolio VI on his gallery wall, after Ansel turned the gallery lights on while I was staring at his print of Maroon Bells, the clarity and richness of that print affected me so much I wrote to him after I returned home. It was a life-changing moment I’ll never forget.

What image of yours would you say taught you an important lesson?

I can think of several.

Please click on images to see a different view.

Black Cross, Fence and Pier

These images taught me the importance of lens choice and camera placement. Both 4×5 negatives were shot with the lens stopped down nearly to the limit in order to get adequate depth-of-field. Neither image was a good candidate for using my view camera’s swings and tilts although on Fence and Pier I used a very slight tilt. The lessons I learned are the awareness of the juxtaposition of shapes and textures.

Rock Forms – Red Canyon

This definitely taught me a lesson on timing. I almost didn’t stop to shoot this image but fortunately I did. On our way back, along the same dirt road, I kept seeing this image in my mind’s eye. I wanted to shoot it again, a few hours later. When my assistant and I arrived at the location, a very slight drizzle from passing clouds destroyed the eloquence of this subject forever. To this day, several decades later, I have not found the subject.

Horseshoe Canyon

This taught me one of the key stylistic elements in my work – the juxtaposition of opposites: hard vs. soft textures, large vs. small mass, dark vs. light. It also reinforced the concept of over-exposing and under-developing with the intention of using a stronger paper grade to keep good contrast in the shadows.

Juniper Fence and Erosion

This image taught me the importance of selecting the best vantage point and the use of multiple exposures for digital focus stacking. Since I shot this with a 100mm Minolta Rokkor lens on a Sony A7R camera, I was able to focus-stack for maximum depth-of-field. Since it is shot in digital RAW format, I was able to eliminate multiple tire tracks that spanned the foreground.

What part of image-making do you find the most rewarding?

Two parts: Seeing an original negative (black and white) when the lights are turned on in the darkroom, and viewing the final product of my efforts, whether it be a fine print or a digital image on my computer monitor. In both cases, these can also be the least rewarding parts of image-making.

Seeing the final mounted and matted print gives me the greatest satisfaction. 

How do you work through times when nothing seems to work?

Revisiting my archives of images and interpreting them differently. Very often, I’ll view my images upside-down, either on the computer or by simply turning the print over. This gives me a better feel for the way the elements in the image work together. Sometimes, if I’m preparing a digital image, I’ll make all the adjustments upside-down, only occasionally rotating it to view it in it’s proper orientation.

In the field I don’t force seeing images. I believe when God is ready to reveal something to me, I will be presented with the image. I can’t stress this enough. When I take my time and make myself aware of the surroundings, it’s an amazing experience to be “in the zone” (so to speak)! This was reinforced by reading the book “Wynn Bullock – Photography : A Way Of Life” by Barbara Bullock-Wilson, where she stresses the importance of “awareness”. It really does make a difference! I can actually be content going a full day just viewing potential images through the black framing card. In many ways it’s more enjoyable than actually shooting with a camera!

Do you offer workshops?

Yes. I began conducting Film Contrast Masking workshops in my home darkroom in Southern California in 2005. I’ve done those for several years and eventually conducted my first field workshop in Death Valley in 2008. Since then I’ve been leading field workshops on a regular basis in Death Valley, Utah, Washington state and New Mexico. My darkroom film contrast masking workshops are now offered on a one-on-one basis but that may increase in the future.

In 2025 I have 2 workshops coming up: Southern Utah (October 13-17) and Death Valley (November 3-7). For information please go to my website Radeka Photography and click on the desired workshop.

What tools have you found essential in the making of your work?

A black framing card, a tripod, my darkroom (for traditional printing), the Precision Pin-Registration Carrier System and solitude. A 4 wheel drive vehicle is essential for getting into areas that are less photographed by the crowds. This wouldn’t have been such an important issue decades ago before social media rang the dinner bell and now hoards of photographers and tourists flood these once desolate areas and National Parks. Getting further away from crowded overlooks and tourist spots seems to be more important now than ever.

Is there something in photography that you would like to try in the future?

I need to photograph more for myself without the burdens of a workshop setting.

How does your art affect the way you see the world?

A great deal! Photography makes me view everything from a different perspective. More clearly, more intensely, with greater enthusiasm. It allows me to “see” not just to look. I have OCD so I’m always discerning lines and shapes that fit cleanly and neatly within a certain boundary. This can be a distracting thing though and I’m sometimes too obsessive with fine details, placements, edges, etc. But ultimately I think I’m blessed to be a photographer. I can get joy just from driving, hiking and going to locations that might be very boring to others.

What’s on the horizon?

I’d like to revisit some ghost towns that I was privileged to photograph in the past, plus more that I’ve learned of since. One crazy desire I have is to re-trace the routes I drove during my book projects in 1989-1991. So much has changed since then. And, of course, I’m still working on my 50 years B&W book (which will be 56 soon). Time flies.

Thank you Lynn.

To learn more about the work of Lynn Radeka please visit his site by clicking on his name.