Jeff Smith Photographer
I have lived in Arizona for most of my life. Inspired by my father, I picked up my first camera at the age of five and have yet to put one down. I have pursued lightning landscapes in the Sonoran desert for the last 30 years.
Category: Artist/Individual
Discipline: Visual arts
Program Affiliations: Open Studio Tours Artist
About Jeff Smith Photographer
I have lived in Arizona for most of my life. Inspired by my father, I picked up my first camera at the age of five and have yet to put one down. I have pursued lightning landscapes in the Sonoran desert for the last 30 years. Additionally I’m known for photographing people and bringing their stories to life as well as, photographing large natural history specimens from our past. I love to collaborate with fellow artists and clients artistically and commercially on both local and international projects.
Jeff Smith
Preferred Pronouns: he, him, his
jeff@fotosmithusa.com
520-991-1010
https://www.jeffsmithusa.com
These are individual images shown to you as a group for now!
Six individual images
These are individual images shown to you as a group for now!
Six individual images
The all souls procession Tucson Arizona 2021
Spirit
https://allsoulsprocession.org the all souls procession that happens each year in Tucson Arizona is another one of my joys the photograph.
What is the All Souls Procession?
The All Souls Procession is one of the most important, inclusive and authentic public ceremonies in North America today. The Procession had its beginnings in 1990 with a ceremonial performance piece created by local artist Susan Johnson. Johnson was grieving the passing of her father, and as an artist, she found solace in a creative, celebratory approach to memorializing him. Says Johnson, “From the beginning, it was different people’s ethnic groups, different cultures, but also it was all these different art forms put together.”
After its inception, many artists were inspired to continue, growing the Procession into its modern incarnation. Today we find ourselves organizing well over 150,000 participants on the streets of downtown Tucson for a two-mile long human-powered procession that ends in the ceremonial burning of “The Urn”. The Urn is filled with the hopes, offerings and wishes of the public for those who have passed.
Myriad altars, performers, installation art, and creatives of all kinds collaborate to prepare their offerings for this amazing event. The All Souls Procession Weekend is Honors the Ancestors and our lost loved ones and Celebrates Life.
Open Studio Tour
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At the base of the Santa Catalinas lies Bear Canyon. This was a wonderful display of lightning silhouetting cacti in the summer of 1992.
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While out in the Tohono O’odham Nation, lightning was landing 50’ away from us, using my Nikon camera with a wide 28mm lens, I captured this image. AT Willett and I experienced one of the closest bolts that either of us had photographed. We both captured it from different perspectives at the same time. 1990
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Beyond Organ Pipe - Arizona Shot from the Tohono O’odham Reservation looking west toward Organ Pipe National Monument. The spectacular orange sunset comes from volcanic ash trapped in the stratosphere from the Mount Pinatubo Volcano. 1991
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The Rincon mountains, east of Tucson, is notorious for its fierce storms. This particular evening storm had the most lightning I have ever seen consisting hitting in one place. This image captures all the lighting that incurred in 13 minutes. 1997
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Located along I-10 near Tucson, this sub station offers an interesting dichotomy between the harnessed power of man and the natural power of nature. 2003
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Summer Monsoons in Mexico are amazing. This storm came out of nowhere and pounded the Sonoran city of Puerto Peñasco. Immediately after I photographed this image, the storm moved into the sea at which point I also shot the image "Sea Of Cortez”. 1998
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I set my camera up in anticipation of a storm I saw in Puerto Peñasco, Sonora. It was exciting to see the lightning dance exactly across my camera's frame. The flashing lightning froze the small waves in time. 1998
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I was north of Tucson in Oro Valley for this storm. I headed towards Catalina State Park, set up my cameras and photographed this giant bolt. The separation between cloud and bolt is almost three-dimensional. This is my favorite image in this season. 2006
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Flying into Albuquerque, NM at sunset I saw lightning in the distance towards the Santa Fe area. I pushed my camera up against the window opened the shutter momentarily and captured this. 1988
About the Process
My favorite tools are of course cameras, tripods and ladders.
I've been living in Tucson since I was 10 years old and have traveled
as far away as New Zealand and Argentina,Tucson has always
calls me back.
Every July our thunderstorm start and I spend my evenings out in
the elements of our monsoon storms. Either with people or without, I
am charged by the storms that surround southern Arizona.
My body of work consists of iconic Storm photography of southern
Arizona & drivescapes of lightning that I shoot from my car while I
drive.
Although I have spent most of my life as a photographer I do some
video work and move in and out of that for certain projects.
As far as being in the field which is my main workspace I need time of
day or time of night for it to be a new moment to take the same
picture differently with new tools and techniques.
As far as my actual workspace in my backyard I need all my tools,
different tools work on different days, whether it's a lightweight tripod
for a still evening or a very heavy tripod for a windy day that's where
they rest. My new studio space is very small and in my yard.
Out shooting From the age of 2 to 5 my father was a picture on the mantel.My family would point to the photograph and say, “That’s your dad.” And I’d answer, “Yep. That’s my dad.” And the truth is, I really thought the photograph was my dad. My dad was missing because he was a test pilot for the US Air Force and had been involved in horrible plane accident. An accident that would, as it turned out, require three years of hospitalization for recovery. So when my dad came home, he was home for about two weeks before he put on the baseball cap he had been wearing in the picture on the mantel. I said to him, “Dad?” And he said, “Yeah, who did you think I was?” My dad was eager to make up for time lost. Taking pictures was one of his ways for bridging this chasm. I would have none of it. So my dad said, “If you’re not going to be in the pictures, then you should take them.” So he bought me two toy cameras, my first cameras,a 35mm camera and a 2 1/4in square Format camera. I took pictures throughout my childhood.
Inside Container space When I was 10 my family and I moved to Tucson, Arizona from Massachusetts. I hated it. It was too hot, it was too bright and there was nothing to do. This all changed when I saw my first monsoon/lightning storm. Unlike other parents who would tell you to come away from the window, my father and I would stand in the yard and watch the storms with the same amazement as they moved down over the Catalina Mountains and across the city.
Outside container space home/ studio I have been a professional photographer for 30+ years. My body of work has covered everything from commercial photography to stock photography to art photography. Basically, I photograph anything that fits in these three categories Person, Place or Thing. I plan to do an how to shoot lightning Short demo, at 1pm ever-day I'm open during the open studio tour 2023.
How to Purchase
11 AM until 5 PM April 22 and 23rd 29th and 30th 2023 and then by appointment only!
3539 E. 28th St., Tucson, AZ 85713
I will have two portfolios of older work that I can show you if you’re interested. I will have some proof prints of this year’s work for you to view . I have some large prints for cash and carry or delivery in the Tucson area. My photographic prints are limited editions, their will be older large framed available prints at my studio/home. New work will be print on demand once we determined the size you’re interested in.
You can view my over all work on my website: https://www.jeffsmithusa.com. On my Instagram account it’s mainly lightning clouds and moons well just be coming back online after a big Instagram hack https://www.instagram.com/jeffsmithusa ,If you’d like a closer look, please contact me for a private studio visit. email: jeff@fotosmithusa.com
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Studio Details
Studio: Jeff Smith
Studio Hours: 11 AM until 5 PM April 22 and 23rd 29th and 30th 2023 and then by appointment only! 3539 E 28th ST TUCSON Arizona 85713
How to Visit: Open to public
Studio Website: https://www.jeffsmithusa.com
Studio Phone: (520) 991-1010
Studio Address: 3539 E 28th ST
TUCSON
, AZ 85713
