Dale Reid

Biography

Fine art photographer Dale M Reid has gone through many transitions in life: from leaving the corporate world and entering the art world, to the discovery of inter-femininity and a new outlook on life.

Photography always played an important role in Dale’s life; however, since 1999 she has developed and moved into a second career as a fine art photographer. Dale’s outlook on life changed drastically when her life partner and soul mate was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Despite the challenges over the years, the relationship has never been stronger.

For the 5^thAnnual Black and White Spider Awards, her Pear Affair #2 image was nominated in the Still Life – Professional category. The Black and White Spider Awards is an international competition honoring excellence in black & white photography. The Jury comprises influential decision makers in Photography, Publishing and Fine Art who review entries and judge the images based on artistic merit, originally, subject, style and ultimately decide the winners.

Exclusively using black & white film and the traditional method of photography, her artwork has depth, feeling and an underlying sensuality. With experience in the field and studio, she creates work in a variety of areas from landscapes to interpretative self portraits.

Dale’s artistic style captures the world around her, showing its beauty, through the interaction of the environment, shadows and lighting. Her black & white floral images explore the artistic expression of the flower which has resulted in three award winning images. With an affinity for pears, her still life portfolio generates life, energy and emotions; it is far from ‘still’. Dale’s creative juices come alive as she experiments with presentations and lighting in her still life images. This is particularly evident in her ‘marching pears’, ‘dessert pears’, and ‘pears dancing in the rain’.

Inspired by studying other photographers work and other art forms, often her artwork is compared with two great photographers, Ansel Adams and Robert Mapplethorpe.

Based in Toronto, Dale is represented by DeLong Gallery. Exhibiting regularly in Canada and the United States, she has built recognition for her unique style. 

Artist’s Statement

My Muse

While photography has always been a part of my life, it was after my life partner and soul mate was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis that it developed. I started to look at life differently and with a new appreciation of its fragility. I was now looking through a different set of eyes and developed a new appreciation of my surroundings. I started to capture these views through the photographic medium and develop my artistic style.

My Artwork

I create my artwork using a medium format Mamiya camera and photograph with a fine grain black & white negative film. In the darkroom, I can spend many hours to bring out the feeling and essence of what I viewed. Using dodging and burning techniques, I hand print each photograph using black & white chemistry on a museum quality fiber base paper. The photographs have a depth and crispness and each picture within the edition is unique as I cannot dodge and burn each print the same time and chemical temperatures can vary.

My Creativity

To create a unique perspective and life in my artwork, I combine different elements - shadows, clouds, textures and lines - with lighting. Outside the studio, I use available lighting and carefully select the time of the day to shoot my subject to utilize the sun to create my statement. Where lighting is limited, such as an interior industrial site, I use a long exposure time to capture the dramatic feel as it comes into sharp focus. In the studio, I experiment with the intensity and the number of light sources to create my image. I favor a black background to shoot my floral studies to bring out the artistic expression of the flower. Despite the harshness of the black background, through the use of light including selective dodging and burning in the darkroom, I create sensuality and softness in the picture. For my still life images, I experiment with different presentations to create whimsical images.