First Friday Artist, Laurence Heine
Laurence Heine is among the talented group of creators contributing to our First Friday holiday event and gallery opening on December 2nd at the Depot. Laurence has previously shown his work at the Depot and we are grateful to have him return! Get to know Laurence and his photography in his biography below.
“I have been interested in photography since childhood, when I mostly photographed railroads and steam engines – I remember my first camera was a plastic Kodak box camera. I was a photographer for my high school and college yearbooks and my college newspaper, and for two years I was the college yearbook photographic editor.
Over the years I have amassed boxes of slides and photos, many of which have never been looked at. Since switching to digital cameras, I have also taken thousands of digital images (more than 2000 images during an 18-day trip to National Parks in the west in 2015).
I am primarily interested in photographing nature and scenery, ranging from butterflies and insects to sunrises, sunsets, rainbows, waterfalls, wildlife, and scenic panoramas. I also enjoy photographing ‘distressed’ (as in abandoned or forlorn) buildings and objects and am now doing a lot of macro (extreme close-up) photography.
My desire is to capture specific moments or scenes that are meaningful to me, so I can share those moments or scenes so others can enjoy them too, whether by displaying a mounted and framed print or by sharing them online.
I mount and frame my best or favorite photographs so others can appreciate them, too. I have displayed photos at the Rockingham County Fair, The Smith House Gallery, Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community, in the offices of Dr. Stacie Dietz and Appalachian Physical Therapy, at The Gaines Group Architects, and at the Staunton Innovation Hub. I received two First Place awards in the 2018 Rockingham County Fair and a First and a Second Place award in the 2022 Rockingham County Fair.
Because almost every photo has a story, my wife, Beverly, and I started a photo blog (www.blinspirations.com) featuring some of our photos and describing the circumstances which led to the photo being taken, as well as information about the location of the photo and some technical aspects of the photo.”