rue du Couvent, St-Henri Photograph - Limited Edition of 1

Ronald is a Montreal based photographer who likes to photograph what he finds in his city and in the surrounding countryside. "Fascinated by movie and still cameras from an early age, I eventually settled for the 35mm still camera by my twenties. Unswervingly passionate about colour work, I mostly snapped slides and printed them on Cibachrome. More than twenty years later, while in a bus terminal, I spotted a cool-toned black and white poster of a couple kissing under the lights of an illuminated tramway. This night photograph proved a sudden revelation for me as it captured an atmosphere that I knew could not be replicated, either technically or emotionally, with colour. I delved into a study of the masters of black and white photography: Doisneau, Bresson, Brandt, Kertesz and, in particular, Brassai. I learned to appreciate the beauty of the tonalities and the apparent simplicity of this medium. A move into medium-format photography was indicated. And now, whenever I have doubts about my work, I always refer back to the prints of these masters for subtle hints of what might be missing in my own. I'm also a perpetual student of the masters of painting and believe that, to some extent, this has also influenced my photography. "It's been said about black and white photography that it being one step removed from the immediate realism of colour photos brings it more into the sphere of art, somewhat like gravure. I think there is a lot of truth to that. Moreover, I believe that it can immortalize time by capturing the essence of a person or place. It's been equally said of Canadian short story writers that what distinguishes their work is their ability to make the everyday and ordinary seem grand and extraordinary. I believe this is what I also try to do with the camera. After all, there are no Eiffel Towers, Empire State Buildings or Grand Canals in Canada, but there are many things worth photographing. Here are some of them."