A Young Photographer’s First Exhibition

By Shannon Hicks

Alex Campbell began doing photography as a serious hobby for the first time last September. This month his work, having impressed enough people, is on view in the lobby the Newtown office of Savings Bank of Danbury.

“This in uncharted territory for us,” said Sharon Maynard, assistant vice president and branch manager of the Church Hill Road bank. “But after talking with him a few months ago about his hobby, and then seeing his work, we invited him to show off some of his photos.

“He’s a local person, we’re a community bank — it’s a perfect fit,” she added.

The collection will remain on view “for the time being,” said Ms Maynard, and offers 12 of Alex’s favorite images. Six were shot in Newtown and the others were done during a recent trip to Ireland. His favorite subjects are landscapes, especially clouds. Alex’s photos are notable for the different angles he uses when composing his images. To take one of his photos, for instance, Alex climbed 50 feet up a hemlock, which resulted in an unusual view of the tree’s branches.

“I just started taking pictures and people told me they were good, so I started to look at them again,” the very well spoken 13-year-old said. Alex graduated from the eighth grade at Housatonic Valley Waldorf School earlier this month. “Most of my inspiration comes from what I see.”

Currently Alex is making his beautiful photos using a Sony CyberShot, but he is planning to purchase a full-size Canon once he saves enough money for one. He makes his own prints (“I always find it fun to see stuff come out of the printer,” he said), and selects the frames and mattes for his photos as well.

Alex’s parents are Bill and Patricia Campbell, both of whom are very musical. Much of his photographic inspiration, he says, comes from his aunt, Randi Gerry, who was a professional photographer for many years; family friends Paul and Georgia Barton, also professional photographers; and Paul Martin, a friend of his father’s who Alex calls “an amazing photographer.”

The older sister of a friend, Sarah Sampson, has also given Alex some ideas. He is self-taught, having read a lot of information online and doing what other self-taught photogs have done for years: trial and error.

He spent some time in Ireland recently, and still has not gone through the hundreds of files he shot over there.

Alex has already sold a few of his photos, and started his own business — Night and Day Photography — last fall. The photos at the bank are all available for purchase and he is willing to accept commissions from clients.

“I just love taking photos,” he said, “I love creating images.”

Photography is not the only thing Alex excels at, however. He recently performed in an off-Broadway play called Our Finest Work, written by Mary Poidexter. It was actually while performing in his school’s production of Loves Labours Lost that Alex met Peter McLaughlin, who was directing that show.

When Mr McLaughlin’s wife was looking for someone to play the child in her new play, Our Finest Work, Mr McLaughlin was reportedly impressed enough with Alex’s work to call on him.

The trio — Alex, Ms Poindexter and Mr McLaughlin — first performed the play on June 5 for an early round of the 32nd Annual Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Original Short Play Festival. The play was one of 400 submissions for this year’s festival, the oldest continuous short play festival in Manhattan and one that attracts companies from across the country as well as from Canada and England. After its first performance, Our Finest Work was accepted for a final round performance on June 17 at The American Theatre of Actors.

The play concerns a married couple and their son. What the audience does not realize until the final moments of the performance is that the son has died, which is what caused the wife to leave the home for more than a year. The couple is trying to cope with what has happened to them and their marriage, and the son is watching as his parents try to reconcile.

Ms Poindexter, along with Mr McLaughlin and Alex, are waiting to hear from the editorial department of Samuel French, Inc, to learn of the theater group’s decision for this year’s festival. Members of the editorial department attend the final performances and offer publication contracts to authors of selected plays.

Meanwhile, it is summer break for Alex, which means he has plenty of time to fill up his memory cards with new images. The photographer has walls to climb, trees to scale, and photos to take.