Imaging Industry ... The Show

I see stunning visual qualities in industrial facilities and machinery and have always enjoyed photographing the work of the craftsmen of industry for my commercial and artistic pursuits. Much of my professional photography career was focused on corporate and industrial photography. I loved this work because the challenge of imaging such large and complex spaces often led me to stretch the limits of conventional photography and lighting techniques. I also enjoyed the opportunity to shoot in special laboratories, training facilities, and other unusual areas. These images, created for my recent photography exhibition, were mostly created as work for hire for a variety of industrial and commercial purposes such as corporate communications, brochures, annual reports, and as scientific and historical records. For this exhibition I have chosen to display a images that I feel hold particular abstract and artistic qualities.

This current exhibition "Imaging Industry is on display through June 2006 at In A Pig's Eye in 148 Derby St. Salem, MA. An artist's reception will be hosted on Sunday June 11 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.

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Flue Gas Scrubber Absorber Tower under construction at the Conemaugh Electric Power Station in western Pennsylvania. The scrubber towers at Conemaugh are among the largest in the world.

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An image taken from a scanning electron microscope used to reveal The crystalline structure of material under examination at the environmental chemistry labs of GPU Energy in Reading, PA

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Blower motor gears used in the coolant system at Three Mile Island. Each gear is about the size of a human head.

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A view of a portion of the steam turbine generator shell at a coal power plant near Reading, PA.

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Stainless Steel storage tubes inside a full scale replica of the damaged reactor core at TMI unit 2. Radiation workers would practice reactor core cleanup tasks using this water filled training tool.

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Image detail of a "lightship" constructed by industrial designer David Parker for the Viacom World Headquarters lobby in NYC. The globe of this piece is about 5 feet in diameter.

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An Inductivity Coupled Argon Plasma Spectrometer (ICAP) used to determine the metals content of environmental samples at the chemistry materials laboratory at GPU Energy Corp in Reading, PA

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Steam turbine generator blades at Three Mile Island.

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Detail of a 1940's Triad Vacuum Tube used in AM radio station transmission equipment. The tube is about 6 inches in diameter and about 14 inches tall.

About The Photographer

My Fine art work has been exhibited at gallery and Museum exhibitions across America as well as in Europe. My images have been included in public and private collections Worldwide including the Philadelphia Museum of Art's permanent collection. Some exhibitions have include shows at The Tyler Galleries in Rome, Italy, the Pennsylvania State University in Harrisburg, PA, the Pentimenti Gallery of Philadelphia, The New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City, The State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg PA, and Chicago's Institute of Fine Art. additional industrial photography is available in my previous article - Imaging Industry

Comments: 9

jessie voigts Jun 7, 2006, 2:24pm EDT

jim - congrats on your exhibitions!! wow!! you're so great! i love the flame on the best, the closeup flame one. i think your work is so incredible - i can't even imagine figuring out how to take those photos. whoo!! congrats!

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Jeff Cusson Jun 7, 2006, 4:13pm EDT

I love the blower motor gears from Three Mile Island. The low-light detail you captured and the richness of the image are incredible. What did you have to do to get that lighting?

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Jim Bostick Jun 7, 2006, 4:22pm EDT

On the gears image I used three electronic strobes to get this lighting effect.

To really answer the question "What did I have to do to get the lighting?"... I had to lug 200 pounds of lighting gear through a power plant and then have a huge argument with a union electrician because I wanted to plug the equipment in to an outlet. Then I had to wait until three more union electricians showed up who then proceeded to plug my electric cord in to an outlet for me. Keep in mind that I was standing next to the electric outlet and could have plugged the lamp in less than 30 seconds but due to union regulations this took about an hour.

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Jeff Cusson Jun 7, 2006, 4:35pm EDT

I wonder if the "union guy" got hazard pay for that particular activity?

Photographing in abandoned mental hospitals is much easier, isn't it?

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Jillbilly H. Jun 7, 2006, 9:49pm EDT

These photos are fantastic.

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Kevin (''The SiteWizard'') V. Jun 8, 2006, 1:13pm EDT

Jim, this is a very unique set of images, and your endeavors have been well rewarded....as have we. I will try and get to your exhibit before the end of the month. Congratulations!

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