My love for photography started way back when I was seven years old and got my first camera, a gently used point and shoot, and I began snapping away. 

Five years later, I got my first SLR, a hand me down from my father, a classic Pentax K1000 with two lenses.  It took me a while to master the metering but with my father’s guidance and some reading I got a good handle on the basics.  I learned from my father about angles, composition, lighting, depth of field and being patient in waiting for the best moment to get the perfect shot.   From that point onward there was no turning back.

Fast forward to the present, many things have changed.  We are no longer constrained by film and have moved into the digital age.  Years of photography experience and experimenting have helped.  And while I have built an in-home studio for portraiture, my passion continues to be landscape photography. 

Photography is all about making emotional connections. When I am there, photographing the scene, it’s all right there in front of me, it’s all tangible—I can touch it, smell it, taste it, it’s an orgy for the senses. All those senses come together to create a feeling deep inside, an indescribable emotional response and for that moment, you feel connected, one with the scene. After the shutter is released and the image is transferred to the computer, a good picture continues to evoke that emotional response from the comfort of your home. But if others view the picture and feel a similar emotional connection, if they feel so immersed that they too are drawn in to the picture, like they are right there in that moment, experiencing the beauty for themselves, then you know you have a great picture. That to me is the magic of photography and my hope is that one of my pictures will evoke such an emotional response.

When I photograph a beautiful scene I want it to be an accurate representation of what I saw, or more accurately, what I remembered it to be. It should look this way when it’s printed as well. Which is why I partnered with a local fine art printing house, specializing in creating vibrant prints with crisp details, great depth, and magnificent colours. The samples here on the site can’t possibly do the prints justice. They are bold and impactful, elegant and contemporary.

By purchasing an image from my store, you are buying a part of me, supporting a local Toronto photographer and his passion, but more importantly to me, a picture of mine has evoked a strong emotional response from you, and that to me, is the most rewarding of all.

Cheers,

Steven Vandervelde

SVphotography