Meet Roger Shackelford of Shackelford Photography in North Dallas

Today we’d like to introduce you to Roger Shackelford.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Roger. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I loved art since I was a child. I was born in Baltimore, Maryland and went to high school in rural Virginia. I taught high school art and photography with a black and white darkroom after graduating from college with a BFA in art education. In addition to fine art, I studied photography at the Academy of Art and City College of San Francisco. Subsequently, I worked in the photofinishing industry in San Francisco printing on various materials up to photo mural sizes (72 inch by 15-foot sections as part of a larger image). Over the years, I have exhibited in alternative spaces with various photography groups that I created. Currently, I work in special education as an assistant for visually impaired students.

I consider myself fortunate to have film and darkroom background because I view the film negative as a canvas for light. This affords layering of light, color, shape and identifiable things in an unfamiliar landscape. The film negative in my pinhole camera allows me to shoot at different locations on different days as I combine images, unlike a digital camera. I hope the process of layering images creates a meditative or transcendent image that looks familiar but is strange to the known or real world. The creative process for my first one-man show in September was informed by my experience recovering from quadriplegia. I was completely paralyzed by a rare spinal cord disorder (transverse myelitis). My efforts to regain the use of my limbs, learn to walk again and prepare for a return to work included a desire to do photography again. There was a time when I was not certain whether I could operate a camera because of my disorder. I regained the use of my right hand, but my left hand is a “hard hand” that remains in a partially paralyzed shape. I work primarily with a tripod as a result. I had to adapt my equipment for one-handed shooting. I value creativity in my personal expression and as an aid in overcoming obstacles.

Now, I seek to express a sense of the transcendent in my artwork. My focus is creating or reenacting moments that suggest the supernatural among us. The viewer brings their own unique experience to viewing artwork. I hope to relate to the human condition motivated by a sense of a shared need for the transcendent. I liken this photographic vision separate from reality to how faith calls things that are not as if they are. My vision of a restored body when I was paralyzed appeared strange to some of those who treated me in the medical field. I said that I was going to walk out of the hospital. A neuropsychologist asked me why I was so positive. I explained to him that I had faith for supernatural healing. One doctor said that I had a good attitude for someone who was going to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair. Nevertheless, I did walk out of the hospital and returned to photography.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I had to overcome a spinal cord disorder that left me paralyzed. I did not know if I would ever walk or use my hands again. I remember when my occupational therapist brought me her camera. I had regained some use of my right hand. “Please put the camera strap around my neck, because I do not want to drop your camera,” I said. I struggled to operate the controls on her camera. I had so little strength and dexterity in my fingers. I learned to walk again with leg weights in a swimming pool and spent a great deal of time in physical therapy. I kept saying that I was getting stronger. Eventually, I learned how to use my paralyzed left hand and functioning right hand to fabricate camera modifications in my shop. I designed and built “go bags” that had my equipment already assembled for one-handed shooting. My family took turns pushing me around the Dallas Arboretum in a wheelchair for my first shoot. I could take a limited number of steps and then set up my monopod to hold my camera for me. I kept pushing myself to do more. Eventually, I could walk greater distances and set up a ladder to shoot from a higher angle. I began shooting multiple exposures of stained glass with my pinhole camera because it rendered the image in a dreamlike appearance. Shooting became a meditative experience in different locations with multiple exposures of visual elements that I hoped would suggest the supernatural among us. My motivation was related to my experiences of supernatural peace and healing.

I want my message of recovery and creativity to bring others hope. I found it is important to stay positive and exercise faith in whatever challenges you may face. I made the decision to stay positive and serve others. Even when I could not use my arms and legs, I could ask the prayer needs of others. My Christian faith allowed me to see my life restored. I had a vision for full recovery. I guarded my thoughts, so I would not fall into mental traps that did not contribute to my vision. Consider what you think about and how it contributes to your success. This thought process informed each choice I made in occupational and physical therapy. I would not settle for where I was but sought the next therapy or strategy to adapt and improve from where I was. You can make choices to improve your situation and not settle for the circumstances you find yourself in. I still have physical deficits and limitations, but my priorities are much more in focus. What is important in life becomes clearer when you face your own mortality.

Shackelford Photography – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Currently, I create abstract landscapes printed on either clear acrylic or brushed aluminum that appear to float off the wall on backing blocks. My first one-man show opening reception will be at the Sundermann Gallery of St. Matthew’s Cathedral on September 15th from 5 to 7 p.m. (5100 Ross Avenue at North Garrett, Dallas, Texas 75206). The show title is The Supernatural Among Us and will run through October 31st.

The majority of my photographs are composed in-camera without Photoshop. They are not photo composites. I shoot from two to eight exposures on a single frame of 120 film using either an 80mm lens, handmade pinhole, or combination of both. These overlapped images are like a meditation in that I make timed exposures at different locations and never see the final image until the film is processed.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I enjoy supporting my son’s metal bands with photography. I shoot with a NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8 AI manual focus lens on a digital body, so I use my experience shooting at slow shutter speeds to capture movement and stage lighting. I really feel the caring and support of the metal music community while photographing bands. Musicians and fans, as well as my wife and son, look out for me as I overcome my disability to negotiate the club and mosh pit while doing my photography. I enjoy seeing my photography on the band’s CDs, music reviews and web pages.

Pricing:

• 10 x 10 ink jet print on brushed aluminum with white backing blocks = $200
• 20 x 20 ink jet print on brushed aluminum with white backing blocks = $380
• 20 x 20 ink jet ¼ inch clear acrylic print with white PVC backing and white backing blocks = $450
• 20 x 40 ink jet ¼ inch clear acrylic print with white PVC backing and white backing frame = $680

Contact Info:

• Website: https://abcradioroger.wixsite.com/shackelford-arts
• Email: shackelfordarts@gmail.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shackelfordarts/?modal=admin_todo_tour

Image Credit:
Roger Shackelford

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