Jean Carter

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Artist Bio

Jean Carter is a native Oregonian with more than 20 years of experience as a professional nature writer/photographer. Her love and respect for nature began at an early age when her family purchased a 55-acre stump farm in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains east of Eugene, Oregon. With trails through the forest and a year-round creek, the stump farm was an idyllic place to grow up. Jean graduated from McKenzie River High School in Finn Rock, Oregon, and received a degree in Journalism from the University of Oregon in 1960, and a master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction in 1971. A single mother, she raised her two children in Coos Bay where she taught 5th and 6th grades in the public schools for 24 years. Her passion for photography began in 1986 after a tragic accident claimed the life of her son. She signed up for a photography class at the local community college they had planned to take together. For many years photography was a weekend hobby, but driving to work became more difficult with each passing year. There was always something that begged to be photographed: a sunrise over the bay, maple leaves back-lit against the sky, or wildflowers blooming along the road. In 1995 she took a giant leap of faith and retired early. The plan was to have a second career as a writer/photographer. For several years, Jean had many articles and photos published by Oregon Coast and Northwest Travel magazines, but gradually her focus shifted to photography only. Her first national sale came two years later when Outdoor Photographer selected two photos for publication in their magazine and calendar. That was followed by acceptance in the year 2000 Inner Reflection calendar, published by the Self-Realization Fellowship. Jean's photos were first marketed nationally by Jon Gnass of Bend, Oregon. In 2006 she signed on with AGEfotostock, an international photo stock agency in Barcelona, Spain, where her photos were sold in 36 countries. In 2007 she teamed up with another photographer and led workshops for many years on the Oregon coast and scenic locations throughout the western United States including Olympic, Crater Lake, and Redwood National Parks. Since 2017, Jean's photos have been marketed by danitadelimont.com, a photo stock agency in Bellevue, Washington. They have distributed and sold her photos to numerous companies including Art.com, Gallo Images, Fine Art America/Pixels.com, iCanvas-Kroto Inc., Shutterstock, Metaverse, Interia, Print on Demand, and Wall Decor. Jean is now semi-retired enjoying her new passion altering her photographs to create unique art images. Each new image begins with a photograph that is then altered using various plug-in filters in Photoshop.

Artist Website

Artist Statement

I am especially drawn to subjects in nature with artistic potential. I often wished I could travel the world over, discovering new locations and subjects to photograph, but that was never an option for me. Like Robert Frost, I have taken the road less traveled. Now, at 86, I am no longer able to photograph out in nature the way I used to. Physical limitations have been hard to accept. Out of necessity, I have been forced to adapt. After years of straight unaltered nature photography, I am doing what was once unthinkable, altering my photographs using tools in Photoshop and a variety of plug-in filters. The purist in me is gone, but I still maintain a distinct difference between straight photography and the abstract images I create in Photoshop. While the choices in each filter package are limited, by using a combination of filters from a variety of filter packages, the potential to create unique images becomes infinite. Each new image begins with the selection of a single filter. It's not a mindless endeavor. Quite the contrary, it's the beginning of what often seems like a long and winding road. Inspiration comes during the process of creation. With each alteration ideas come to me, step by step along the way. I try different filters and combinations of filters, delete and clone out portions of the image, move things around, and sometimes crop the image. Unfortunately, some of the filters create artifacts when used in combination that must be painstakingly removed. I've spent hours, even days, spotting a single image only to give up and send it to the waste basket. Other images are set aside to work on later. The process can be tedious and challenging as each step moves the image in the direction I want it to go, but in the final moment of creation, when there is nothing I want to add or change, I feel that sudden 'aha' moment the Gestalt psychologists so beautifully described. It's exhilarating, like diving off the high board for the first time. By then my original photograph is likely to be abstract beyond recognition. It has morphed into something unique that can not be reproduced by anyone else. Nature photography is all about finding a perfect subject and reducing the image to eliminate distracting elements. Art Photos, as I like to call them, require more creative energy on my part. As with both art mediums, inevitably the 'aha' moment fades and I am back looking for another image to work on.