Landscape photographer John Francis McCarthy never goes anywhere without a camera. He always has some in his Skaneateles gallery, a few at home and others in his car.
He's also a patient man, waiting around for hours just for that perfect shot. He'll go back to a particular location as many as 50 times to ensure that everything - the color, the lighting, the composition - is just right.
“It got to be where I knew where the sun would rise and set in the Finger Lakes,” said McCarthy, owner of Finger Lakes Photography on Jordan Street. “Photography is just seconds, split seconds. You have to really know what you're looking for.”
Such commitment to his craft has resulted in the publication of several books, most recently a paperback that highlights Owasco Lake and the locales around it.
The book, which was published in December 2007 and took about four years to complete, is the fourth in a regional series that McCarthy first worked on in 1984.
The first paperback in that series, “The Finger Lakes,” was published by Oxford University Press. It became the best-selling regional book in the history of New York state, McCarthy said, noting that it has sold more than 70,000 copies over the years.
But while Oxford decided to change the focus of its publications, McCarthy took the success and ran with it. He has subsequently published three other books in the paperback series - including one on Skaneateles Lake - as well as hardcover works on the Finger Lakes, Ireland and New York state golf courses.
The paperbacks are each 40 pages and include dozens of glossy photographs, in addition to a short history of the subject and some personal insights.
Photography books on the Finger Lakes often have just a few photos of each body of water, so the paperbacks are a good way for locals to obtain photos of “their” lake, said McCarthy, whose photos are exhibited in several locations throughout the region, including Syracuse Hancock International Airport.
“Basically what we did was take pictures of things that people see every single day but never stopped to notice,” he added.
Hence the better-than-a-postcard photos of the lake from Sam Adams Lane and the running deer on Rockefeller Road. A beautiful autumn shot of the Owasco River from the bridge at Deauville Island in Emerson Park comes just a few pages before a springtime in-full-bloom photo of Hoopes Park in Auburn.
And each photo has a story, each a reason for being selected.
The nighttime Hunter's Diner photo on page 18? McCarthy got yelled at by several people for standing in the road to capture the neon image.
The sun-kissed red barn on Wyckoff Road that appears on page 29?
“I've been there 100 times, but this is the first time that the light was so spectacular,” he said of the photo.
And the American flag hanging quietly amongst the snow-covered trees? That page 31 photos is actually McCarthy's Auburn backyard. His brother-in-law was stationed in Iraq, and his wife, Waterman Elementary art teacher Linda, put the flag up in their backyard every day until he came home.
McCarthy said that his books are studies, not the “flying visits” that photographers from outside the area often do.
“You really have to live in a place to do it justice,” McCarthy said, adding that he knows the secret places and best vantage points for photos, largely because he gets in the car and looks around, constantly searching for different places to shoot.
Up next for McCarthy are paperbacks on Seneca, Keuka and Cayuga lakes.
He plans to spend the next few months getting his winter shots for these publications, and he's also working on a wine book that he says will have a unique focus.
Finding those different angles is what makes photography so exhilarating for McCarthy.
“You could look at something and then walk 10 feet to the left or right and get something completely different,” he said.
To buy a copy
To buy a copy of John Francis McCarthy's paperback, “Owasco Lake” (Finger Lakes Press, 2007), or any of his other publications, visit Finger Lakes Photography at 9 Jordan St., Skaneateles, or go to
www.johnfrancismccarthy.com. The Owasco Lake book is $19.95 plus tax.
“It got to be where I knew where the sun would rise and set in the Finger Lakes,” said McCarthy, owner of Finger Lakes Photography on Jordan Street. “Photography is just seconds, split seconds. You have to really know what you're looking for.”
Such commitment to his craft has resulted in the publication of several books, most recently a paperback that highlights Owasco Lake and the locales around it.
The book, which was published in December 2007 and took about four years to complete, is the fourth in a regional series that McCarthy first worked on in 1984.
The first paperback in that series, “The Finger Lakes,” was published by Oxford University Press. It became the best-selling regional book in the history of New York state, McCarthy said, noting that it has sold more than 70,000 copies over the years.
But while Oxford decided to change the focus of its publications, McCarthy took the success and ran with it. He has subsequently published three other books in the paperback series - including one on Skaneateles Lake - as well as hardcover works on the Finger Lakes, Ireland and New York state golf courses.
The paperbacks are each 40 pages and include dozens of glossy photographs, in addition to a short history of the subject and some personal insights.
Photography books on the Finger Lakes often have just a few photos of each body of water, so the paperbacks are a good way for locals to obtain photos of “their” lake, said McCarthy, whose photos are exhibited in several locations throughout the region, including Syracuse Hancock International Airport.
“Basically what we did was take pictures of things that people see every single day but never stopped to notice,” he added.
Hence the better-than-a-postcard photos of the lake from Sam Adams Lane and the running deer on Rockefeller Road. A beautiful autumn shot of the Owasco River from the bridge at Deauville Island in Emerson Park comes just a few pages before a springtime in-full-bloom photo of Hoopes Park in Auburn.
And each photo has a story, each a reason for being selected.
The nighttime Hunter's Diner photo on page 18? McCarthy got yelled at by several people for standing in the road to capture the neon image.
The sun-kissed red barn on Wyckoff Road that appears on page 29?
“I've been there 100 times, but this is the first time that the light was so spectacular,” he said of the photo.
And the American flag hanging quietly amongst the snow-covered trees? That page 31 photos is actually McCarthy's Auburn backyard. His brother-in-law was stationed in Iraq, and his wife, Waterman Elementary art teacher Linda, put the flag up in their backyard every day until he came home.
McCarthy said that his books are studies, not the “flying visits” that photographers from outside the area often do.
“You really have to live in a place to do it justice,” McCarthy said, adding that he knows the secret places and best vantage points for photos, largely because he gets in the car and looks around, constantly searching for different places to shoot.
Up next for McCarthy are paperbacks on Seneca, Keuka and Cayuga lakes.
He plans to spend the next few months getting his winter shots for these publications, and he's also working on a wine book that he says will have a unique focus.
Finding those different angles is what makes photography so exhilarating for McCarthy.
“You could look at something and then walk 10 feet to the left or right and get something completely different,” he said.
To buy a copy
To buy a copy of John Francis McCarthy's paperback, “Owasco Lake” (Finger Lakes Press, 2007), or any of his other publications, visit Finger Lakes Photography at 9 Jordan St., Skaneateles, or go to
www.johnfrancismccarthy.com. The Owasco Lake book is $19.95 plus tax.
The Citizens' Say
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ANGMOM3 wrote on Jan 1, 2008 9:46 PM: