2025 Artist: Lou Hall
As Arts Marathon artists we will send a different example of our creative process and work to everyone who sponsors us, five days per week during April. We invite our friends, family, colleagues and anyone else who cares about art and wants to support Bridge to Rutland’s important work to sponsor us. Together we will help welcome new Americans who, in turn, will add immeasurably to our communities.
Lou‘s Arts Marathon Goal
I'll be offering a variety of AI Image Creations.Lou‘s Background
With a library of over 30,000 images, I may have amassed a considerable collection, but in the company of today's astonishingly talented photographers and image editors, I still feel like a novice.
My journey with photography began early, ignited in a high school darkroom back in 1968. Those first lessons at Guilderland Central High School, immersed in the evocative scents of developer, stop bath, and fixer, have stayed with me ever since. We worked exclusively with Kodak black and white film, and the magic of seeing images emerge in the developing tray hooked me for life.
My first 35mm film camera, a Pentax K1000 (which I still own), became a trusted companion, even during my early foray into aerial photography, capturing unique perspectives from a Cessna 172 Skyhawk. Over the years, my gear has evolved, encompassing a Bronica ETRS 645 medium format film camera, an early Sony Mavica digital camera, two Nikons, and a Canon 30D. Today, while my iPhone 13 Pro Max is my primary tool, many of the images on this site were captured with my reliable Canon 30D. I also captured all my YouTube aerial videos (My channel has nearly 90,000 views so far) using a DJI Phantom 3 Pro Quadcopter Drone with a 4K camera and 3-axis gimbal, designed for aerial photography and videography. It also has GPS and Vision Positioning.
My photographic image editing workflow centers around Adobe Camera RAW, where the initial, crucial stages of image development take place. I then refine my work in Photoshop 2025, Adobe Lightroom, and Topaz Photo AI. My introduction to Photoshop, with the arrival of CS2 in 2005, opened up a new world of creative possibilities.
In November 2016, my life took an unexpected turn with a diagnosis of Stage 4 Head and Neck Cancer. The arduous journey of radiation and chemotherapy led to a prognosis of no more than three years. I am profoundly grateful to have surpassed that, now nine years on. Though largely confined to my living room recliner and with my ability to capture new photographs with a traditional camera significantly limited, the emergence of AI in the creative landscape two years ago has been nothing short of a creative rebirth.
Currently, I'm exploring Midjourney’s boundless AI digital image editing potential alongside my continued use of Photoshop 2025, Adobe Lightroom, Topaz Photo AI, and other AI image editors, including Adobe Firefly.
And so, I return to where I began: I may still feel like a novice, but I press on, driven by four simple joys:
1. The frequent delight of creating an image that brings a smile to my face.
2. The hope that one of my images might bring a smile to yours.
3. The opportunity to share a window into my past.
4. The vital importance of staying creatively engaged, at any level, for my well-being.
Find Lou online
Art Samples
