It was clear early on that Jerry Dodrill was not cut out for a desk job. His career as an adventure and landscape photographer has fostered a lifestyle that the average person might call unconventional. An avid climber of twenty years, he feels equally at home in a rocky bivouac or a soft bed. In college he dropped pre-med classes in favor of fine art and spent weekends scaling Yosemite's granite walls. Photography was at first a by-product of many adventures, but quickly became a goal of its own as he captured each experience with a concise aesthetic and spiritual light quality that reveals a sense of inspiration and captures the imagination.

Jerry's adventures have led around the globe. He has climbed all the major walls in Yosemite Valley, at crags across the West, close to a hundred summits in the Sierra, and peaks in Bolivia, Argentina and China. Full embrace of the many disciplines of climbing have led to many adventures and tales best told late at night around a raging campfire.

In 1997 Jerry achieved degrees in both fine art and photography at Pacific Union College (Napa Valley) then worked under acclaimed photographer Galen Rowell in Berkeley. He was soon managing Galen's gallery and workshops, an amazing experience (akin to a photographers bootcamp), but spending way too much time in the office. After several years he left to pursue his own projects.

Jerry's dedication to his art has not gone unnoticed. He has won several international awards and has been exhibited in fine galleries such as the Ansel Adams, Mountain Light, Mumm Napa Valley, and Banff Center for Mountain Culture. Among his list of clients are The North Face, Vanity Fair, Sunset, Men's Journal, Outside, Alpinist, Rock & Ice, and Climbing magazines. His work has been featured in many ad campaigns, books, and publications and is represented by Aurora Photos, a stock photo agency in Portland, Maine. He currently resides in Northern California, in the tiny town of Bodega.

 

What people are saying:

"You've done it! You've done it!" -Ruth Burnhard
(The comment that started a fire. Said to Jerry while viewing his work, displayed with hers in the Mumm Napa Valley Gallery.)

"Jerry, you bring light out of dark clouds, reflect the liquid mirror's own reflection and record the muted radiance of the trees. You work with light like Michelangelo worked with stone, revealing the core." -Jeff Lowe (renowned writer and alpinist)

"Jerry, Remarkably seen work. It is a very strong combination of fresh vision, flawless technical execution and yet a very subtle presentation that makes it appealing on a universal level, being very approachable by anyone. The understated sophistication of your work is like someone getting off a bus from the mid-West and stumbling into lunch at the French Laundry. I'm impressed." -Robert MacKimmie, Pictopia

"...Selecting the award winners was difficult, as there were so many worthy entries. However, Tsunami, Zion National Park, First Ascent, by Jerry Dodrill, was chosen as the winner, as it demonstrates both exemplary technical skill and fine artistic sense. The bold color and arresting composition draw the viewer in, even from far away. The slight distortion caused by the lens adds visual interest, as well as a sense of movement..." -Erin O-Toole, Associate Curator of Photography, SFMOMA (Juror of "People in Context" photography contest sponsored by Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 2007)