Contact information

Phone: (204) 237-7402
E-mail: dan@danharperphoto.com

I really enjoy talking about photography and helping people with gear or starting a career in photography so if you have questions feel free to call!

Biography: Dan Harper

Shooting for fun since the early 90's and full time since 2006, I've come a long way from being born on that plane on the way back from Africa when I was blessed with an innate need to explore.

I first picked up a camera as a young child in the mid 80's at a garage sale, an old Zeiss Icon, which I used to take pictures of rocks, friends and at school. However, as I got more into photography in my early teens, I "borrowed" my mom's Pentax K1000 (which I still have on "loan"), one of the best learning tools I ever had. Shooting manually with just a needle meter (who's battery would almost always be drained) to guide me forced me to learn the hard way how to expose for all sorts of different situations, especially really cool looking rocks!

During the 90's I worked as an oyster farmer in BC as well as an ice herder in the arctic. (Herding ice is like herding turtles, but not as bad as herding rocks which I did later in Australia.)

Being a huge technology geek I jumped on digital photography like a cowboy on a horse and used my first digital camera in 1998 where I was accredited to shoot a rock concert in the US (CSNY). Although it was only a point and shoot digital camera, the fact that the photojournalists had to fumble to reload their film as I continued to seamlessly click away told me that this digital thing was going to be big. And it still might be...

I bought my first more serious digital camera in 2001, although not a DSLR it had full manual controls which again allowed me to control the light as I saw it. This in turn allowed me to take much better pictures of rocks! I also started to pick up every photographic book I could get my hands on in order to learn more. Other than that, everything else I know I learned from National Geographic.

After a failed career in button making I turned to web design with a bit of photography on the side.

Finally, in 2004 I took the plunge and bought a DSLR system. I also started to shoot commercially in 2004 for larger companies where I had contacts or good friends (but I still kept my passion for photographing rocks). At the same time I also started the Winnipeg Photo Club (now the Winnipeg Photo Community: WPGphoto.com), an online photography community of like-minded photographers who just like to have fun and photograph (mostly rocks) together.

I tend to think of my pictures being idea based. Fun photos that are involving to look at. I take pictures that attempt to get you to you look closer and evoke thought and am always looking for a more involved photographic experience.

It was only in 2006 that I decided to get away from my day job as a graphic and web designer and jump head first into full time photography. It's been hard going and I've made it this far thanks to all the support from friends and return clients. As a career photography the most rewarding, engaging and fun in the world!

This site is now a BLOG as well as a stock collection of some of my favorite pictures but is mostly for friends and family both near and far.
If you are looking to hire me, please visit my commercial photography site: DanHarperPhoto.com