David Shively has been working with photography and video since the late 1960s. His professional career involved production of media-based continuing education for engineering, medical, and education professionals. He bought his first DSLR in 2005, and has since become an avid amateur photographer. He has learned from workshops with National Geographic photographer John Shaw, and with New York-based photo artist Jean Miehle. His work spans three principal areas: international cultures; wildlife—particularly sea birds; and images that evoke the life and history of the small, southern towns he has discovered since moving to Georgia. He is co-coordinator of the Griffin chapter of the Georgia Nature Photographers Association.
Statement:
These images reflect an ongoing exploration of old, small southern towns. Despite first appearances, life continues in many of these places—an assortment of vignettes waiting to be found and captured. While my first images of these towns were documentary, as I became more curious I started examining details—particularly weathered wood and iron. The area’s historic, mid-nineteenth century churches offered clues. Many were slowing decaying back into the woods in which they stood, but some had been preserved, albeit with varying degrees of care and expertise. So it is with the other structures in these towns.
These images capture rebirth, repurposing, and rediscovery as well as decay and vanishing
