Some of my earliest memories revolve around photography. As a young child I found a camera in the crawl space under my home and worked in the neighborhood to earn money to purchase film and processing. The delight of the week was when the pictures were picked up at the corner drugstore. I received a bachelor’s degree in 1971 from Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Oklahoma. After that I worked with inner city children in Pasadena, California. However, a pre-occupation with art nearly demanded that I enter it full time. With every intention of becoming a graphic designer I enrolled at Eastern New Mexico University in 1974 in the art program.
“As a part of my degree plan it was required that I take a class in photography. The moment I saw the first photograph develop I was hooked. No longer was my plan to become a board illustrator (bored illustrator); I would create photographs! Drawn as inexorably to photography as a bird to the sky; I pursued the dream. Perhaps it shouldn’t have been all that startling; I later found out that my mother had been a darkroom worker while she was carrying me. I think she got Dektol (black and white paper developer) in my blood.” Initially fascinated with the work of Ernst Haas and Dr. Eliot Porter Nathan was later influenced by the work of Ansel Adams and Morley Baer as well as several contemporary photographers. They have been very influential in his decision to pursue fine art photography as a career direction
awards include Artist in Residence for the Lake Powell Artist’s Association. Nathan also served as Artist in Residence for the National Park Service at Rocky Mountain National Park, Acadia National Park and Buffalo National River. Nathan’s work has been featured in “View Camera Magazine”, “The Professional Photographer” as well as “Cowboys and Indians” and “B&W Magazine”, a publication which features the fine art photography of various photographers around the world. His work has also been featured in other regional and local publications such as “New Mexico Magazine” and “Texas Highways”.
He resides in Clovis, New Mexico with his wife Virginia, and two canine daughters, EmmaJune a border collie and Lilyrose a golden retriever.