Rodney grew up in Manhattan and attended the University of Virginia where he majored in English. He originally wanted to be a novelist; “I had the sentiment but not the skill,” he admits. When he decided to attend Yale graduate school he chose theology as a major – “they were asking the right questions” – even though he had decided by then to become a photographer. He spent close to half his time in the photography department, which was then under the guidance of renowned photographer Walker Evans. “What I liked best was the technical acumen of the program, learning how you take something that is three dimensional and translate it into a static two dimensional image on paper. ”

Most of the students were shooting with large format 4 x 5” or 8 x 10” cameras while Smith chose the more flexible 35 mm. He had decided from the beginning to only shoot black and white film, to work with available light and not to alter or retouch any of his pictures, all of which he still adheres to.

Shortly after graduation he received a Jerusalem Foundation Fellowship and spent three months in Israel. Days were filled shooting photographs and sitting in on master classes taught by the likes of Arthur Rubenstein, Isaac Stern and Alexander Calder who were also in the program, then hanging out with the group in the evenings. “It was the best time of my life,” he says. In a meeting with Golda Meir, she asked him how she could help with setting up photo shoots. He told her he wanted to shoot Bedouins in the desert. She told him he was on his own. In 1983 he published In the Land of Light: Israel, a Portrait of Its People. “There is an intensity and passion in the people, everything is life and death. When selecting people to photograph I looked for inner strength and a depth of character; I was drawn to people who had endured.” Smith also photographed Coptic and Franciscan monasteries during his stay.

Back in the U.S., Smith joined Magnum, a photographic cooperative, for a short time. “We laughed like crazy at the meetings, that was the best part,” he recalls. In the early 70s it was impossible to make a living shooting in black and white. He began teaching photography at Yale, The New School and NYU, supplementing his income purchasing photographs for corporations and private clients, then taking a commission. Money was tight; he ingeniously convinced wealthy people with second homes throughout Europe and in Haiti to let him use their houses during off-season. In exchange he would give them a copy of the prints he shot there.

In 1986 Smith’s world changed. “I found a new voice,” he relates. Black and white photography had begun to be more acceptable. He received an assignment to shoot ten divisional CEOs located around the world for H.J. Heinz’s annual report. Up until then he had been shooting landscapes and closely cropped portraits. He now had to shoot his subjects in their environment, following them around for days. The photographs were like nothing that had been seen before and garnered an article in The New York Times praising his work. American Express, IBM, Goldman Sachs and other corporations soon followed. “This was the beginning of a transformation for me,” he says. “It forced me to integrate landscape with portraiture.”

About five years later he met with Alexander Liberman, the formidable editorial director at Conde Nast who suggested he shoot fashion. “I had a tough father who was CEO of a number of fashion companies; I had decided early on I wanted nothing to do with fashion.” But he did finally accept a small fashion assignment for Bergdorf Goodman that won numerous awards. “I realized here I was right back to where I started.”

As fashion assignments came in he knew he had to turn away from the somber, serious approach of his earlier photographs and to figure out how to make pictures with beautiful young models compelling and powerful. “It was not about their soul and character, but rather about their style, beauty or their clothes.” His solution when photographing men was humor and whimsy while his shots of women tended toward the romantic. “When shooting women I am inspired by images from my youth when women were looked upon as delicate, alluring, graceful, on a pedestal.” His work has appeared in the pages of many leading publications.

Rodney Smith’s haunting images frequently question the notion of reality. Distinguished by their clarity, they all incorporate classical elements of symmetry, proportion and scale. A number of the photographs in the collection are shot in Palisades. He relates, “I never shoot in a studio. I find them sterile and artificial. Light with all its glorious variation is my source of inspiration. I have found that when I am able to let go the most, my pictures are the best. If I keep my eyes open and my sense of awareness keen, good things come from it. Spontaneity of the moment creates great photographs.”

A current source of income comes from licensing his images. Casino mogul Steve Wynn selected one for a construction wall in Las Vegas. Smith also lectures and gives workshops; an upcoming workshop will be held in Buenos Aires the end of March. Rodney Smith is once again at a turning point in his career. The full title of his portfolio is, The End is Just the Beginning. “It refers to what’s next for me. Perhaps it’s time to come up with something different.”

The portfolio is a limited edition of 975 copies and sells for $750. It is available at Rizzoli in New York City and at select bookstores worldwide. Anyone interested is invited to visit Rodney at his studio to view and purchase it.

For more information visit Rodney’s website, www.theendofrodneysmith.com Kathleen M. Sykes