I think, the one thing that I've probably learned from photography is to, to slow down and look around you and see what's there.

You know, we rush by so much stuff, and there's a lot of the visual beauty of life around you, you know, whether it's a a neat old building or just the beauty of, you know, a person's face.

I do a fine art.

Black and white photography is my main focus.

It's kind of typical of paseo architecture.

Trying to come up with something for next year's, festival T-shirt.

I'm thinking maybe a shot of some architectural details at paseo.

I seem to, see things better in black and white.

It's kind of got some neat shadow to it on at the moment.

I've done some commercial color photography, and that's fine, but I don't find it as satisfying as the black and white.

I've been, into photography for about 20 years.

I got interested in photography when I was in college.

Well, the photography has given me, an artistic outlet that I desperately needed.

And it's given me, you know, something to do that I enjoy and something that I'm good at.

I was involved in automobile accident when I was in high school.

As a result of that, I was quadriplegic.

What that means is that I, don't have use of my, legs or a limited use of my arms.

I don't have any finger movement.

I'm usually back in my exposures, so I get a variety of negatives to to work with in the darkroom.

I've had to adapt my camera equipment a little bit.

Back up a little.

Once I figured out how to use the cameras, the rest of it wasn't too bad.

He's got a wonderful talent with the situation that he's in.

Being a quadriplegic.

He's done more than I've seen with any of the quadriplegics that I've taken care of before.

He's one to do.

He does everything on his own.

He's just wonderful.

He's amazing.

The way I look at is you pretty much got to play.

The cards are dealt and, you do what you have to do.

Set the shutter speed in the aperture.

Then I adjust.

Over the years, I've gotten pretty good about estimating the focus.

And then, I advance the film with my chin, and, Just bite down a little bit on the camera.

Release to release the shutter.

And it's worked real well for a for about 20 years.

One thing I like about, being an artist is that the work is judged on its own merit.

So when I send my work out, you know, the, the majority of the time, I don't know that, I have a disability, and I prefer it that way.

I want them to judge the work and not, and not the fact that it was made by a guy that's using a wheelchair.

It wasn't a, using a wheelchair.

I'd probably be, more of a street photographer or photojournalist because I like to travel, and I like to photograph on the streets.

I like to shoot a variety of subjects.

I'd hate to just be stuck doing portraits or landscapes.

I like, you know, portraits, landscapes, nudes, still life.

Each one presents a different challenge.

One thing that disability does do is it doesn't slow me down.

And, that, I use that to an advantage and that it forces me to think about the exposure in the, in the composition and, you know, rather than, being a photojournalist and running all over the place and snapping pictures, I take a more, contemplated approach to my photography.

And then the Seward can do to print up to do, family things.

I balance one that looks pretty good.

That was probably the lightest.

No that’s too light, this is a hair dark.

Sometimes I'll shoot something, and for one reason or another, I won't be in the mood to print it at the time.

And I'll have to kind of think about it and maybe go back to it a couple months later.

And one of the things I like to photograph is old signs.

And they usually have a lot of character to them.

And a lot of times I've photographed a lot of stuff that has since disappeared.

And, it's kind of nice to have a record of it up.

Yeah.

Go ahead.

Let's take a look at.

Okay.

I’ve worked for Tom for about two years.

Basically on his hands.

He does all the burning and dodging and the actual stuff on the enlarger, and then I move the prints around and I do something, you know, he's not.

He's not shy to tell me honestly what he thinks about it.

Well, they're part of the process.

And the fact that they help me, you know, take the photographs.

They work with me in the darkroom well he’s got more patience in the world.

He's, Yeah, he's really good to learn from.

He's a really good teacher.

Brett's job is basically, to shuffle paper.

He'll hold the negative for me, and then, I’ll expose the negative.

Do whatever.

Needs to be done to the negative to get a good print.

You can have a real good image, but if it's printed poorly, it's not going to work.

So I think it's the least I have to do.

The final result.

Yeah, I like it.

So it is an art form.

I think the, you know, the printing process has a lot to do with the quality of the, the image.

And, I find that the darkroom part of it, you know, very satisfying.

The definition of photography is writing with light.

And, that's what I do.

I use the light to reveal something about the subject.

So I've always wanted one that looked around for a long time, trying to find one.

And now I've cut to.

This is our home.

Mary Catherine, my wife and I live here.

Actually, we got married here, about 3 or 4 years ago.

This is the old, Saint Thomas Moore Catholic Church in Norman.

I've always liked churches since I was a kid.

I think it's the architecture, the open space, the, the serene feel of a church.

Thinking it might make for a good picture.

One nice thing about this building, with all the buttresses and pegs for different times of the year, different lighting and character building changes, I've renovated and, probably about ten different buildings over the course of the years.

It's like sculpture.

You've got this raw piece of building and what can you do with it?

He has an amazing ability to see things that that I don't think most people see.

You know, whether it's photography or renovating a building or you know, decorating the house or whatever, the, the need to create and, Is very strong.

Yeah.

I just I want to just, like, put some really good ground cover out there and not have to worry about it, too much.

Mary Catherine and I are kind of different.

It was up there, and, she's much more of an extrovert than I am.

She has her career, and I have my career, and it's kind of nice to to have somebody who does something a little bit different than you do, just so you're not talking shop all the time.

I certainly one of the things that appealed to me about him was, was his artistic side.

And and even if he weren’t my husband, I'd be really impressed with his photography.

It works perfect as a gallery.

I think it's neat.

I think it's fascinating.

I mean, we like churches anyway.

We like to kind of go into different churches and look at churches and stuff.

It's beautiful.

It's beautiful.

I love what he's done with it.

I came when they were constructing it.

It's beautiful.

Absolutely.

Well, this is, my new studio.

It's a, it was built in 1842, in a little town in Canada called Black Ville, New Brunswick.

It was about 1000ft², which is the perfect size for a studio.

And, I called the company, and, they said it could be shipped and, we started talking and, ended up, shipping it down here.

It's it's intriguing that this building was moved, and it's, it's a wonderful place.

The light, it's great.

Came down in two flatbed trucks in about 22 pieces.

The building's just a charming little building, and it's, it's a neat gallery.

The windows are ten feet tall.

I get excellent light in here.

So from a photographer's point of view.

View, it's the ultimate studio.

We, My name is father Dale Pedley.

I'm an associate priest at All Souls Episcopal Church.

Almighty God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are.

Old Trinity church began as it quite a small congregation, and it began growing later.

It was, a congregation founded by United Empire Loyalists.

Those people who had, decided not to go along with the revolution in the United States.

And they moved to New Brunswick and Canada.

And many of the churches that they built were called Trinity Church after Trinity Church in New York.

By coincidence, the, a priest that used to be in his church is now in Oklahoma City.

This was his first church in Canada in 1982 that we may perfectly love thee.

And worthily, I found out that the church had been brought to Oklahoma City because one of our parishioners, chairs a committee on historical buildings and the preservation of the historical areas here in the city.

So he came to church one Sunday with pictures of this church that was going to be relocated in Oklahoma City, and asked me if I if I knew of it.

And of course, I was utterly shocked when I found out that it was, in fact, the first church in my first parish.

I mean, there are coincidences and then there are coincidences, and this was a big one.

Yeah, I think he feels that.

It's nice to know that his own church is close by.

And and there's an old, Talmudic legend that the rock which Moses struck followed Moses and the people of Israel through the desert.

When I heard that old Trinity Church had moved to Oklahoma City, I felt that that rock, that church that was such a part of my foundation had followed me.

But, very well.

Let's see you.

Tom and I have become, friends since the beginning of this, and he has been very, very gracious.

A souvenir for me from the last time I saw him.

Picture of the dedication.

Well, thank you very much.

And he's been so mindful of the fact that this was, a church, and he treats it with such great respect that, not only has time become a friend, but but his.

I have great respect for him.

Quite happy, to know that, a part of my own history, is here in Oklahoma City.

Churches tell people about the wonder of God's world and God's love.

I think art, photographic art is another way of representing that.

Oh, that's wonderful.

That's just a wonderful photograph.

I mean, that he just captures he just captures something right there.

You know, a lot of times they'll be converted into bars or, you know, different things like that.

And this is a better use for, for an old church.

Put the sheet over your left shoulder.

Yeah.

Like that.

Okay, okay.

Just like that.

Okay.

And then, hold it like that.

Probably my favorite would be the nudes.

Let the the sheet down on your back a little bit more, okay?

It's always, It's always something different.

The different models, different light.

Okay.

The human form, the way the light works on the model, the different shadows, it's just, there's just so much possibility.

Can you bring a little hair forward on the right side?

Yeah.

I don't think there's a problem with, you know, nudes in a church.

It's, You know, the human body is kind of like the ultimate of God's creation.

I think that Tom is always very respectful of the human form, and I don't think that there is anything in the work that Tom does that in any way exploits or denigrates women.

I think that that all photographic art is telling a story about what's real, and I hope that in the church we do that too.

So when I see the, different photographic subjects that Tom does, I think to myself that he's simply telling what's real.

And to me, that's very appropriate for a church to be doing well.

A good model just is a lot easier to work with.

Some, you know, some people just seem to be natural.

Brianne was one of those.

I think the nude is probably the probably the definitive, artistic subject.

I feel like moving art, like, when he photographs me, the best poses are the ones that people fall into naturally.

And, you know, I might suggest something, but, the ones that are good kind of kind of take that suggestion and make it, come alive.

The definition of photography is writing with light.

And, that's what I do.