ÿþ<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <title>Valerie Shaff</title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta name="copyright" content="Carrie Haddad Photographs" /> <meta name="keywords" content="gallery, photography, Valerie Shaff, photos, art, animals" /> <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="style2.css" /> <script language="JavaScript" type="text/JavaScript"> <!-- function MM_preloadImages() { //v3.0 var d=document; if(d.images){ if(!d.MM_p) d.MM_p=new Array(); var i,j=d.MM_p.length,a=MM_preloadImages.arguments; for(i=0; i<a.length; i++) if (a[i].indexOf("#")!=0){ d.MM_p[j]=new Image; d.MM_p[j++].src=a[i];}} } function MM_swapImgRestore() { //v3.0 var i,x,a=document.MM_sr; for(i=0;a&&i<a.length&&(x=a[i])&&x.oSrc;i++) x.src=x.oSrc; } function MM_findObj(n, d) { //v4.01 var p,i,x; if(!d) d=document; if((p=n.indexOf("?"))>0&&parent.frames.length) { d=parent.frames[n.substring(p+1)].document; n=n.substring(0,p);} if(!(x=d[n])&&d.all) x=d.all[n]; for (i=0;!x&&i<d.forms.length;i++) x=d.forms[i][n]; for(i=0;!x&&d.layers&&i<d.layers.length;i++) x=MM_findObj(n,d.layers[i].document); if(!x && d.getElementById) x=d.getElementById(n); return x; } function MM_swapImage() { //v3.0 var i,j=0,x,a=MM_swapImage.arguments; document.MM_sr=new Array; for(i=0;i<(a.length-2);i+=3) if ((x=MM_findObj(a[i]))!=null){document.MM_sr[j++]=x; if(!x.oSrc) x.oSrc=x.src; x.src=a[i+2];} } //--> </script> </head> <body bgcolor="e0e0e0" text="black" link="706c53" vlink="706c53" alink="706c53" leftmargin="0" topmargin="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0"> <table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td height="118" align="center" valign="top" background="back_header.jpg"> <a href="http://www.carriehaddadphotographs.com"><img src="name.png" class="center"; border="none"; /></a> <table width="900" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> </table> <p></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td><div align="center"> <table width="808" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> <tr> <td><div align="right"> </div></td> <img src="aboutval.png" class="center" /> </tr> <tr> <div id="middle"> <img src="shaff.jpg" alt="Valerie Shaff" style="float:left; margin:0 15px 10px 0;" /> <p>The origins of Valerie Shaff s photographic career date back to her seventh birthday, when she was given her first camera, a Brownie Starflash. Shaff wasted no time in commencing to photograph her world; a world where family, friends and especially, animals, became her chosen subjects. Her golden retriever, Taffy, squirrels, bunnies and every horse she crossed paths with, found themselves in front of her lens. Even pond frogs, which she stalked and briefly captured for her pending photo session, were prescient of work to come.<br><br> As Shaff s affinity with animals developed, so did her photographic vision, though, as she says, her subject has remained consistent: animals and people.  The work has matured beyond that original childhood innocence, but the motivation is still genuine and emotional. Shaff s uncanny ability with all creatures extends to domestic animals, especially dogs, which she sees as  the incarnation of devotion itself. She has been tagged  Avedon of the Dogs, and has four book collaborations with Roy Blount Jr. <br><br> In each of her photographs, Shaff has sought to produce an image reflecting the state of natural grace she finds so compelling in the animal world. That grace, full of playfulness and authenticity, is what most brings Shaff in touch with life s immediacy. There is, in waiting for the perfect moment before clicking the shutter, whether in front of a fragile baby crow or a two thousand pound buffalo, a complete abandonment to being in the present.  The state of oneness comes from being fully engaged. says Shaff. <br><br> Shaff finds absolute truth in animals:  Animals have no ego, they disdain pretense; they are unapologetically who they are. Interestingly, Shaff says she has little interest in traditional wildlife photography. It is the individual character of each creature Shaff finds intriguing; her desire is to monumentalize the animal for who they are. The patience and rapport Shaff has developed with her subjects brings arresting results. The owl, the dove, the buffalo, even the turtle, look back at the viewer, revealing something essential in their nature. For Shaff, this is her desire and gift  to see these creatures as they truly are; as Mother Nature s greatest work of art. </p> <a href="index.html"><img src="back.png" class="center" ; border="none"; /></a> </div> </tr> </table> </div></td> </tr> </table> </tr> </table> </body> </html>