Bruce Buckley, hails from Cooperstown NY, the home of baseball (or as he prefers, the home of Ommegang beer). He started shooting early on in his life, after his father exposed him to photography. “I grew up surrounded by hundreds of thousands of photos my father took all the time, so I think some of that interest rubbed off on me,” he said.
His father’s love for story telling inspired Bruce to study journalism at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. At the Newhouse school, he started to delve more into photography, taking several classes on the subject, but admits that it was a bit of struggle for him in the beginning. “I loved the craft, but didn’t really enjoy the darkroom that much,” he recalls. “It’s only when digital came into the picture that I really deepened my involvement in shooting much more.”
After college, Bruce was riding his bike a lot and began racing regularly, including road, mountain and his favorite—cyclocross. “Everything sort of fell into place,” he said. “I was racing and noticed photographers documenting local races. That inspired me to start shooting local races myself.”
In mid-2000s, he was editor of MetroSports DC Magazine. “[In that position,] I needed imagery,” he says. “So naturally, with my background, I started shooting a lot more events. I just loved it, and over time I made it my full-time job.”
As a full-time photographer, Bruce’s talent, coupled with his knowledge and love for cycling, have made him one of our region’s go-to shooters when it comes to cycling photography. “As someone who races, I understand the emotions that cyclists experience,” he said. “I see the race from the eyes of a racer. It gives me a better understanding of the events I cover.”
Bruce puts a lot of time into crafting good images—and his clients understand the value of having a photographer that takes the time to do things properly. Although he has a vision of what he’d like to convey in his images, he hopes people can draw their own conclusions. “I really don’t talk too much about my photography—I’d much rather have the images speak for themselves.”
Shooting events can get monotonous, though, so Bruce tries to keep his skills fresh by going out and practicing as often as possible. “I have several personal projects that are more focused on story telling–on the creative aspect of photography,” he told me. “I go out and test myself as often as I can; I think it’s important to push yourself.”
If there is any advice Bruce can give to up and coming photographers, it’s to practice, practice and practice some more. “Make the technical aspect of the craft second nature,” he says. “Learn everything about how your camera works. Study the basic principles of photography. Make all of that second nature so that you can focus on the creative aspect of photography. Learn to see the picture before you take it. Make the images your own. The Internet has made it so easy for us [photographers] to learn from each other, from other photographers. Inspiration is out there, and can be obtained from anyone.”
Bruce’s images are certainly an inspiration and are certainly crafted well. They capture the essence of what it is to ride, and why we love to ride – see for yourself…
