RON ROGERS
Ron Rogers is the Program Coordinator for the Photography Department at Napa Valley College. Prior to that he taught photography at Rancho-Santiago Community College in Southern California. He teaches both basic and advanced courses at NVC and has conducted international documenatry photography courses in Costa Rica, Cuba, Vietnam and Cambodia. In addition to instructional responsibilities, he is a freelance commercial photographer emphasizing product and portraiture. He enjoys writing and publishing and has been an active exhibitor in fine art photography for over 25 years.
RON ZAK
Zak has a master's degree in art and a bachelor's degree in psychology His career got its first leap forward years ago when he was just out of college and chosen for a show at a gallery connected with the San Francisco Art Institute. He named his collection for that show "The Human Situation." In the series of portraits he felt he had captured it. Yet all these years later, it is the human situation that continues to fascinate him.
Teaching is an aspect of his photographic world he takes very seriously, offering a range of classes from Experimental Technique to Portraiture. "By the end of my classes, my students have a whole new appreciation not just for photography, but for what people see." His work is on the internet at Zakworld.com
JESSE RYAN DACANAY
I was lucky enough to grow up in the Napa Valley in a house full of creativity and with parents that were both professional photographers. Needless to say the raw material was there and I started working for my parents at a very young age. I even started photographing weddings with them at 16 years old. That was all it took, I was hooked. After high school (and all the photo classes at the Napa Valley College) I graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Professional Photography from Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara. I was also honored to receive a Departmental Award at graduation. Ever since then I've been back in Napa enjoying working in photography and enjoying life.
I am currently a member of The Professional Photographers of America and I have had the opportunity use my creativity for some great companies including, Beringer Blass Wine Estates, Fosters Wine Estates, Napa Glove and Safety, The Carneros Inn, The Napa River Inn, Simonton Windows, The Napa Register, The St. Helena Star, Friends of the Lincoln Theater, Commercial Photographers of America.I have worked with companies on both coasts and my photography has appeared in advertising nationally and internationally but I still consider the Napa Valley home. www.photographyjrd.com/
LAURAN POSNER
Lauran Posner is a photographic artist working in both traditional large format photography, and non-silver early photographic processes. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the San Francisco Art Institute, and is currently an Instructor of Photography at Napa Valley College. She brings her love of drawing, painting and printmaking to the photographic realm. The many steps needed to create these images mesh both alchemy and art, resulting in fine, collectible pieces of excellent archival quality. Her hand-coated emulsion pieces are currently on display at the College’s gallery Faculty Show.
BETH CRAVEN
Beth Craven teaches Digital Imaging and Beginning Photography. Prior to joining the staff at NVC Beth worked as a design consultant for an international consulting firm. Clients included HP, Gateway Computers, Boeing and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania among others. She received her MFA in Photography from San Jose State University. While completing a BFA in Photography at Florida State University Beth was introduced to the premiere version of Photoshop and has been using the software ever since to create handmade books, silkscreens, multimedia artwork, and more traditional photographic work.
SAMANDA DORGER
Independent photojournalist Samanda Dorger has over a decade of experience as a newspaper staff photographer and as a photo editor at newspapers around the U.S., including the Napa Valley Register. She has a Master of Arts in photography from the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University, and a Bachelor of Arts in journalism and photojournalism from San Jose State University. She teaches documentary photography at Napa Valley College. Samanda has won numerous regional, national and international awards for her work. Based in the Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe areas, Samanda continues to shoot for newspapers and magazines, as well as personal documentary projects. Visit her website at: www.samandadorger.com
MURRAY ROCKOWITZ
Bay Area Photographer, Murray Rockowitz is well known among collectors of fine art portrait photography for his insightful and beautifully crafted portraits. Murray has been serving clients throughout the region for over 20 years in his downtown Petaluma loft studio and on location. Rockowitz has also done commercial photography over the years, but has concentrated on fine art and personal portraiture exclusively for the past decade.Murray earned a B.S. in Marketing from Syracuse University in 1974 before moving to the Bay Area, where he discovered his love, passion and talent for photography. Self taught, Rockowitz furthered his photography education at S.F. City College under the tutelage of Morrie Camhi, and assisted as a lab technician for several years with Art Rogers. He opened his own studio in 1989, where he continues to learn and grow. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Petaluma Arts Council.As a portrait photographer, he is not only an artist but a story teller and a documentarian. Murray now shares these skills with students at Napa Valley College bringing years of experience in photography and life into the classroom to inspire, teach and learn with his students.www.rockowitz.com/
