If it’s a day that Sam Wirzba (Environmental Science ‘79) plans to take pictures, then it’s a day that starts before the sun is even up.If he doesn’t get what he came for, he doesn’t give up. Instead, he waits again – this time, until the end of the day, when the sun in sinking low in the sky. He watches for the light to be just right. If it is, he can get his shot.
To Wirzba, photography is painting with light. He travels far to find it – down highways and country roads, all across southern Alberta, into the Rocky Mountains and Montana, and across the Pacific Northwest, all in pursuit of perfect light and great subject matter.
The Lethbridge man is constantly judging the world, element by element, for the right conditions before he considers pointing his camera. Whether it’s watching for dramatic cloud patterns stretched across the sky, considering how subdued or rich the light is, noticing how fresh the vegetation looks after a rainfall, or realizing how clear the air is, Wirzba wants everything to come together perfectly – because he’s looking for more than your average “nice” shot.
He’s looking for interesting and compelling subjects, strong compositions, and fleeting moments of beauty. The end result – when it all comes together – is a visually arresting portrait of natural and agricultural environments. The 1979 graduate of the college’s Environmental Science program has carved out a niche and a successful second career taking breathtaking photos of the land and livestock he has always loved working with.
“When I decided to pursue commercial photography I was counselled to pick a subject area that was more uncommon and about which I was passionate,” Wirzba says. “After considering my options I chose a branch of photography that was relatively uncommon and where I know something about the subject matter—agriculture.”
It was Wirzba’s wife, Deanne, who encouraged him to pursue the commercial photography industry in 2003, given the large sums of money he had already been spending on film and film processing. Wirzba was concerned that because the business was so over-saturated he wouldn’t have any success. And so as a way to test his talent he entered two well-known photography competitions in 2003: Nature’s Best International Photography Awards competition and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) photo competition.
Wirzba ended up taking first place in the Nature’s Best Environmental Issues category and high honours in the People in Nature category. He was invited to Washington, D.C., to see his winning photo installed in a Smithsonian Museum exhibit that went on to tour the United States. His photo in the CPAWS competition won the people’s choice award and took first place in the Wild Flower category.
His confidence grew and he began taking more photos, eventually providing images of cattle, crops, combines, coulees and prairie-blue skies to stock agencies including AgStock Images, Corbis and Alamy, which sell his images world-wide. In 2010 he began his own commercial photography business called Last Light Photography. He has had his photos turned into paintings and they have appeared in promotional items for the Calgary Stampede. His shots have also been used in reports, websites, advertisements, calendars, brochures, books, displays, posters, cards, t-shirts, key chains and more.
He traces his interest in photography to about the time he applied to the college. He said his admission was late, and initially deferred. But he said he had been told of the college’s good reputation and excellent programs and he knew it was the place where he should be. The next year, he enrolled and studied environmental science.
“I had this notion that I could make a difference in the field of natural resource management,” he recalls.
Wirzba bought his first professional camera and equipment while attending classes at the college. But his passion was just a hobby at that point. After receiving his diploma, he went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Lethbridge in 1984 and a Master of Natural Resources Management degree from the Simon Fraser University in 1987. During this same period, he and Deanne married and had two sons, Matt and Brent.
But between his educational pursuits, his growing family and his work, there wasn’t enough time for the kind of photography he does now. It was almost two decades before Wirzba picked up a camera again with any serious intent. And with each passing season, his interests continue to evolve and broaden.
A more recent photographic interest of Wirzba has been the production of scenic landscape panoramas. These images can be used in special media projects or turned into large canvas prints and offered for sale to businesses and people who appreciate fine art photography.
When he’s not taking pictures, Wirzba works for the Government of Alberta with the Department of Sustainable Resource Development. He is a facilitator, mediator, natural resources planner, project manager and First Nations and public consultation coordinator.
He has passed his love of nature and of photography on to his eldest son, Matt, who graduated from the college’s Environmental Science program in 2007. Matt since went on to complete a bachelor of science degree at the University of Lethbridge and is currently employed by Blackbridge Geomatics in Lethbridge as the Order Desk Manager.
Matt Wirzba remembers being the subject of his father’s photos many times growing up, whether hiking, camping, road cycling or undertaking other adventurous pursuits. He also remembers being offered gifts and compensation for his patience and posing for the camera.
For the younger Wirzba, photography is just a hobby – at least for now. But for the elder Wirzba, it’s a passion, the pursuit of a vision, and a way of life.
“Painting with light is the photographer’s craft,” he says. “Waiting for and then capitalizing on brief moments of magical light is the photographer’s quest. When the light, sky features, the landscape, and your subject matter all come together, you hope that you are at the right spot, and ready, with the right camera settings activated.”
To see more of Wirzba’s images, go to samwirzba.com.
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