"During my first two years
at RIT, I spent a lot of time experimenting in the dark room and
studio, using a variety of materials and techniques to create and
manipulate images," says Katrin Eismann '91, digital imaging artist
and founder of PRAXIS.Digital Solutions. "One day, I noticed that
other students were achieving similar results, but they were comfortably
working on the computer and they were able to experiment more quickly.
It was a 'Eureka' experience, and that's when I decided to work
with electronic still imaging."
Eismann came to RIT
as an adult student, which was a plus, she says, because she was
clear about her life and her goals. After graduating, she interned
at the Kodak Center for Creative Imaging in Camden, Maine, and
in three years became the center's director of education. In 1994,
she founded PRAXIS.Digital Solutions to do imaging, consulting
and training work for numerous international companies. Eismann's
images have been catalogued in countless books, journals and magazines
and she has co-authored three books, Web Design Studio Secrets,
Adobe Photoshop Studio Secrets, 2nd ed., and the recently
released Real World Digital Photography. Most recently
she chaired two Focus On Photoshop conferences for Thunder Lizard
Productions, completed a four-country tour of Scandinavia for
Eastman Kodak and is the 1999 Guerin Visiting Scholar at the Marlborough
School in Los Angeles.
Eismann says: "When
photographers began using computers to manipulate images, with
all the whiz-bang bells, whistles and filters, it was easy to
get lost in the technology and lose track of the image. For me,
the challenge is for the computer technology to be completely
transparent, allowing the image to be the primary focus. At my
latest opening in Los Angeles, I literally had to tell people
that, 'Yes, I did do the image on a computer,' which was a great
accomplishment for me."
Electronic
still images by Katrin Eismann include, from top: Nite Mare,
Doll's View, Tree East, and Water Baby
