Gary Cullen

Photographer Gary Cullen was born and raised in the Vallejo-Benicia area and retired after thirty-four years as a Registered Nurse in the local community. He then started focusing on his passion for photography following his intuition of what looks good thru his Nikon lenses in the community of Benicia.

 In previous years, he captured the secrets that nature has left on her own worldly canvas, specifically on Mare Island. Nature’s mix of neglect, anonymity, oxidation, often take on a beauty of its own. "The locations I shoot, often go unnoticed by many, but are the markings of the local history". His technique then was to simply to use what comes naturally with the lights and shadows provided. 

Recently Gary transitioned from ‘Kodachrome’ film requiring a dark room to develop, to the modern age of digital photography. One of the things he has discovered is that, while a location can often be revisited, the particulars of a specific shot (timing, lighting, and mood) are unique and cannot always be duplicated.

Gary is a member of Benicia Arts and Vallejo Arts Alliance.