BYRON

couldn’t accept me into his Photo-1 class because all 12 slots were filled. I begged with all my teenage charm and persuasive skills, and he wouldn’t budge. I felt that I had to be in that class. Somehow, it would be a piece of the puzzle. A few minutes later, in the Guidance Counselor’s office, I saw a transfer slip on her desk; someone wanted out of his class. I asked if I could have it, and then ran back across campus, knocked on Byron’s door, and said, “LOOK! This person is leaving! Can I have the space?  Please? Little did he know that his cautious “yes” would throwing me a life-line.

I took horrible photos for the first few months, poorly executed cliches, and he held me accountable. He helped us all forge a consistent work ethic and taught us more than developing darkroom techniques. We watched films, listened to music, discussed and debated, and slowly developed critical eyes. Photography focused my life. It gave me purpose and direction. When I had to choose what life path to follow in my senior year, there was no question at all.

The camera has been my passport to distant places, a bridge into the unknown, an identity, and a way to see and process the world around me. It’s transformed strangers into friends. I have this version of a family and home because of Photography. None of you would be reading this if it weren’t for this Teacher. Byron is the Godfather to all I hold precious in my adult life. On my recent visit to Charlotte, I jammed with his string band one evening and took his portrait the morning after. He said, “he got lucky because he got to be himself in life, follow his interests, and no one caught him.”

Alas, I see where the influence came from. I’ve done the same. Byron has guided many lives, and his students, some would say “flock,” have accomplished some pretty incredible things. He allowed us to follow our intuition and created a space where it was OK to find and be ourselves, to be authentic. He did all of this by just being himself and barking occasionally. There wasn’t much of that going on at Myers Park High School in the 80s, trust me.

He’s a portrait of a Teacher, a Mentor, a brilliant Photographer whose prints adorn my walls and made unseen lives seen, a damn good Flat-Picker, a devoted Husband and Grandfather, a Keeper of the Light, and after many years, a Portrait of the Friend.