David Jasper is a features reporter and editor born and raised in Miami, Florida. He began his journalism career at the Weekly Planet, an alt-weekly in Tampa, before moving to Bend with his family in 2001.
The next time someone asks why you live in this part of Oregon, you might want to hand them a copy of 鈥淭he Spirit of Central Oregon,鈥 a gorgeous 11-by-11-inch coffee table book. Shot and put together by members of the Cascade Camera Club, the 220-page book had an original print run of 1,000. With only about 300 copies of the book left, it will likely be a sellout.
鈥淪omething for everyone鈥 is a tired phrase, but not when used to describe the photos in this book. There is plant life, wildflowers, wildlife, rivers, waterfalls, landscapes bursting with color in summer and draped in white in winter. But the area鈥檚 active lifestyle and its culture is also captured, with pages of the book dedicated to fishing, paddling, dogs and their owners, rodeos, horseback riding, skiing, climbing, cycling, fireworks displays, quilts and much more.
"Descending into Skylight Cave" by Brent McGregor.
Brent McGregor
The project was more than two years in the making, and came about as a result of the COVID-19 shutdown, said Robert Agli. Agli is a member of the 75-year-old photography club and has well over a dozen photos in the book, including the cover shot: a stunning photograph of a sunlit Smith Rock in Terrebonne.
The club has about 80 members and meets twice monthly at Larkspur Community Center, on the first and third Mondays of the month. The first Monday of the month is dedicated to photo critique, Agli said, and the second is for different programs.
When the shutdown made meeting in person impossible, 鈥淎 former president of the club realized that the club was breaking apart because we couldn鈥檛 meet, and was looking for ways to keep everybody together,鈥 Agli said.
鈥淭he Spirit of Central Oregon鈥 features photos by 42 of the club鈥檚 members. It was primarily put together by Ric Ergenbright, a former National Geographic photographer, with a committee of five giving input. Another professional photographer represented in the book is , who produces popular prints and posters of natural settings and is a member of artist-run Tumalo Art Company in Bend.
"The Peloton" by Robert Agli.
Robert Agli
鈥淭he whole idea of the book is, the principal concept is, when somebody is visiting you, or anyone asks you the question, 鈥榃hy do you live in Central Oregon?鈥 you hand them the book,鈥 Agli said. 鈥淵ou say, 鈥楯ust leaf through this book, and this should give you an idea of why I live here.鈥 If you鈥檙e into landscapes, it鈥檚 there,鈥 Agli said. 鈥淚f you want to know about farm life, activities, it鈥檚 there.鈥
鈥淭hese are going to be collectors鈥 items,鈥 Agli said. 鈥淭he book sells itself. As soon as people see the book, the first thing they say is, 鈥業 want to buy a book.鈥欌
In that case, “The Spirit of Central Oregon” is $60 and is available at . Shipping is $8, but there is an option to pick it up in person for locals.
Capturing and reducing the breadth of Central Oregon鈥檚 beauty and culture in even a book the size of this one was one of the biggest challenges, Agli said.
鈥淭here鈥檚 so much going on around here. The joke is on any given weekend, there鈥檚 three things you want to do and you can only do one. This is just to capture some of those,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f we put in everything that we wanted to put in, you鈥檇 need a cart to haul the book around.鈥
David Jasper is a features reporter and editor born and raised in Miami, Florida. He began his journalism career at the Weekly Planet, an alt-weekly in Tampa, before moving to Bend with his family in 2001.
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