Exhibit showcases award-winning photography

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Photographer Jerry Schoenherr and his wife Arlene pose for a portrait at the opening reception for Jerry's photography exhibit at The Garlands in Barrington on Jan. 6. | Ruthie Hauge ~ Sun-Times Media

Photography of Jerry Schoenherr

at The Garlands, 1000 Garlands Ln., Barrington

8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. daily through Feb. 5

(847) 304-1996, www.thegarlands.com

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Updated: January 20, 2012 9:25AM

When you think about Jerry Schoenherr’s life before he became passionate about photography, you have to wonder how much it influenced the composition of his award-winning photo, “Amish Sunday Morning.”

Schoenherr, who lives with his wife Arlene at The Garlands, a retirement community in Barrington, served in 1957 and ’58 as a second lieutenant in the United States Air Force, where he worked on weather balloons, which were attached to tiny cameras used to spy on the Soviet Union.

Schoenherr got hooked on photography and bought his first camera while stationed in Germany. His first pictures were of the Alps.

Years later, he snapped the picture of five horse-drawn black buggies traveling along a rain-soaked country road. The photo, “Amish Sunday Morning,” was taken from a distance, which makes the observer think Schoenherr didn’t want to be detected. The Amish usually don’t like being photographed.

This, and other Schoenherr photographs, are on exhibit 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. daily through Feb. 5 at the gallery inside The Garlands.

Unfortunately, Schoenherr has Parkinson’s disease, which makes speaking difficult, Arlene said.

Awards and medals

But, she’s happy to talk about his photography, which has won George Eastman Medals for Best of Show, Color Print of the Year awards and the Kinsley Trophies from the Photographic Society of America, and more than 200 medals.

“He went to work for Kodak,” she said. “And worked for Kodak for 37 years. Only, he was an engineer. He wasn’t a photographer for Kodak. He competed in the Kodak Camera Club, which was the largest camera club in the world in its day because it only cost a dollar to join. He worked in film quality, so he had a lot of film to test and things like that.”

When Schoenherr returned from Germany, he and Arlene got married. She was supportive of his newfound interest and became a fan.

“I liked it,” she said. “He was doing very well and he was happy. That was his hobby.”

Amish life

Their trips centered around what he wanted to photograph, which included several national parks. Arlene said he was curious about the Amish culture, so he took several photos of Amish life.

“He won two major awards, one which was for the five Amish buggies and one for the picture of our daughter,” she said, adding, “He did a lot of landscapes. He just loved nature. There was a lot of nature and close-ups of flowers. I think what’s at The Garlands right now is kind of a sampling of his life’s work.”

The photos of their daughters are Arlene’s favorite, naturally.

The George Eastman Best of Show award-winning picture shows a young daughter Diane holding a daisy in a field. Another photo shows daughter Donna performing a ballet pose.

“He also made all his own prints at Kodak,” Arlene said.

Jill Lund, activities director for The Garlands, became a fan, too, when resident veterans, including Schoenherr, shared their art last fall. She was happy to arrange for his own exhibition and is open to doing the same for other resident artists.

“He’s extremely talented,” she said, adding his Amish photos are some of her favorite Schoenherr works.

“Having members share their gifts,” she said, “might encourage other members to do the same.”