Boomer Jerritt is back on the shelf; the book shelf, that is.
The well-known Comox Valley photographer has supplied the artwork for a third coffee table-style travel book – Vancouver Island: Imagine.
The book, a collaborative effort with Victoria writer Peter Grant, explores the “history, identity and culture that makes Vancouver Island and the smaller islands around it the magical place that it is!”
“I was approached by the publishers, MacIntyre Purcell Publishing,” said Jerritt.
“They had done another book previous to this with Peter Grant that was very successful, called 100 Things To Do on Vancouver Island, so they were kind of familiar with the Vancouver Island market.”
Jerritt said that while this is far from the first book about Vancouver Island, there are some details that set it apart from others.
“One of the differences with this book, from most other books about Vancouver Island, is this is a bit more people-oriented, as opposed to just scenics of Tofino, Victoria, Telegraph Cove – the three main selling points about Vancouver Island,” he said. “This is a bit more in-depth with the people – the different regions and what they represent, a bit more eclectic. This is more along the lines of what I do (full-time).”
Other publications for which Jerritt has supplied the photography include The Comox Valley: Courtenay, Comox, Cumberland & Area, written by Record contributor Paula Wild and Campbell River: Gateway to the Inside Passage.
For Jerritt, while the books are a nice sidebar, they aren’t his main source of income.
“Photography is my business; these books are like my business cards,” he said. “I have been teaching photography for 15 years. This is what I do.
“When I approach a client about a possible project , I go ‘here’s what I’ve got’ and I show them these,” he said, laying the books on the table. “They have value because they add validity. Yes, I make money on them, for sure, but in reality, they are business cards. They show the range of what I can do for perspective clients.”
Jerritt’s latest “business card” is in local book stores now, as well as in Costco, at the airport and on the larger ferries.
To see more of Jerritt’s work, check out his blog at www.strathconaphotography.com/wordpress/, where there is also information on his annual three-day Hornby Island Autumn Seascapes workshop, Sept. 21-24.
