When I was an adolescent youth growing up in western Illinois I became fascinated with black and white photography. I began my first exploration with the camera and imaging when I was twelve years old.
By high school my interest in photography disappeared only to reemerge when I was twenty-one and stationed in Mannheim, Germany while in the army.

There I discovered the photo lab in the enlisted men’s club, which was overseen by Hans Jurgen-Heider, a German professional photographer; Hans and I became good friends and he tutored me in basic photo lab procedures. I grew quickly under his guidance and published several photos in Army newspapers in 1971 and 1972. This exhilarating experience motivated me to become a professional photographer myself.

In August of 1973, I entered the curriculum at Southern Illinois University’s Cinema and Photography department and earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Professional Photography in 1976. With my education solidified, I began a twenty-five year career in advertising photography. The first six years I spent mastering photo lab technology in both b/w and color procedures. I began my career as a photographer in 1983 and worked behind the camera until 1994 when my career changed due to economic forces.

I found myself out of work as a photographer for two years before I acquired a position with the University of Iowa, Hospitals and Clinics as an ophthalmic photographer in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences where I still work today performing diagnostic imaging of patients with serious eye disease.

In addition to the advertising and eye photography careers, I began doing documentary photography of historically significant barns in Iowa. After several years of hard work, I signed a contract with the University of Iowa Press and published my first book: Harker’s Barns: Visions of an American Icon in February of 2003. The success of this book has led to contracts for two more books – one on Iowa’s one-room schools and another on Iowa’s county courthouses built before 1930.

Harkerphotography is my website showcasing my emergence in American photography as a documentary photographer. The photos here are samples of this important work. I hope you enjoy my vision and love for the architectural beauty of Iowa’s historical buildings.