September 21, 2026: Vincent Versace will give a talk entitled “Breath Taking: A Brief Discussion of Timelessness with Vincent Versace”
The outside sp
eaker to begin our last quarter of 2026 is Vincent Versace. He is an American photographer & a Nikon Ambassador. He is a recipient of the Computerworld Smithsonian Award in Media Arts & Entertainment & the Andre Shellenberg Award for Fine Art. His work is part of the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.
At age 9, Versace sold his first photo to a local newspaper for $50 using a garage sale purchased Nikon rangefinder camera. In high school, he photographed weddings. Versace later attended Wayne State University, the University of Michigan, the American Conservatory Theater, Boston University College of Fine Arts & the USC Film School.
In 1991, Versace 
was Epson America & Nikon’s first beta tester for digital printers & cameras. He was the artist in residence at the Altamira Group & a consultant to the President of Kodak’s Digital & Applied Imaging Group. He was a featured guest speaker at the 1998 National convention of Professional Photographers of America & was asked to be part of the Vision Gallery at the 1999 Fall Seybold Show. Versace was commissioned by the San Francisco Presidio National Trust to create a body of photographic work to permanently capture the 1480 acre forest that is a National Park & Historic Landmark. He was instrumental in the development of Nik Software & was the original host of the Epson Print Academy.
In addition to being one of Nikon’s founding Ambassadors, Versace is also a brand ambassador for Epson Stylus Pro, the X-rite Coloratti Gallery, Lexar, Westcott University & BenQ monitors. He speaks publicly & consults for these companies, along with OnOne, Adobe & other photography tech companies.
Versace has taught, traveled & shot extensively around the world for American Photo M
entor Treks & other travel workshops companies in Iceland, Egypt, Morocco, Argentina, Chile & Uruguay. A member of the board of directors for Palm Beach Photographic Centre, he also leads their workshops to Cuba, Peru, India, Burma, Vietnam & Cambodia. During one of his trips to Burma, he photographed Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi.
Domestically, Versace has taught photography & conducted workshops at B&H, the FBI, US Navy Combat Camera, US Coast Guard, Photoshop World, Maine Media Workshops, American Photo Master Classes & Santa Fe Workshops. He has given talks at Talks At Google & teaches through his own company, Acme Educational.
A member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals Dream Team, he has been recognized with the creation of the Vincent Versace Award for Digital Photography Excellence, also called “The Vinnie.”
Vincent Versace’s talk is titled “Breath Taking: A Brief Discussion of Timelessness with Vincent Versace”. Every artist has an instrument. But only photographers have a superpower, which is the power to freeze time. The greatest photographs are the ones that have the feel of a breath held expectant. An instant of time when the photographer was so taken by the moment. The gasp of awe of that moment caused the shutter to be released. The breath of the instant of time forever held in an image. Motion caught in stillness.
A photographer holds within their hands something mightier than sword or pen. They wield a camera. But to use it effectively, you need to understand the key elements that comprise an image. This discussion will be about the gift of giving the echo of time, showing a moment of the past in the future, to be the present every time it is seen.
Vincent has authored two books – From Oz to Kansas: Almost Every Black and White Conversion Technique Known to Man along with Welcome to Oz 2.0: A Cinematic Approach to Digital Still Photography with Photoshop which won best book of the year by Shutterbug Magazine.
Explore Vincent’s websites at www.versacephotography.com & http://varis.acmeeducational.
This will be a paid event for non-members with a $10 donation. For non-members interested in attending, please register by making your $10 donation at https://store.