Face of a Friend: Dave Giles

Dave Giles in Columbus, Ohio (1984)

I know I took photos before this one. I attended a college class in photography when I was 13 and I had a home darkroom for awhile.
But, as near as I can tell, this is earliest existing photo that came from my own eye and camera.
Maybe I'll find others. Maybe not.

If not, it's appropriate that this is the one. Dave Giles was a great friend and this is my favorite photo of him. A group of us (Dave, John, Jeff, and myself) had moved to Columbus, Ohio to attend the DeVry Institute of Technology in 1984.
This house on East Dreshler street was where some of us lived and all of us congregated.

Dave was an avid reader, so this was not an atypical scene for him.
I've always liked the warmth of the light in this shot.

It's almost a decade since Dave died in a fluke car accident. All of us who knew him wish he were still around.
It's a testiment to the power of photos that they can bring a period of time, and the senses associated with that time, back in a heartbeat.