Jeremy Francis – Three decades in photography and film
Published:Thursday | December 23, 2021 | 12:07 AMCarl Gilchrist/Gleaner Writer
Kingston photographer Jeremy Francis brought 30 years of experience in photography to the inaugural ‘Art in the Village’ showcase at Island Village Shopping Centre in Ocho Rios, St Ann, last weekend.
Francis, who is also a location scout and location manager for film production, was one of several artists from across Jamaica featured on the final day of the two-day showcase on Saturday, which began with ‘Style Jamaica’ the previous day.
It was the first time Francis was displaying his pieces in Ocho Rios and he welcomed the opportunity to do so.
A commercial still photographer, he brought along several pieces, some of which depicted his favourite subject: landscape.
“Today, I’m displaying prints of my work. They’re all archival inkjet prints – printed with archival ink on archival paper, so they will last; they have good integrity,” Francis pointed out.
“They cover different aspects of the Jamaican landscape. There are shots of the Blue Mountains; there are shots of different seaside locations, shots of rivers, waterfalls, and even some plants in my garden that I’ve photographed close up. It’s something I enjoy and fortunately for me, because I work in film and I scout the island for locations, the two go hand-in-hand.”
Francis’ love for photography developed while he was living in Europe, being inspired by the seasonal yet beautiful changes in landscape each year.
Upon returning to Jamaica, he worked for two decades in film and television production. He made commercial still photography his main profession in 1997 and over the years, he has had clients such as Digicel, J. Wray and Nephew, National Continental Bakery, VMBS, Sagicor, NCB, Scotiabank, among several others.
His photos have been featured in several print publications.
Francis has worked on several TV commercials, both locally and internationally.
In film, Francis has worked on the production of Cool Runnings, Prelude to a Kiss, Eureka, Treasure Island, Shattered Image, and Knight and Day.
Over the years, Francis has shared his expertise via teaching positions at CARIMAC and University of Technology.
“One of my favourite places to photograph is Treasure Beach; the colour is beautiful, the landscape is beautiful. There are lots of great texture, like old fishing canoes by the seaside,” he told The Gleaner.
And Francis was also happy to share some of his work with The Gleaner.