About Steven Shpall

Click on photo for larger image.

Steven Shpall is no newcomer to the Weekly's Photo Contest. The 55-year-old Shpall's manipulated images have been making their mark on the competition for the past five years, winning a first place last year for his picture "Animal Crackers."

"I am thrilled to have won again this year," Shpall said.

Originally from Denver Colorado, Shpall moved to Palo Alto for the schools and the weather. Now Shpall works as a dermatologist and has lived in Palo Alto for more than 20 years.

Although he has been involved with photography for quite some time -- he once had a darkroom in his home -- he didn't start taking it seriously until recently. He enjoyed taking pictures of his children growing up, but a digital camera he got as a present from his wife changed his perspective on photography.

Shpall has been quite active with the camera since then and has participated in a number of online photo contests.

Shpall can't pinpoint his influences but knows what he likes when he sees it.

"I enjoy abstracts, and I like when artists have fanciful looks on life".

To this day, Shpall still takes pleasure in capturing images of his children, even though they are all grown up. The idea for "Picture Hanging" actually came from a photo Shpall took of his son hanging a picture.

The photograph is a combination of two images, one in color and the other in black and white. The black and white picture was inserted in the colored picture creating an interesting effect.

"I took a picture of my son, took a picture of my son holding a frame and thought I could do something fun with it," said Shpall. The end result is a partial image of his son inside a picture frame that he is about to hang.

--by Monica Guzman