Neil Johnson

Sometimes I feel like I hold down three jobs: commercial photographer, book illustrator/author and artist. Many people know me for only one and are confused when they learn about the other two. These three areas are all wildly different and yet in my world, there is a great deal of overlap and I feel they all compliment each other and they all give me great joy. 

Commercial photographer: 
Beginning deep in the film days of 1980, I have been doing this the longest and now base my work out of a renovated 1913 grocery store, now my studio. My commercial specialties are advertising, product, architecture, higher education, portraiture, corporate and industrial. Give me a challenging and complex subject and turn me loose.
I also have a massive library of stock images of Shreveport-Bossier, Louisiana and beyond.

Book photo-illustrator/author: 
I have authored and illustrated 14 children's books and two coffee table books (Shreveport and Bossier City and Louisiana Journey). It's all about storytelling and illustrating the stories, both fiction and non-fiction, with photography. I seem to always be working on at least two book projects, whether they are under contract or not. I have worked with LSU Press and National Geographic and a number of publishing houses in New York City and Boston. 

Artist: 
I cannot stop shooting. If I had no clients or book contracts, I would probably still shoot every day. It's what I do whether following an assignment from my muse or simply keeping in shape doing photo-exercises. Exploring this amazing medium almost daily with my insatiable curiosity keeps my creative juices flowing. It is a medium where the more you know, the more you realize you know next to nothing. 
The prints on the wall at 2Johns Restaurant represent where my personal muse has led me during the last five years. I am especially proud of the great white egret at Caddo Lake photo against the stone wall. It is a photo with a digital watercolor treatment and could not be more perfect in that spot. 
I generally do not believe in hanging art in restaurants because people go there to look first at each other and then at their food. But I cannot emphasize strongly enough how honored I am that John Montelepre allows me to hang my work in his restaurant to help with the ambiance. 2Johns is my favorite restaurant in all of Shreveport and Bossier City.