Michael Heller, Neighbor



Michael Heller is a Professional Photographer who resides in East Hampton, Long Island, New York. A graduate of Bard College in New York and the Art Center College of Design  (BFA, Photography) in Pasadena, CA, Mr. Heller has been photographing for over 28 years. In addition to spending many years working in photo labs in both New York and Los Angeles, Mr. Heller has been a contributing photographer and/or a staff photographer for several newspapers and numerous publications in Los Angeles and New York City, and is currently the Staff Photographer for the <i>Sag Harbor Express</i>. For a period of time, Mr. Heller also shot mug shots as a member of the N.Y.P.D. Photo Unit. For the past several years, Mr. Heller has written and illustrated numerous articles for <i>Firehouse</i> Magazine and <i>National Fire &amp; Rescue</i> Magazine, documenting the involvement of the fire service with such events as the Super Bowl, the Indianapolis 500, Spring Break in Panama City Beach, Florida, the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, and Mardi Gras in New Orleans. He has traveled – and photographed - in every state in the United States, and as a result of his assignments found himself in some most unusual locations: three miles deep in a Pennsylvania coal mine; atop a swamp buggy in the Everglades; aboard an aircraft carrier off the Atlantic coast; ringside at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas, and even hunkered down in the eye of a southern Florida hurricane. He has also traveled abroad extensively, having visited over fifteen different countries over the course of his life, ranging from the Philippines to the Czech Republic. His writing and photography for the fire service have garnered Mr. Heller numerous awards, including most recently the Grand Prize &#34;Golden Firefighter Award&#34; in the international photography &#34;Bombero de Oro&#34; (fire photography contest) given in Spain in 2004, as well as ten first-place trophies and numerous second- and third-place trophies in the annual IFPA photo contest over the last six years.  Nevertheless, he continues to train at his craft, having taken Master Class workshops with noted National Geographic Magazine photographers such as Jay Dickman, Sarah Leen and the venerable Jim Blair. He has participated in, and assisted with, the renowned American Photo Mentor Series Photography Workshops – traveling to India in the process - and today currently teaches both group and private photography classes through Reed&#39;s Photo at Amagansett Square.