“More than anything else I appreciate honesty in a photograph, and a print made with skill, care and passion,” declares Al Weber to describe his decision making process as Guest Juror for the Center for Photographic Art’s Juried Exhibition 2009.

Guided by his long-honed instinct for these four distinctive qualities, Weber sifted through the 696 images submitted by 165 photographers this year. He ultimately selected the 77 images created by 70 photographers on display here in the gallery through December 4th.

“I have judged photographs for nearly fifty years,” continues Weber. “Every CPA submission this year was about individual personal expression. It was impressive to see the variety, both in concept and craft. Three photographs were given top honors, but there could easily have been fifty winners. Something exciting is going on right now in photography—in color, black-and-white, traditional and digital. I’ve always been open to merging that which has proven itself with new things that look interesting. I encourage everyone to take it all in by viewing this show.”

Al Weber the man, the teacher and the photographer can perhaps best be characterized by a series of seeming dualities: Icon and iconoclast. Abrasive and refined. Informal and serious. Artist and technician. Esteemed educator and perennial student. Tough critic and generous confidence builder. Philosopher-poet and bawdy balladeer. Image maker and champion of other photographers’ images.

Al Weber’s distinguished career in photography spans six decades and represents a mastery of both black-and-white and color processes. The subjects of his commercial assignments and personal work run the gamut from aerial, industrial and architectural photography to portraits, abstracts and powerful images of the American Southwest.

Equally revered as an educator, Weber has taught well over 10,000 students (and counting!) in workshops and classrooms throughout the West as an instructor for Monterey Peninsula College, the Friends of Photography, the University of California at Santa Cruz, and the celebrated Ansel Adams Workshop series in Yosemite.

Weber is understandably most proud of the legendary Victor School photography program that he and his wife Suzie established in 1977 in an historic building in the mining town of Victor, Colorado. During Victor School’s twenty-five year history, the Weber’s offered over a thousand students courses taught by such luminaries in the photography world as Morley Baer, Jerry Uelsmann, Ralph Gibson, Edna Bullock, Hal Halberstadt, Bill Brice, Edmund Teske, Todd Walker, Marie Cosindas, Barbara Crane, Dorr Bothwell and Lou Stoumen.

Weber himself was raised in the mountains of Colorado. Son of an avid hunter and fisherman, Al did not enjoy these sports himself; so on outings with his father, he captured what did hold meaning to him with a camera. He soon began developing his own pictures at a small camera store in Denver. Before long Al was working there too, but he never let go of his dream of moving to California after high school to attend the University of Southern California on a track scholarship. But when the USC coach Al had intended to run for transferred to the University of Denver before the start of his freshman year, Weber followed him. He chose to major in photography in a department whose curriculum focused on classic studio portraiture. He stayed on to get a second degree in education.

When the Korean War began, Weber joined the Marine Corps. En route from Camp Pendleton to Korea, he visited his aunt and uncle in Carmel. Impressed by the beauty of the Monterey Peninsula, he moved here after the service in 1955 and got a job with the Monterey Herald. Gradually he began to make his living from commercial work, which gave him the money and freedom to pursue his fine art work too, encouraged by fine art photographers like John Livingston and Wynn Bullock.

Among the many other biographical facts that few know about Al Weber is his commitment to preserving the significant collections of countless unsung photographers who have documented the culture, landscape and history of their place and time. To this end Al helped create the Foundation for Photographic Preservation (FfPP) to assist photographers or their estates in finding suitable archives for the placement of their prints. Weber helped rescue preeminent West Coast photographer Steve Crouch’s lifetime of image making from a truck headed for the dump. Weber’s dedication also saved Oliver Gagliani’s archive from a fiery end, ensuring that these photographs will be available for the enjoyment and education of generations to come.