SACRAMENTO — As part of her ongoing effort to increase awareness of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta at the State Capitol, Senator Lois Wolk (D-Davis) is hosting an exhibit of photographs by local photographer Rich Turner featuring scenes from the region.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate a local artist, as well as the Delta’s cultural, ecological, and economic significance,” said Wolk. “I invite everyone to visit my office and explore the Delta through Rich’s extraordinary photographs.”

The collection on display in Wolk’s office is drawn from a body of work taken over 30 years.  The show, “California Delta: Rural Charm and Natural Beauty,” includes Turner’s photos of Delta landmarks including Grindstone Joe’s Island, Happy Harbor, and Honker Cut, as well as landscapes featuring cornfields and sloughs, cargo ships and sheep ranchers tending to their flock.

Turner says he began exploring the Delta during his time as a photojournalist at The Record newspaper in Stockton. “After the stress of meeting daily deadlines, I’d be driving home and I’d just conveniently miss my exit on the freeway. I found and fell in love with the Delta,” he said. “The light would be magic. I started keeping an extra camera loaded with Kodachrome. Of course, now the image making is all digital.”

 Those after-work trips to the Delta became a ritual of “creative therapy” that continues to this day, Turner said, adding, “I always come back feeling refreshed.”  

Turner entered the world of print journalism as the first full time photographer at the Roseville Press-Tribune after traveling the world, including Antarctica, as a Navy photographer. He then worked for 16 years at The Record - first as a photographer, then as a Director of Photography. He now owns a fine art, aerial and commercial photography business.

Turner’s photographs will be on public display through March 26 in Wolk’s office, located in Room 4032 of the State Capitol. Examples of his work may also be seen at his website: www.turnerphoto.com