GARDEN ROUTE NEWS - What started out as a book of photographs to capture the splendour of the Kammanassie Mountains between Uniondale and Oudtshoorn evolved into something much more. Professional photographer and author Allen Jorgenson has just received the first copies of his book Through my Window that reflects the lives of farmers along the magnificent Kammanassie.
Jorgenson came to South Africa from America as a young photographer in 1964 to photograph the country's steam trains and never left. Through his lens he has captured thousands and thousands of photographs and one of his books, The Great Steam Trek, published by Struik in 1976, sold more than 100 000 copies.
Falling in love with the mountains
He and his wife Judy moved to Uniondale about 11 years ago. "I fell in love with the Kammanassie Mountains which we could see from our house, and I decided to explore and photograph them," says the travelling photographer who adds that he has travelled every single road in South Africa except two.
Having co-authored two more books about the South African Railways, Jorgensen decided to turn to nature and capture the beautiful Kammanassie Mountains in a book.
He almost did not get round to it because shortly before starting with the book in 2011, he contracted pneumonia to such a serious degree that he was told he would never walk again after beating the illness. Jorgensen proved the doctors wrong, and although he walks with the aid of a crutch and sometimes has to use a wheelchair, he gets around.
"I'll never be able to climb mountains again and I still hope that someday someone with a chopper will take me to the top of the Kammanassie so that I can say I was there," he jokes.
Book evolved along the way
According to Jorgenson, the book he planned started taking on a life of its own. "As I started driving around the Kammanassie area and along the road between Uniondale and Dysselsdorp I had to ask farmers for permission to enter their farms to take my photographs and that is how the book changed."
He says during his interaction with the farmers they shared their stories with him. Not only did they share their stories, they also shared old photographs, family trees and maps.
"I realised that the Kammanassie is not just a mountain range, it is the home of more than 50 farmers with a history rich in stories and material, so my book turned itself into a book about the people of the Kammanassie."
Jorgenson says the title of the book, Through my Window, came about because most of the photos in the book were taken through the rolled down windows of vehicles. "Not being able to move around freely, I was forced to take many photos from my car or from the vehicles in which farmers took me to different sites."
Another interesting take on the window theme is that all the aerial photographs of the Kammanassie were taken from the cockpit of commercial planes on which Jorgenson was a passenger. "Because I flew so often I befriended the pilots and they allowed me to sit up front, and some of them even deviated slightly so that I could photograph the Kammanssie from above."
Allen Jorgenson's latest book with two of the books on South African steam trains which he co-authored.
The end result of Jorgenson's efforts of seven years is a colourful and insightful book of the people of the Kammanassie spread over 350 pages with more than 300 photographs and illustrations. He had 10 books printed as proof copies and is now in the process of adding a few extra details before having the final book printed towards the end of September.
Want to know more?
For more information or to simply meet this interesting and passionate 70-something photographer and author, contact him or his wife Judy in Uniondale at 044 7521 405 or 083 4149 394.
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