Jerry Dickson Greer (b. 1964 Honaker, VA) is an Appalachian photographer currently based in Johnson City, Tennessee. His projects and books focus on conservation, and the environmental and social condition of the mid-Atlantic and southern United States, with an emphasis on Appalachia. Jerry has published nine books to date, beginning with Appalachia – The Southern Highlands in 1999, and followed by Blue Ridge – America’s First Frontier in 2004.
2005 through 2007, he released four consecutive titles in the Wonder and Light Series; Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia (with photographer Ian Plant), North Carolina, and Great Smoky Mountains (with photographers Nye Simmons and Bill Lea).
In 2009, Jerry released, The Blue Ridge – Ancient and Majestic, a collaboration with Appalachian writer, Charles Maynard, and supported by sixteen environmental and conservation organizations working in the Blue Ridge Mountains Region. This book was awarded the Phillip D. Reed Environmental Writing Award.
He released another collaboration in 2012, Blue Ridge Parkway – An Extraordinary Journey Along the World’s Oldest Mountains, with photographer Dr. Nye Simmons, and writer Charles Maynard. His latest release, a limited-edition maquette, Forest for the Trees, was released in 2020 (Platanus Editions).
His work has been published in View Camera Magazine, Outdoor Photographer, Backpacker, WNC Magazine, Blue Ridge Country, and AT Journeys to name a few. Some of his clients include The Southern Environmental Law Center, Earthjustice, The Conservation Fund, Pew Charitable Trusts, University of South Carolina Press, Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI), Royal Robbins, and LL Bean.
Jerry is working on three long-form photographic projects: Dust to Dust (2019 – present), Upon High (2005 – present), and an untitled multi-year project documenting life in his home region of northeast Tennessee and southwest Virginia.
His work can be viewed at www.jerrydgreer.com.
Current equipment used for photography projects:
Analog (main):
Intrepid “Black Edition” & Intrepid MK4 4×5 view cameras using 75mm to 300mm lens from Nikkor and Rodenstock.
Sheet Film: Kodak Professional Portra 400 and Ektar 100
Digital (secondary):
Canon EOS R and EOS M6 Mark II cameras with lenses from Canon, Mamiya, and Sigma
