About the Photographer
Steven "Doc" Bernard
Since late high school, Steven Bernard, has been behind a camera of one type or another. Whether shooting as his high school yearbook photographer, to capturing high risk photo/video for the film and news industries, even to being one of the few photographers in the country that brings still cameras into burning structures as a certified firefighter. "Doc", as he is known to friends, has a compassion for "getting the shot".
Having shot for such clients as the US Army, USMC, Porsche, Chase Car Inc., Glock, The Malaysian Ministry of Tourism and Travel, numerous news agencies (both print and televised), major motion pictures, local governments, DINFOS, and police/fire departments, Doc brings a level of wide ranging experience and professionalism to bear on every assignment.
With a concurrent career path in Fire/EMS as a firefighter, USN Corpsman, paramedic, AEMT, Investigator, Inspector, and Engineer.....this experience brings an attention to detail that has been ingrained into him that he applies to his photography. This allowed him to be one of only a few photojournalists in Southern California to be authorized to document inside LACFD and LAFD fire scenes, right next to the working firefighters. That access helped Steven capture award winning shots that focused on the difficulties and dangers firefighters face every day.
Doc has shot in many locations, environments, and situations across the world, from Malaysia to Nicaragua and throughout the US. Whether documenting riots in Los Angeles to filming underwater videography for film, from photographing out a car window at nearly 100 mph to entering a burning building to document fellow firefighters, and from filming out of a speeding helicopter at low altitude to documenting Guatemalan village life at nearly 10,000ft elevation......Doc has worked in situations not many photographers can attest to and even fewer, if any, can attest to working in all the above mentioned scenarios.
With his knowledge, training, and experience, Doc has been able to merge his Emergency Services career with his passion for photography. This particular photo is of him on location in Maine with the Winter Harbor VFD, where his film team shot "The Volunteer DragonSlayers", which you can watch at the bottom of the Gallery page