About Minner Photography

My photography is about second chance and redemption.  My images tell a story and speak of hope in the midst of chaos. They are photographs of places forgotten and pushed away. While others may fear entering abandoned buildings (asylums, hospitals, schools, factories or churches), I find sanctuary in them.  My images are my captures from all over the US. They are digital photos but shot as pure as I can stay to original film photography.  I use only natural light, no HDR and use minimal editing. I want the locations to speak for themselves, not be spoken through digitized corrections.

After several years of trials and tribulations, Dennis Minner Jr. found his relief and therapy in New York City while doing photography. Dennis’ first adventure was at Pilgrim State Asylum on Long Island in New York.
“It was incredibly eerie and I was constantly looking over my shoulder.  The shadows bounced in and out of rooms and the noises overtook my sense of hearing. I was terrified at times knowing that horrible deaths and torture that had occurred in the very rooms I was walking. Knowing that I was giving something that had become lost and forgotten a second chance also brought me a sense of inner peace. It was a moment of redemption. Redemption for the objects I was shooting and redemption for myself.”
“What many saw as haunted or scary, I felt a sense of compassion.  I started noticing that many of my photographs were empty chairs.  Then the revelation hit me when I saw the green chair at an abandoned girl’s school.  I was that chair.  I was the one that was lost and forgotten.  Then I saw the bright light shining on the chair and remembered I was never alone.  It was an amazing moment for me when I realized no matter how scary things looked like on the outside, everything was going to be ok.”
In October of 2010, Dennis left New York City and moved back to St. Louis.  Since moving back to St. Louis, Dennis is now married to Lindy Minner and they currently live in O’fallon, MO with daughters, Bella and Kinley.