Ian Spanier was born in Connecticut, raised in Westchester, New York. Spanier's interest

in photography began at age six when his parents gave him his first camera.

As comfortable in the studio as he is on the edge of a cliff, Ian can face any challenge presented. Spanier has even entered a shark cage in South Africa, to have a face-to-face with the Great White, his now late one and only fear.

Currently he resides in Los Angeles, and, is available for assignment in New York, California, and any other location accessible by

plane, train, car, horse, camel, or mule- pretty much anything that has legs, wheels, or wings is fair game.

Ian's first full book of published work, "Playboy, a Guide to Cigars," documenting his travels to nearly every country that manufactures cigars is available at fine cigar shops and at major book stores. His second critically acclaimed book, "Local Heroes: Portraits of America's Volunteer Fire Fighters," is out now in stores and online. You can visit the book's Tumblr Page here: http://localheroesthebook.tumblr.com

He is also a member of the Loweprofessionals Team, a Westcott ambassador as well as Hoodman USA ambassador, and on Imagenomic's featured photographer list.

Spanier is a regular award recipient of major photo competitions, including Communication Arts, American Photography, SPD, The International Color Awards, The International Black & White Spider Awards, PDN's World in Focus, Best of ASMP, Planet Magazine, and Seeing the Light, to name a few.

Ian is a regular contributor to PDN's Photoserve giving advice and stories about his experiences. Finally, he loves to share his experiences

as a lecturer for Canon, PPA and the NY Photo Expo, B&H, and The Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC.

Ian Spanier is available for assignment and can be reached at 917.723.6410 or ian@ianspanier.com