2026 Chico Attendees Series
Mark Woods, photographer and cinematographer, speaks about his love of the stand-alone image.
Mark Woods is a fine art black & white still photographer and commercial cinematographer raised in a California family deeply rooted in photography and film. His father operated a portrait studio in Hollywood, while his grandfather famously purchased and released the film Reefer Madness. Growing up surrounded by cameras, film, and darkrooms would later shape Woods’ lifelong visual career.
Woods discovered his passion for image-making while attending the University of California, Berkeley in 1968, where he studied Photo Ethnographic Anthropology. During his years at Berkeley, he became known for creating powerful street photography and formal documentary imagery. By the time he graduated in 1971, Woods had become the university’s preferred photographer for student activities, jazz festivals, and campus publications, often credited as Francis Woods.
After returning to Hollywood, Woods worked extensively in both still photography and motion picture production. He opened a still photography studio at Columbia Studios, producing advertising imagery before transitioning fully into cinematography. Over the course of a 30-year career, he shot and directed more than 1,000 commercials and 25 feature films, earning multiple industry awards for his work.
In addition to his commercial career, Woods taught advanced cinematography at several respected institutions, including California State University Northridge (CSUN), the American Film Institute (AFI), National University, and ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena.
In 2004, Woods returned to his roots in analog black & white photography, building a traditional darkroom and focusing more deeply on fine art still imagery. His photographic series include Berkeley 1968–1973, W/O & Later (Hollywood Behind The Scenes ’73–’79), Pasadena’s Arroyo landscapes, early Chinese structures at the Huntington Gardens, floral portraits, and other still life works.
Working primarily with large format photography and traditional analog processes, Woods combines documentary realism with a strong pictorialist influence. His landscapes are created using natural light, while his still lifes are carefully illuminated using strobes, tungsten lighting, or available light depending on the subject and mood.
Today, Mark Woods continues to explore timeless photographic methods while preserving moments of history, atmosphere, and human experience through both still photography and cinematography.
https://www.markwoods.com
https://stills-that-move.myshopify.com
This podcast is sponsored by the Charcoal Book Club
Begin Building your dream photobook library today at
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The Chico Review is the country’s premier Photobook Retreat. Organized by Charcoal Book Club, The Chico Review takes place over six nights at Chico Hot Springs Resort, near Livingston Montana. Applicants will spend the week with over twenty of the most influential and creative photographers, book makers, gallerists, museum curators, and photobook publishers in the industry.
https://chicoreview.com
https://www.charcoalworkshops.com
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