Guga offers a photographic journey of the North Shore

North Shore Historical Museum’s current exhibition features photos by Sea Cliff native Jan Guga, who always had a passion for photography. He received his first camera, a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye, when he was 8 years old. After graduating North Shore High School, Jan was drafted into the U.S. Army. He worked on aircraft armament systems which were a combination of electronics, mechanics, and hydraulics. In 1969, he purchased a Canon SLR FT from the PX on the Dong Ba Thin base in Vietnam. He also procured an underwater camera for snorkeling expeditions in the South China Sea.

Guga turned his lens to the outside world and was soon intimately familiar with the local nature preserves. He became a familiar figure waiting patiently with his 400x telephoto lens for the perfect moment to capture the white tail deer, snapping turtles and osprey who make their homes in backyards.

As a volunteer with the North Shore Land Alliance, Jan helps to ensure the trails are safe for explorers and the animals and plantings remain safe from the explorers.

Many of Guga’s photos are from the John P. Humes Japanese Stroll Garden, Bailey Arboretum, Planting Fields Arboretum and Welwyn Preserve.