About Daniel Way MD
A native of Glens Falls, I practiced Family Medicine in the southeastern quadrant of the Adirondack Park for 38 years, primarily out of North Creek and Indian Lake. When my number of grandchildren was about to double to four in the spring of 2017, my wife (also a physician) and I decided it was time to retire, so we could devote our attention to being devoted grandparents.
When I began working for Hudson Headwaters Health Network in 1981, I realized two dreams at once- the opportunity to both practice rural medicine in and photograph the Adirondacks. For the past 48 years I have pursued my passion for color photography, and have had some success in recent years with my medium-format and digital photography of Adirondack landscapes and people.
From 1987 through 2017 I photographed many of my patients, primarily the adult residents of the Adirondacks that I have come to know on very personal terms. They were from all walks of life and every socioeconomic level, but they were all my patients. I was able to recruit these people on the basis of the strength of our mutual trust and respect, something a professional photographer could never accomplish. Furthermore, I have written detailed vignettes about many patients, which allows the reader to learn a great deal about the subjects in each photograph. Some stories are funny, some are sad, some are astonishing, but all of them are true and real.
I have displayed many of these portraits, which I took in the patients’ own environments without artificial light, in galleries such as the Arts Center in Old Forge, Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts in Blue Mountain Lake, the Abanakee Studio in Indian Lake, Tannery Pond Community Center and the Owens House Gallery in North Creek, The Kirkland Arts Center in Clinton New York, the Saratoga County Arts Center and The Wesley in Saratoga Springs, the Lapham Gallery and the Chapman Historical Museum and Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls, and the Schenectady Historical Society in Schenectady, New York.
In several shows I have tried to mingle my landscapes among the portraits, as the landscapes serve to illustrate the natural environment in which I practice medicine and where these patients live. The response to this technique has been so positive that in 2004 I put a collection together in a book, which I entitled All In A Day’s Work; Scenes and Stories From an Adirondack Medical Practice. Its appeal transcends the usual niches of landscape and portrait photography, beyond the Adirondacks themselves, and the medical field, to encompass the universal appeal of the human condition itself. Within the pages of All in a Day’s Work are images and stories that evoke every emotion and feeling. The detail of the text and photographs, as well as the juxtaposition of landscapes with portraits draws the reader into the book so completely that you will feel a part of my world. The introductory text includes autobiographical information as well as essays about the different challenges of photographing landscapes and patients and why my photography helps me to cope with the stress of a modern medical practice. It will give the reader a level of understanding of what it has been like for me to pursue a busy full-time rural Adirondack medical practice, while also photographing it, in an intimate and personal way. Here are two reviews of the book:
“An Outstanding Book!, December 22, 2004
As an allied health care provider (EMS) I cannot praise this book enough. Daniel Way is a truly remarkable physician in an age where medicine as an art form and calling has become a business and patients are easily lost in the system as only a diagnosis or case number. As someone who sees the depersonalization of the medical practice every day and the endless referrals, Dr Way genuinely cares for his patients. Some of his vignettes are humorous, some are inspiring, and some display the raw cruelty of life and death. Dr Way has a special gift in his writing that makes you feel as if you actually know the patient at the end of the biography. While reading this book I could almost sense the sights, emotion, and even the smell of where he was. As someone who has hiked, paddled, and biked all over the Adirondacks of New York State, this book’s setting was all the more relative to me. This book should be mandatory reading for anyone that chooses to become a healthcare provider as it is a constant reminder as to what and who we chose our professions for. The medical community needs more people like Dr Way. ---Matthew A. Phelps, EMT – Critical Care”
“An emotionally moving portrait of land, October 12, 2004
All in a Day’s Work: Scenes and Stories from an Adirondack Medical Practice presents the ruminations of an experienced medical doctor whose home visits amid the Adirondacks allowed him to take in the beautiful scenery, capture photographs, and bring help to people who needed it, especially in a part of the nation with a high population of senior citizens. Full-color photographs illustrate every page, and the down-to-earth narrative text describes not only the beauty and majesty of the scenery, but also vignettes from the lives of patients, some stories uplifting, some heartbreaking. An emotionally moving portrait of the land and the people who call it home. --- Midwest Book Review, Oregon WI”
The book was co-published by Syracuse University Press (SUP) and the North Creek Railway Depot Preservation Association in North Creek in June of 2004 in a limited edition of 1500 copies. It was awarded the Best Book of Photography Award by the Adirondack Center for Writing in June of 2006. In October 2011 the book received the Visual Arts Award from the Family Medicine Education Consortium (FMEC).
The book has been so successful that the first edition has sold out. Fortunately for me, the Family Medicine Education Consortium took an interest in having it back in print and so in September 2012 All in a Day's Work was printed in both soft- and hard-cover versions. The FMEC feels that All In a Day’s Work epitomizes the career of a rural primary care physician so well that they want to use it as both a fund-raising tool for their non-profit organization, as well as a reference book for medical students and Family Practice residents who are considering a career in rural Family Practice. They also endorsed my second book, Never a Dull Moment: a Tapestry of Stories and Images from an Adirondack Medical Practice, which I self-published by starting my own publishing company, Indian lake Press, in 2013. Never a Dull Moment continues the theme of illustrated patient stories, but the stories are more detailed and the pictures (and pages) are much bigger. I still have copies for sale in hard- and soft-cover versions.
I have also been privileged to have one of my favorite landscape photographs chosen for the cover of The Adirondack Atlas by Jerry Jenkins and Andy Keal. It is a co-publication of the Adirondack Museum and Syracuse University Press which was also published in June 2004. Copies may still be found at the museum and on Amazon.com.
My third book, We Were There, World War II Stories from the Adirondacks Greatest Generation, which I published in 2016 on the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, was in the same format as Never a Dull Moment, except that every subject in the book was (obviously) a veteran of World War II. It gave me great satisfaction to immortalize 18 different participants in the most significant war in modern history, especially since I knew them all personally. I have enjoyed giving PowerPoint talks about the book to audiences whpo are interested to learn more about WWII.
Those interested in my photographs can also contact me to purchase individual prints of my photographs by using the "contact" tab above to send me an email at dan@danielway.com.
I also have a CD-ROM collection of Seneca Ray Stoddard images for sale. The stereoviews, albumen prints, books, post cards and maps bring the Adirondacks of the 1870’s back to life in a way that has been an inspiration to me for many years. Each $16 DVD contains over 1500 jpeg images of hotels, guides, camp scenes, and landscapes that will take your breath away! You can order the album from me via email as well. Personal checks, money orders and Paypal are preferred methods of payment.
Thank you for visiting my website. Emails for orders, inquiries and feedback are welcome! I hope you will support the FMEC, ADK, and/or The Adirondack Explorer with a generous donation. Your support of their organizations is one of the best ways you can help promote the future of Family Medicine and the Adirondack Park.
Daniel Way MD