Doug Fidoten was born in Binghamton, NY. Having spent many of his formative years in Pittsburgh, PA and punk-era NYC, he became fascinated with the infrastructure of the 20th century and has spent a lifetime documenting it. He picked up his first camera in second grade on a field trip to the Statue of Liberty, where his first photograph was taken inside the statue of the spiral staircase that went to the crown. Doug’s lifelong passion for photography began at an early age and propelled him to create his own major at Oberlin College, where he graduated with a BA in Physiology, Perception and the Visual Arts.

While still in college Doug apprenticed with world-renowned photographer, George Tice, best known for documenting the surreal urban landscapes of New Jersey, including its water towers and White Castles. Through his work with Tice, Doug learned both the craft and the discipline that help shape the images he makes today. Another primary influence was Walker Evans, the great photographer of the WPA period, whose portrait of Doug is in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Additional influences include the American Precisionists, in particular photographer and painter Charles Sheeler. In his first monograph, Ghosts of the Machine Age, Doug establishes a direct connection to that movement, making the case for Neo-Precisionism.

Doug first came to Madison Avenue, as a professional photographer, working for a division of Ogilvy & Mather. Besides the usual tabletop shots of frozen foods and American Express Cards, his work was first seen in the then nascent SOHO gallery scene. For two decades, Doug was responsible for leading the marketing and advertising for many of the products that have shaped the world of photography and filmmaking through his work with Canon. He produced a documentary on photographers, cinematographers and their tools, namely lenses, “Bending the Light,” which has won numerous awards at film festivals, since its premiere at the Traverse City Film Festival.

Doug lives and works in Ancram, NY and Manhattan.