Decades before everyone could take photos using their cellphones, Don Klinsky was the guy who always had a camera to capture the moment.

In September, Klinsky, 55, created a way to share his lifelong love of photography with the launch of a gallery in Brackenridge.

Don Klinsky Fine Art Photography is on the second floor of the new Redefined Heirlooms shop on 10th Avenue, which sells recycled furniture, antiques and home decor.

Klinsky’s gallery features a collection of photographs printed on a variety of media. Among the most impressive pieces are his slow exposure landscape and city scenes that have been transferred onto metal panels and have a glasslike sheen.

“I started making prints available online last year, but I really felt that it was important to have a physical space for people to be able to see what I have in person,” said Klinsky of Harrison. “So when the opportunity came to rent space in Redefined Heirlooms, I thought it would be a good fit for what I want to do.”

Klinsky, who grew up in New Kensington, says he cannot remember a time when he wasn’t snapping photos.

“I was probably 4 or 5 when I got a small 110 camera with a pop-up flash,” he said. “I was just always taking pictures of something, anything.”

Inklings of what would become Klinsky’s signature style began to emerge as he practiced how to use the simple point-and-shoot camera as a tool to achieve the vision he had for his photos.

“I’ve always loved just going out with a camera looking for something interesting to catch my eye,” he said. “And when I was at family gatherings, I always preferred taking candid photos that capture the moment.”

Learning what worked and what didn’t took a lot of “trial and error” because you couldn’t see the results of a shot until after the film was processed, Klinsky said.

After graduating from Valley High School in 1986, Klinsky did a stint in the Navy before receiving a medical discharge.

While serving in the military, Klinsky got the first camera that allowed him to develop his skills as a photographer.

“I bought a Pentax 35 mm film camera that gave me a chance to really learn,” he said. “I’d walk around the base taking pictures, which of course got me in trouble, but it allowed me to start developing my creativity.”

Learning the technical aspects of how a camera’s settings affect the outcome of a photo also meant considerable practice and more trial and error, Klinsky said.

“There was no internet back then that you could use to quickly look something up,” he said. “But the camera came with a very in-depth manual that covered all the basics, and I was able to get some books to learn more. At that point, I was only doing photography because it made me happy and I was learning.”

After leaving the Navy, Klinsky spent about seven years doing office work to earn a living before deciding to go into business for himself by opening a karate school in Oakmont, which he operated for 15 years.

“Just like photography, studying karate started as a hobby when I was a kid and I loved doing both of them,” Klinsky said. “But at the time, opening the school seemed like the best alternative as far as a business was concerned, it turned out to be pretty good for me.”

While the constraints of running a growing business left little time for Klinsky to devote to photography, “it was always in the back of my mind.”

Klinsky operated his taekwondo karate school in Oakmont for 15 years before health problems forced him to sell the business in 2009.

“I was pretty certain my career would be running the karate school, but things don’t always turn out like you plan,” he said. “I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and realized that the crippling nature of that wasn’t going to work out as far as karate was concerned.”

While Klinsky reluctantly sold the business he spent more than a decade building, he saw it as an opportunity to rekindle his passion for photography.

“When I’m out taking photos, I’m always looking for things that interest me,” he said. “I’ve always had the idea that if a photo is interesting to me, it will probably be interesting to other people, too.”

That realization set Klinsky headlong into a plan to become a professional photographer.

“After selling the school, I figured I had to look for something to do that was less physical than teaching karate, so naturally photography was the first thing I thought of,” he said.

Klinsky filed the paperwork needed to start a photography business; invested thousands of dollars into cameras, lenses and equipment for a studio in his home; took online courses to expand his knowledge and skill; launched a website; and even traveled to Alaska to begin building a collection of fine art prints.

“I was pretty much all set to go,” he said. “But then two things happened that changed my mind.”

The first, and ultimately most important, were the needs of his family.

“I’d just gotten out of basically spending 24/7 running a business,” he said. “And my kids had just turned 3 and 5.

“Both of my kids have special needs, and I realized that if I opened another business I wasn’t going to be able to spend time with them,” he said. “I wasn’t willing to do that because I didn’t want to miss a single moment with them while they were growing up.”

Klinsky put a pause on his business plans and became a stay-at-home dad while his first wife worked out of the home.

“I feel really lucky to have been able to be with them,” he said. “Not many guys typically get the chance to do that.”

Klinsky said his decision not to launch the business also was affected by the growing availability of smartphones with built-in cameras.

“That was right around the time the smartphone craze was really starting, and I remember thinking that maybe professional photography was going away,” he said.

Klinsky said his plans to launch a photography business were rekindled when he and his wife, Colleen, hired photographer Donna Weckerly of Kittanning to do some photos for their wedding.

“Colleen was always commenting about how much she loved the photos I had hanging in my home and said I should be doing more with photography,” Klinsky said.

“But the reality was that over the years I’d sold off all my gear when I needed the money, so getting back into it wouldn’t be cheap,” Klinsky said. “But she didn’t care. All she kept telling me was that it’s my passion and I have to pursue it.”

The decision to finally take the plunge came when Weckerly met the couple at an estate in Armstrong County where they were a taking a local honeymoon before their planned trip to Alaska.

“My wife mentioned to Donna that I did photography as a hobby and had done a lot of photos over the years that she really liked,” Klinsky said.

Wecklery said it was clear while speaking with Klinsky that he deeply missed photography.

“I was finishing up the session with them, and Don and I were chatting about photography,” Weckerly said. “So I opened my camera bag up to show him the new mirrorless camera I was using and some of my lenses and his eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning.

“The questions he asked were pretty specific and, as we talked, it became quite obvious that, like me, photography was a passion for him and that he was really missing it,” she said.

Weckerly, who also serves as the executive director of the newly formed Armstrong County Arts Council, said encouraging artists such as Klinsky to pursue their vision is one of the organization’s missions.

Klinsky said Weckerly’s encouragement and his wife’s insistence that the money needed for gear was a worthwhile investment erased any misgivings.

“My goal with photography is to bring to life, through the lens, the emotions that I’m feeling at that moment,” he said. “One of the most rewarding things is when one of my images touches someone in the same way it touches me. This gallery is a way for me to try to make that happen.”

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