Photographer Jim Hanna began taking photographs as a child. Inspired by his father, an avid amateur photographer who used his skills to earn extra income during the Second World War, Hanna established Jim Hanna Photography, L.L.C. in 2006 after retiring from the World Bank. As a photographer, he has turned his gift for capturing rural scenes into a form of visual documentation, preserving the spirit of the countryside before it transforms into an urban landscape.

In addition to his father, Hanna attributes influence by such artists as Arnold Newman (1918-2006), Edward Steichen (1879-1973), Eliot Porter (1901-1990) and Edward Curtis (1868-1952), who are known for focusing on environmental and cultural subjects. Drawing on these sources for guidance, Hanna captures images of disappearing virgin territory and people that compose a workforce of manual labor. He continues to develop his digital photography through field work and regular seminars and has studied formally at the International Center of Photography in New York, the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport, and the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. Hanna has exhibited his work widely, including exhibitions in 2009, 2010 and 2012 at the Thomas Balch Library.

Hanna lives in Purcellville, Loudoun County, Virginia and frequently returns to western Loudoun County for subject material. He showcases his work past and present work on his Web site, www.jimhannaphotography.com.