American Repertory Theater<\/a> (A.R.T.) Institute.<\/p>\n\u201cI was what they called a \u2018casual laborer,\u2019 \u201d recalled Mayes. He learned the ins and outs of computers through tracking paperwork for the A.R.T. \u201cPeople started asking me questions about computers,\u201d he said, adding that offers for work soon followed. \u201cI\u2019m a self-taught man.\u201d<\/p>\n
Similarly, taking pictures was always just a hobby for Mayes. He proudly has no degree in anything, just assorted passions and an ethic to try it all.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started out taking pictures of objects, landscapes,\u201d he said. \u201cI hated taking pictures of people.\u201d Mayes was uncomfortable approaching people for snapshots, but that quickly passed. A friend employed by the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS) contacted Mayes, and suggested that he send some photos along. Mayes sent his friend one, \u201ca picture of a tech medic on a bike.\u201d That led to a bigger assignment, photographing Boston\u2019s new ambulances in front of local landmarks.<\/p>\n
He traveled via ambulance all around the city, taking pictures at Faneuil Hall and in front of the State House. That day, recalled Mayes, was the opening of the Zakim Bridge \u2014 not then a Boston landmark, but a sight to see.<\/p>\n
\u201cI drove there, right past the State Police, turned the ambulance around, hopped out, and started snapping,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The shot of the imposing Zakim made it onto the cover of JEMS, which reaches a worldwide audience.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I talk to an EMT now in another country, they remember that image,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s become sort of iconic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mayes began exclusively photographing EMT runs, documenting their work. \u201cMy wife would say, \u2018What did you do today?\u2019 and I\u2019d reply, \u2018Oh, I was at a heroin overdose,\u2019 \u201d he said.<\/p>\n
But a photographer friend told Mayes he needed to expand his horizons, so he did.<\/p>\n
In sleepy Ayer, where Mayes lives, he took an interest in local politics. \u201cThis was my way of being involved in the community,\u201d he said. \u201cI give my time, they get my talent.\u201d<\/p>\n
He quickly became chairman of the committee for communications. His first order of business was revamping the town\u2019s Web site. He spent three months behind the scenes, drafting blueprints for a more interactive site.<\/p>\n
Most recently, Mayes photographed Attorney General Martha Coakley\u2019s U.S. Senate campaign. Mayes still brightens when he talks about the exposure his work has received, citing the day when Coakley removed her \u201cofficial\u201d portrait from her Facebook page and replaced it with one of his.<\/p>\n
Mayes\u2019 photographs have appeared all over, but can regularly be found in the Lowell Sun and the Public Spirit in Ayer. A hobby no more, photography has become Mayes\u2019 second job, an incognito passion he carries as he travels the campus, tooling and typing on Harvard\u2019s computers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ask him, and he\u2019ll tell you. \u201cI\u2019m a jack of all trades.\u201d An information technology support associate for University Information Systems, Jeff Mayes transcends what people typically think of as \u201cthe computer guy.\u201d Mayes is a campus nomad, a technical virtuoso whose busy schedule repairing, tending, and upgrading Harvard\u2019s vast computer system belies an artist\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4175,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-276378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276378","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4175"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=276378"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276378\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=276378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=276378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=276378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}