Our story
VAST is a New York City-based gallery and artist collective of photographers, engineers, artists, and computer scientists breaking ground at the intersection of art and technology by creating the highest resolution fine art photographs ever made. Unlike typical photos (20-50 megapixels) that lose quality when enlarged beyond two feet wide, "VAST photos" (1,000+ megapixels) remain perfectly sharp even at large sizes.
Founded by Dan Piech in 2017, VAST is pioneering the field of artistic ultra-high-resolution image-making by bringing together two previously disparate photography communities. The first community of photographers, the "artists," create aesthetically beautiful photographs. The second community of photographers, the "technologists," have mastered the techniques and equipment for producing ultra high resolution images. By assembling a team of innovators within both of these disparate communities, VAST has melded their respective talents to create photographs that are superlative both artistically and technically.
VAST is a New York City-based gallery and artist collective of photographers, engineers, artists, and computer scientists breaking ground at the intersection of art and technology by creating the highest resolution fine art photographs ever made. Unlike typical photos (20-50 megapixels) that lose quality when enlarged beyond two feet wide, "VAST photos" (1,000+ megapixels) remain perfectly sharp even at large sizes.
Founded by Dan Piech in 2017, VAST is pioneering the field of artistic ultra-high-resolution image-making by bringing together two previously disparate photography communities. The first community of photographers, the "artists," create aesthetically beautiful photographs. The second community of photographers, the "technologists," have mastered the techniques and equipment for producing ultra high resolution images. By assembling a team of innovators within both of these disparate communities, VAST has melded their respective talents to create photographs that are superlative both artistically and technically.
VAST photos are created by seamlessly stitching together many individual images of a scene. Each individual image is only a small section of the scene and a few dozen megapixels. However, after all the images are compiled together, the result is a photo of the entire scene with a resolution that can be thousands of megapixels.
The exposure process utilizes specialty tools such as rotational gimbal mounts, modified tripods, wind shields, and Arduino microcontrollers. VAST artists also employ numerous advanced imaging techniques such as focus stacking, exposure blending, high dynamic range imaging, and custom software scripting. These techniques are facilitated using the extremely powerful liquid-cooled computers they custom-built to efficiently process gargantuan volumes of image data. Every VAST photo is a labor of love that the artist can spend hundreds of hours creating.
As a gallery, VAST meticulously hand-produces and sells limited-edition, large-format prints of their photos. Hundreds of hours were spent researching, designing, and refining an objectively superior printmaking process to create them. Given VAST's tireless commitment to perfection throughout the entire image creation process, from exposure to printing, they can confidently say to buyers that their prints are the highest quality artistic photographs ever created.
All prints are certified by the signatures of both the artist and the printmaker on the back. An accompanying certificate of authenticity is also provided. Furthermore, the provenance of every print is verified and tracked using digital technology. This forward-thinking mechanism reinforces the cutting-edge technological nature of the print.
At a time when a glut of low-quality, superficial, auto-processed images fill social media feeds, VAST stands confidently at the opposite end of the market, valuing the craftsmanship, experience, and skill required to create technological and artistic masterpieces.
Collectors that value the quality of the photographic artwork they purchase recognize that VAST photos are uniquely unparalleled fine art photographs they can take great pride in displaying for decades to come.
Our philosophy
- We are a group of restless fine art photographers, engineers, artists, & obsessive perfectionists.
- We are motivated to address the prevalence of low-quality large-format photographic artwork.
- We innovate new techniques and equipment to create the highest quality images ever made.
- We share our artwork with the world and bring it to walls and screens everywhere.
- We evangelize our methods in order to raise the quality of photography for everyone.
Our team
- We're built and operated entirely by artists who are passionate about our philosophy.
- We're based in New York City's Soho art district.
- We're a small, hard-working group and are always looking for stellar people who want to help.
Our artist network
- VAST artists span the globe, but are joined by our shared passion for pushing limits.
- If you'd like to be considered to join our group of leading photographers, get in touch.
