About - City Photos

Standing over a tray in a darkroom many years ago, I stood in amazement as I watched an image that I captured with my camera slowly appear on photographic paper. I was hooked. It is still magical when I download digital images and see them on my computer screen for the first time. I first developed a passion for photographing places and structures. This ultimately guided me towards a Master of City Planning degree. I have been a photographer and urban planner most of my adult life.

I’ve worked as an urban planner for over 40 years. In Florida, I served as Assistant Director at the South Florida Regional Planning Council, working on projects including Hard Rock Stadium. In 1986, I moved to Michigan and began my planning consulting career. I worked for Parsons Transportation Group (Barton-Aschman), and then formed the consulting partnership, Birchler Arroyo Associates. This company was rebranded Clearzoning, and then merged with Giffels Webster in Detroit.

My photography company, City Photos and Books, Inc. (aka City-Photos) was founded in 2000. My portrait website is www.PortraitsByRod.com. My city photography and planning research is found on this website: www.City-Photos.com.

I also have an interest in the history of the City of Detroit, and have studied the city planning history and lectured on the topic many times. I’ve incorporated research on Detroit’s jazz and blues history, with an emphasis on the Paradise Valley and Black Bottom neighborhoods. This research is a passion project of mine, and it includes the use of images and maps to tell the story of when jazz reigned supreme in Detroit, Black-owned businesses thrived, and then freeways and urban renewal projects removed much of what had been created in these neighborhoods.

I have a Master of City Planning degree from Georgia Tech and I have served on the adjunct faculty in Wayne State University’s Graduate Urban Planning Program. I am a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners. I am a member of the Professional Photographers of America.