"There are people who want to get rid of the arts in public schools. How deeply do they err," said photographer Larry Fink, who spoke in the Lehigh Valley Charter HS for the Arts' Fowler Art Gallery Nov 7.

Fink's avid interest in photography began when he was 12, and the passion has inspired his art for 59 years. "Retired? I turned 73 in March," he said, "and I have nothing but energy to go forward."

"I had an idea," Fink said, "of creating an arena of human potential and interaction. It turned out that, early on, I had a strange obsession to photograph all I see and feel."

Famous for capturing beautiful and iconic moments, Fink's work has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Museum of Art, and the Musee de lÉlysee in Switzerland.

The Charter Arts school is hosting his exhibit, "In the Moment," through Nov. 30. The exhibith features black and white stills of students at a high school dedicated to enriching the lives of young artists.

Fink shared his love of photography's art, including his fascination with digital photography. "I embraced digital photography," he said. "I got a point and shoot. I was fascinated by the instantaneousness of it.

"What I find [with film] is that you shoot and commit that instant to memory, and the next day you see [the developed picture]. There's time for the memory to change the reality. With digital, there's no time lapse. It's instant."

Fink discussed the differences between shooting film and digital.

"I haven't shot film in about two years," he said. "It's not that I don't like it. DSLR's pretty quick, but not like film. There's no lunge accuracy, but you can frame up and visualize the picture and the potential. As the potential flows into the frame, you caress it." Fink made a kissing motion to show the delicacy with which he depresses the shutter.

Part of Fink's career has included commercial photography. He was commissioned by Vanity Fair to cover the political trails of Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain. Other work has appeared in W, GQ, Detour, The New York Times Magazine, and The New Yorker.

Of his commercial work, Fink said, "You can't avoid design by committee in advertising. You get lip service about the creative freedom, but ultimately, what they want is austere, commercial [shots]."

Fink said, "The advertisers underestimate the public's intelligence. The profit is subjugated to prudence. And the irony is that the worse the work or job is, the better the money."

Fink explained that, as a student of history and Renaissance artists and paintings, he's applied those techniques to his own art.

"Composition isn't just form and mathematical absolutes," he said, "but how you manipulate the moment. I try to make the best picture I can in that moment.

"Unlike paintings, writers, or music, which are analytical art forms where you start with a blank canvas, page or silence, photography starts with the whole of the world. I edit down deductively what it means to me."

"My goal is to choreograph the form so that the eye can't leave it," he said.

When asked about his favorite photograph or series, Fink said that he doesn't believe in favorites. "Each situation isn't a body of work but a wealth of experience," he said. "When I revisit each experience through [looking at] the work, I believe that each is valuable in its own way."

Fink shared pictures from two upcoming books: "The Beats and Kindred Spirits," both of which will be published in Spring 2014.

He encouraged the packed room of students and parents to "keep the spirit of the imagination and the courage of the country's soul."

"I ask you to do that every day," he said.