Barta Studios
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Professional photographer Joe Barta
of Barta Studios discusses with 17-year-old
amateur photographer Danny Hager of Ceredo the photos on display
at the 1960 Herald-Dispatch Camera Show at the
Appalachian Power Co. auditorium.
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HUNTINGTON — In the 1920s, when Joe Barta was a
high school senior in Martins Ferry,
Ohio, he was hired as a photographer's assistant - a job that set him on
the path to
becoming a nationally known professional photographer.
His training took him to Chicago, where he worked as a
freelance newspaper
photographer. Returning to Huntington in 1947, he set up Barta Studios of
Photography. Initially he located his studio in the Real Estate
Exchange Building, later moving to 846 4th Ave.,
upstairs over the Smart Shop.
Barta specialized in portrait photography, but over
the years did all types
of photographs — commercial, industrial and aerial. During his long
career, he photographed more than 5,000 weddings. He liked
to say "I'll photograph anything but underwater."
Over the years, Barta won a string of national awards
for his work. In 1961,
he won a top honor in his field, the National Award of the Professional
Photographers of America. And he was honored by the Eastman
Kodak Co. for his display at the New York
World's Fair of 1964.
Barta sold his studio in 1974, but continued sometimes
to shoot photographs for the new owner.
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Note: This Article and picture appeared in the Herald-Dispatch Newspaper on Apr. 8, 2019.
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