Dave Comer

David John Comer (26 July 1956^[1] – 25 December 2014) was a New Zealand still photographer. He was the location scout for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film series.

Dave Comer
Born	David John Comer (1956-07-26)26 July 1956 Dunedin, New Zealand
Died	25 December 2014(2014-12-25) (aged 58) New Zealand
Occupation(s)	Still photographer Location scout
Years active	1980s–2014
Known for	The Lord of the Rings The Hobbit

Early life

Comer was born in Dunedin. He studied photography and fine arts at the University of Canterbury. He worked for some time in the Fiordland region as a wilderness guide and in the jet boating industry.^[2]

Work in advertising

Comer's early career involved shooting stills for commercials in the 1980s and 90s. Of note is his advertisement for the Jaguar car company in 2000, in which he was credited with developing a technique to convert still frames to motion picture film, creating a dream-like effect with the car crisp and in-focus and the background motion blurred. The advertisement won the Kodak AICP Award for Cinematography in New York City, and the commercial was added to the permanent collection of the New York Museum of Modern Art.^[2]

Comer died of cancer in 2014.^[2][3]