Montanye Arts

About the Author

Growing up, Jeff always had his mind on building something new. One day in elementary school his class was making plaster hearts for Mother's Day. Sanding the hearts by hand was tedious so Jeff's inventive mind went to work. He was always carrying electronic parts to school and had batteries in his desk so he quickly put together an electric sander. Before long, the whole class was lined up waiting to have their plaster hearts sanded smooth but the teacher confiscated the device. It didn't stop there. Battery operated portable air conditioner, light house four feet tall made from popcycle sticks, candy cookie houses at Christmas and a talking laser battle game are just a few of his ideas. His latest: Maze Zing, Amazing Mazes from Photographs.

Jeff Montanye owns a computer shop in Bullville, New York (Assistacomp) where he creates personal books from old photo albums, loose photographs, negatives and slides. He also does photography work and teaches classes in digital photography. Jeff has an education and work background in electrical engineering and computer networking. His other interests include inventing games and toys as well as hiking and biking. He has hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Pennsylvania, a total of 1,100 miles. Amongst all his jobs and hobbies, his favorite is reading books to children.

About the Book

The photographs in Maze Zing were taken with a high quality digital camera in my studio. The mazes were set up for the picture and then taken apart immediately after. Most of the objects in the mazes were purchased through Internet auctions and from local stores. I am looking forward to hunting through yard sales for items as I continue to create more intriguing mazes. I got the idea for creating the mazes one Saturday while reading books with my little cousins, Kayleigh and Taryn. We exhausted our collection of picture puzzle books and began searching the house for items to make our own picture puzzles. I have enjoyed photography since my mother bought me my first camera when I was in high school. After digital cameras became popular, I began taking photographs and experimenting with computer software. Using my digital equipment, I spent a Saturday building and photographing four picture puzzles to entertain Kayleigh and Taryn. I didn’t want to recreate what someone else had already done, so I began experimenting with my own styles. The four pictures I created kept the kids amused for a while but I quickly learned that my work would never be finished. They wanted more and more. Thus, Maze Zing was born.