Former Viking Matt Blair forges ahead with new career as photographer

For a guy who's 25 years into retirement, former Vikings linebacker Matt Blair is having a very good season.

Earlier this year he was named one of the 50 greatest Vikings of all time. And this weekend he makes his debut as the Uptown Art Fair's Commemorative Artist of the Year. He'll even have a booth near Hennepin and Lake, where he'll sell his landscape and wildlife photos and a new booklet of his images.

"I'll be there all three days," Blair said. "I don't mind having people come up and talk about the past. That's the fun part. And if they want a picture with me and an autograph, OK, we can do that."

Blair, 60, started taking photos early in his football career, but says he didn't show anyone his work until about three years ago.

He recently talked about his new profession:

Q: How did being a linebacker help you learn to see as a photographer?

A: In football you see a play on the film that you study before the game. Then you see it develop in front of you during the game and you know how to play it. That goes on in the rest of your life, too. When you see things, your mind takes them in and wants to reproduce it. When I drive, that's when I see some of the best pictures. My eyes are a camera lens that sees things at a perfect angle, and I want to go back and reproduce that angle.

A: I'm a nature guy. I do wildlife and landscape. You put the camera on a tripod and wait for hours to take the picture. Sports is not my thing. I tried that once, but they're fast-moving and you have to know the aperture, the lighting and all that.

I will say, though, that when I took a picture of eagles flying over the Mississippi down at Wabasha in March, knowing what the speed on the football field was helped me take the eagle picture right. People can't believe the eagle stands out amidst the trees and how it was so sharp and the background so blurry. That was the difference in knowing the right speed.

Q: You and your wife serve a shelter meal every Friday night at the Union Gospel Mission in St. Paul. You've also used your photos to help the homeless. Why are you concerned about those issues?

A: When I was growing up we always knew when it was the end of the money because our mayonnaise and mustard jars were a little light. We had five kids at home and my dad was in the service. We were pretty close to being homeless ourselves sometimes. I'm very blessed that the paths I've traveled have led me to the right direction. You never forget the path you've come from and never forget those who are in that position.

Q: Have you any advice for aspiring photographers?