Larry Beat

Welcome to my Art. I live on the sugar-white sands of the Emerald Coast in Destin Florida USA. Please enjoy my Enhanced Photos – “So vast is the Universe, there’s plenty of room for everyone’s pursuit of happiness” – Bright regards – Larry

Bad Habits Lounge Studio

Larry Beat hails from Toledo, Ohio but has called the Emerald Coast Florida his home for 20 years. He has worked for the City of Destin for 10 years, first in Engineering and now in the Planning Division. In addition to planning administration, he also serves as the City’s official photographer. His photos are periodically published in The Destin Log. He also photographs for the Greater Fort Walton Chamber of Commerce. His photo, “Gathering Geese in the Gloaming” will be featured in the 2012 calendar of the Mattie Kelly Environmental Institute.

Beat has been an artist for 50 years, starting his artistic ambitions as an 8-year-old attending Saturday morning art classes at the Toledo Museum of Art over a 5-year span. Later, at the University of Toledo, he continued art studies as well as French literature. He completed a BA in French at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in 1984. After two summers traveling around France & Europe, Beat joined the Air Force and became captivated by many exotic cultures. During his 20-year career he was stationed in Germany, Las Vegas, the Philippines, Korea, and Thailand. He retired at Hurlburt Field in 1997.

A dusty, old honky-tonk GI tavern near Clark Air Base in the Philippines inspired the name of his studio The Bad Habits Lounge.

His art begins as a normal digital photograph. He then crafts the color, contrast and other attributes creating the desired effect. He does not use special software such as Adobe Photoshop. Instead he only uses the most basic software tools that are on all computers.

His art is available every Friday evening in front of Artesano Jewels, 180 Miracle Strip Pkwy and during Art Walks in downtown Fort Walton Beach, Florida.