The Basics: Ben Geer Keyes
Hometown: Greenville, S.C.
Alma mater: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Current occupation: nature photographer
Previous occupation: president of Keys Printing
Family: Wife Martha, sons Ben Jr., Perry, Crawford and Sandy
Service: Member of several boards including the YMCA, Friends of the Reedy River, Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Lake Conestee Foundation
Favorite spot in the Upstate: Mountain retreat at Cedar Mountain
Next project: With three other local photographers and Upstate Forever, working on a book about the Reedy and Saluda Rivers and Lake Greenwood
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After 44 years in the printing business, Ben Geer Keys explores his passion for outdoor photography
After running a successful printing business for 44 years, Ben Geer Keys turned to another passion: nature photography.
If the name sounds familiar, it’s because it is. Keys was named after his grandfather Bennette Eugene Geer, former president of Furman University (1933-1938) and prominent figure in the textile industry.
Geer Highway was also named after his grandfather, who was instrumental in helping define the stretch of Highway 276 that leads from Travelers Rest past Caesars Head to the N.C. state line. The Keys family has been in the Greenville area since the 1800s.
Keys is a native Greenvillian who says he’s “never truly been away from home,” save for the years spent at boarding school at Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Va., attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for an economics degree, and a two-year stint in the U.S. Navy.
After that, Keys came home and followed in his father’s footsteps, serving as president of Keys Printing, which had been a family-run company in Greenville since 1869.
Keys’ four sons weren’t really interested in taking over the printing business, and with technology changes and capital investments needed to keep up, he sold Keys Printing to Consolidated Graphics, which owns about 80 printing companies across the nation.
Keys was the fourth generation to head the firm until he sold it in 1999 and “retired” in 2006.
But even in retirement, Keys keeps himself busy. He’s still chairman of the board for Keys Printing, a Consolidated Graphics Company, but rarely goes into the office. He serves on several boards that include the YMCA, Friends of the Reedy River, Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Lake Conestee Foundation.
But Keys’ true passion is photography. Seeing “a sense of wonder in the mountains,” Keys particularly enjoys photographing wildflowers, waterfalls and mountain vistas.
“It’s a driving force in my life, and few other things bring me more joy,” he says.
At 75 years old, Keys likes to remain active, often going for nature walks along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Keys says he is “addicted to the mountains and outdoors” and has fond memories of visiting his grandfather’s home, Greylogs, at Caesars Head when he was a kid. Days were spent hiking, visiting waterfalls and just being outdoors, so when the opportunity came up to purchase mountain property, Keys and his wife jumped on it.
The couple owns 64 acres at Cedar Mountain, N.C., next to his uncle’s dairy farm and not too far from his grandfather’s mountain home. The property has “clear meadows, a trout pond and amazing views,” Keys says. There are two houses: one called House of Joyful Noises, where their sons and family stay when they visit, and a log cabin about 50 yards away where he and his wife stay.
Keys describes the retreat as “having ‘Sound of Music’ meadows” while being very low-key. When at his mountain retreat, Keys spends his days photographing wildflowers and the expansive mountains.
When he’s at his Greenville home, Keys keeps up with his photography in his office/studio in his detached garage. Keys still keeps “office hours,” joking that it’s a great way to keep peace in his marriage.
“I go out to work at about 7 a.m. each morning and come back into the house around 7:30 p.m. each night,” he says.
Keys is currently working on a book with three other local photographers and Upstate Forever, to document the natural beauty and the flow of the Reedy and Saluda rivers and how they feed into Lake Greenwood.
Keys has one other book already published – a coffee-table book titled “Natural Images of the Southern Appalachian,” which features stunning photos he has taken around the Carolinas, Georgia and the Smoky Mountains. The book is now out of print and Keys doesn’t see a demand for more copies.
Keys says he relishes the simple things: “To see a spring wildflower brings me such joy.” His photos appear in some local studios and while he would like to see his photography enjoy a little more commercial success, he says he is “truly blessed and has had a happy and wonderful life.”
