Frank W. Ockenfels III

Early life and education Ockenfels was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania but grew up in Lockport, New York, a suburb of Niagara Falls. His interest in photography began in childhood, and he often photographed classmates in junior high and high school. He was the yearbook photographer during his senior year of high school. After high school in 1978, Ockenfels applied to and studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Career After college, Ockenfels worked as an assistant for Joshua Greene, Milton Greene's son. He cites Greene and Jeff Dunas as his early inspirations and mentors. For a short time, he was an assistant for Saturday Night Lives photographer, Edie Baskin. Shortly after the Rolling Stone shoot, Frank met Carol LeFlufy who is still representing him today. In 1989, Ockenfels performed his first photo shoots of David Bowie, and has since photographed him at least 15 more times. Since then, Ockenfels has shot promotional stills for shows and films including Breaking Bad, Mad Men, House of Cards, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Walking Dead, Men in Black 3, American Horror Story, The Bear, and Interview with the Vampire. He has also photographed film actors, directors, and other figures in entertainment and politics, including Angelina Jolie, George Miller, David Lynch, for artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Willie Nelson, Wilco, Busta Rhymes, Queen Latifah, Garbage, No Doubt, Soundgarden, and Tom Waits. Ockenfels has also directed music videos for artists such as Alice in Chains, Better Than Ezra, Everclear, and Local H.

Style Ockenfels has often been noted for his use of non-photographic elements in his work. He applies techniques like collage, painting, and drawing on top of the photographs. An example of this technique is his portrait of Angelina Jolie, in which the blue-hued photo of the actress has a red "X" painted on her lips. Ockenfels exclusively uses medium format cameras, stating that high-range digital cameras often produce images that are too sharp.

In October 2015, a solo exhibition appeared at the Black Eye Gallery near Sydney.

From December 5, 2019 to January 11, 2020, Ockenfels' work was displayed at the Fahey/Klein Gallery, marking his long career and featuring his collaged personal journals, published in his first book, Frank Ockenfels 3, Volume 3.

Ockenfels has also presented the solo exhibition Introspection across several Fotografiska locations, appearing at Fotografiska Stockholm in 2021, Fotografiska Tallinn in 2022, Fotografiska New York in 2023, and Fotografiska Berlin in 2025.

Frank Ockenfels 3, Volume 3 collects images that Ockenfels has altered with ink, collage, or paint, drawn from his personal journals over the course of his career. "In The Blood" "Love Triangle" Diana King

"Heaven Beside You" Alice in Chains "Bound for the Floor" Local H

"Automatic" Chris Whitley 1997 "Carolina Blues" Blues Traveler

"Still Rainin'" Jonny Lang "Touch, Peel and Stand" Days of the New "I Will Buy You a New Life" Everclear