Obituary for Robert Banks Hamor

Tilton, NH - Robert Banks Hamor, age 71, died the evening of Sunday, September 2, 2018 after an ongoing struggle with terminal service-connected illnesses related to his in-country duty in Vietnam. Robert passed peacefully surrounded by close family.

Mr. Hamor is survived by his son Sean Sosik-Hamor, his mother Barbara Hamor, his ex-wife Joyce Hamor, and his brother Richard Hamor.

Born in Biddeford, Maine on July 8, 1947, Robert enjoyed spending time on Little Ossipee Lake in Waterboro, Maine. After his time in Vietnam he owned a Southern New Hampshire photography business and acted as president of the New Hampshire Professional Photographers Association. Once retired, photography followed him as his primary hobby. Touring the Eastern United States and Canada working on personal photography projects from his motorhome was his passion.

Per Robert’s wishes, he will be cremated and there will be no funeral service. Instead, a small celebration of life will be planned in the weeks following for close friends and family. Announcement to be made on bobhamor.com.

In lieu of flowers or gifts please consider making a donation in Robert’s name to the New Hampshire Veterans Home Resident Benefit Fund. The NHVH is where Robert was taken care of and we can’t speak highly enough of their wonderful services.

Final Words by Sean Sosik-Hamor

As a photographer, I will always live life through my own eyes and heart, never a lens. If a shot presents itself, I will take it, but never at the expense of a missed memory or moment with the ones I love. The best photos that I’ll ever take as a photographer are the shots that nobody else will ever see.

Although these aren’t the exact words of my Father, these are the principles that he taught me from a very young age. While looking through the lens, you may be creating art or documenting an experience. But it’s just that — documenting. Not experiencing.

Sometimes you just have to pull the viewfinder away from your eye to fully experience a moment, even if it means missing a shot. As soon as I was old enough to hold a camera, my Father taught me that the lens was simply a vessel to transport me to these experiences and memories — regardless of whether or not I fired the shutter. I’ve lost count of the number of once-in-a-lifetime shots that I’ve missed because I was caught up in the moment — and I don’t regret those missed shots one bit.

But the last line of that quote truly resonates, “the shots that nobody else will ever see.” Famed street photographer Garry Winogrand passed away in the ’80s leaving over 9,000 rolls of undeveloped or unseen film. My Father seems to have walked a similar path, leaving behind around a thousand backup discs containing a quarter million photos captured over the past twenty years.

In this world of forced selfies and fake Instagram likes, my Father’s passion for photography was so pure — his love was for the experience and living the moment, rather than showing off the final photograph.

Whenever I asked to see what he’d been working on, he opted to tell me stories of where he’d been and what he’d seen — rather than to show me his portfolio. My Father kept all his photos hidden from the world — and hidden from me.

Only now that I’ve lost my Father, and discovered this hidden world, can I retrace the path that he took, and finally experience the world through his eyes.

Service and Remembrance

A remembrance of Bob Hamor for close friends and family was held on Saturday, September 22, 2018 on Lovell Lake.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, please consider making a donation in Bob’s name to the New Hampshire Veterans Home Resident Benefit Fund. The New Hampshire Veterans Home is where Bob was taken care of, and we can’t speak highly enough of their wonderful services.

Letters may be sent to:

Bob Hamor, C/O Sean Sosik-Hamor, PO Box 764, Pelham, NH 03076-0764

Memories of Bob

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor

Bob Hamor