[1] After coming across a copy of Aperture magazine, Bourdeau corresponded with then-editor Minor White in Rochester, New York in 1958, then met him, and for the next ten years, the two men were in contact.
Bourdeau soon decided, encouraged by White, that taking photographs was the correct path for him, although he worked in a job as an architecture technologist (1960–1985).
His choice of scenes in Canada, Ireland and elsewhere were presented in luminous detail but gave the viewer not the surface but the spirit of the natural world.
"[5] Since the 1970s, Bourdeau has created large camera format images, which he methodically prepares from contemplating a site for a lengthy period before making an extended exposure that allows a maximum of detail.
He is known for his technical perfection, and for the unique gold chloride solution that adds a warm tone to his silver gelatin prints.
In 2011, Robert Bourdeau: The Station Point, a comprehensive survey of his work, was published by the Magenta Foundation and Stephen Bulger Gallery.