For Eric Schnitzer, “seeing red” is a good thing.

Ever since he saw a picture of his first British soldier from the American Revolution, way back in elementary school, Schnitzer has been combining his two great loves, history and art, to fuel his passion and eventually his profession. A park ranger/historian at the Saratoga National Park and Battlefield and a re-enactor, Schnitzer wears red — the uniform of a British soldier — as often as he can.

A graduate of Schalmont High School, Schenectady County Community College and the University at Albany, where he majored in history and fine art, Schnitzer loves to talk to people about the American Revolution.

When he’s at the battlefield doing living history, he has a collection of period outfits with which he might adorn himself, but when he’s on his own time doing re-enacting at other historical sites, Schnitzer is always a member of the 62nd of Foot British Regiment.

These days, Schnitzer, who recently moved from Rotterdam to Schuylerville, usually makes his own period costumes and also serves as the chief sewer for his regiment. And, if he isn’t making or mending clothes, he’s usually drawing them. As a historian, he knows precisely what a uniform might look like, and as an artist he’s able to duplicate that on paper.

As a result, Schnitzer’s “photo-realistic portraits” have started popping up in a number of recent publications on the American Revolution, making him a sought-after source for authors looking to tell and illustrate their story.

Q: When did your interest in the American Revolution begin?

A: In the fourth grade we’re taught about New York’s role in the war, and while that was interesting, the real catch for me was hearing that there were soldiers in the war that wore red. I always had a fascination with that color for some reason, I don’t know why.

But I loved to draw it, to paint it, and the idea of wearing red always appealed to me. So there was that bridge early on between my interest in coloring and my interest in history.

Q: So the two have always been connected?

A: I have always held them in tandem for as long as I can remember. In my home now, I have a slew of history books in my library and a slew of art history books. I don’t have art books, the how-to books. What I have are mostly biographies of artists and their works, and almost all the drawing or painting I do is historically themed from the 18th century and the American Revolution.

Q: How did you get into re-enacting, and why a British regiment?

A: Well, the red coat was what hooked me. I was in high school, and the first time I came here [to the battlefield] I was with my parents and my brother, and out at one of the stops we saw these two guys, only a little bit older than me, portraying British soldiers.

Before that, I had only seen pictures in books. I thought it was fascinating and then and there I decided that I wanted to be a re-enactor, and I picked the British because of the uniforms. It had nothing to do with a desire that they would have won the war. I’m very happy the American army won the war.

Q: Why the 62nd Regiment of Foot?

A: I wanted a unit that hadn’t already been re-enacted, and I wanted a unit that was really well-documented and that had served in the Saratoga campaign. As it turned out, the 62nd was here, it had never been re-enacted, and there was a plethora of information on this regiment.

Q: What is your favorite stop on the Saratoga Battlefield’s auto tour road?

A: Stop No. 6, and for various reasons. It’s where I first saw those two re-enactors that made me realize I could do something like this, and Stop 6 is also Freeman’s Farm, which is where the 62nd fought desperately and suffered greatly. The regiment was decimated right at that spot, and it’s also where I met my girlfriend in May.

So it’s a very special place for me.

Q: How many different 18th-century characters can you portray?

A: I do two soldiers from my own regiment at re-enactments or at the park, and when I’m at the park I can do a German soldier, three different Americans, an American loyalist and two British navy men. But we don’t usually do particular characters.

We usually keep it in the third person, because we’re trying to educate people and we can do that best in the context of modern time. A lot of people do re-enacting for various reasons, but the part I love best is talking to the public.