Sherman was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and obtained a master's degree from Syracuse University, moving to Atlanta in 1971. His work has been published in Newsweek, Time, Life, Business Week, and Sports Illustrated, and he has published his photographs in the books, Atlanta: The Making of a World Class City (1999) and America the Beautiful: Atlanta (2013). His work has also been featured in publications and multi-media productions from companies such as Coca-Cola, IBM, Eastman Kodak, Georgia Power, and the Southern Company.