Resources for the early Professional Photographer
Photography, like so many creative businesses, can be a lonely one. And like so many careers now more often than not people are coming into the field without formal training. I have not been at this for 8 years (!) and now get asked for advice, which still feels surprising. Regrettably, the advice I got in design school stands, “if you want to do design, don’t start your own design business”-[because only a small portion of your time will actually be spent on design.] Nonetheless, photographers have less in house employment options and so here I am, a documentary photographer who loves photography, muddling along with a photography business.
Socotra, a land of mystery
Socotra, Yemen is an island of impossible natural beauty, kind people and timeless travel moments.
The Suwgra, Oman-Unique Stays
The Suwgra, Oman is a unique boutique hotel high in the Jebel Akhdar (mountains). This hotel was an inhabited cliff village for 500 years before being turned into a hotel in 2016.
An August Goodbye
Late August Indian summer teased, the ocean was especially warm, crystal clear and the tide particularly low. I don’t think it was a moon tide, but the water was out far, exposing the flats of the sands rarely shown, the ripples and the ridges alive in the light like a creature. Life by the ocean is defined by moon and her tides. All things are interconnected living on the edge, and we accept that we too are a part of this ebb and flow, as humans have been since the beginning of time.
Hiking and Hotsprings, the best of Bulgaria
My face is pressed into broken chunks of white marble, my arms spread eagled as a light breeze reminds me of what I already know. I focus on slow calm breaths. My fear of heights is a reasonable fear of falling great distances, but it’s inconvenient when climbing mountains. I should have remembered that hiking in Europe generally involves sections which would be considered madness in the US. Of course I love everything about this, just not in this exact moment.
Documenting Life in Northern Uganda
I am sleeping under mosquito netting on a real bed, much to my surprise, with my knife and cell phone by my head, though neither will do much good. The small village near the Sudan border in Uganda was the site of one of many refugee camps during the violence of the LRA in the 90s.
Sandy feet, cold beers and giant sharks
I arrive in Tofo (pronounced Tofu), Mozambique on the heels of a moderate cyclone which knocked over some palm huts, redistributed beach sand across the lower elevation streets of the peninsula and left behind a good swell. The breeze in the air keeps the intense humidity on the move and after weeks of working in northern Uganda and on the Zimbabwe border my goals are simple. I want to get into the Indian Ocean, to do as little as possible while eating fresh food in the shade, and to swim with giants. (More on that later.) Tofo fits the bill perfectly.
Hot Springs and cold days in Mongolia
Three days into the Arkhangai region and it feels as if I have never been warm or clean. The landscape is impossibly stunning, but freezing rain pauses intermittently for snow. Or for brief moments to allow God rays to break through heavy bruised cloud, casting beams of golden light onto green mountain valleys cropped short by the wooly yaks that dot them.
Overland high in remotest Mongolia
“We have no brakes.”
“Very funny.”
“No, I’m serious. We have no brakes.” He repeats calmly, but urgently. My friend and guide Baataraa is easy going and always making jokes. I imagine this is yet another as we are at the top of a steep road with a long winding descent, a grassy valley spread out below us.
Off the Map in Mongolia
I feel like these are the first deep breaths I have ever taken, as if I have been searching for this, thirsting for this my whole life. The sense of relief is amazing.
Maybe it’s the freedom of living under an immense unbroken sky, feeling as if I can sense the arc of the sky as it stretches out around me, the rotation of the planet throughout the day. Or the profound silence which allows me to tune in to nature of, which I am a part, undisturbed by man-made noise.
Tour of the Explorers Club (courtesy of Huckberry)
A tour of the Explorers Club courtesy of Huckberry.
Expedition Packing Essentials
I find packing to be one of the most difficult parts of an expedition. This is partly because of all the complex and critical items one must bring as a photographer, but also because of the gear and clothing needed to be comfortable when doing my job in far flung places. I worry about forgetting things and I worry about bringing too much…
Portillo Chile
Portillo, Chile has been a travel destination since steam trains brought tourists high into the Andes in the late 1800’s. The bright yellow hotel, sitting close to the Argentine border crossing, has seen ski history unfold as early ski legends like Stein Erickson then Warren Miller, all the great national ski teams, and big mountain royalty, as well as regular guests, come to ski and enjoy the unique camaraderie of the remote location.
Bowdoin Kent Island Scientific Station
I had the opportunity to go to the Bowdoin Kent Island Scientific Station in New Brunswick Canada as an Artist in Residence. I was a Bowdoin College student years ago, but didn’t have the opportunity to visit Kent as biology was not my wheelhouse. But the Artist Residency has opened up opportunities for more to experience this magical place.
Lamar Valley-the Serengeti of the West in Winter
Images from a winter trip into the far reaches of Yellowstone National Park to backcountry ski in the Lamar Valley.
Azores, Sao Miguel (4 of 4)
Sao Miguel is the largest and most populous island of the Azores covering 290 square miles and 140,000 citizens, relative to outer islands which can have only a few thousand. The island is composed on two volcanic massifs, and has many calderas, lakes, caverns, and hot springs to explore. While there are natural wonders to explore, Sao Miguel also has many cultural highlights as well, I visited beaches and art openings, museums and restaurants and barely scratched the surface and hope to return.
Azores, Graciosa and Faial (3 of 4)
I am partial to small remote places, so Graciosa was a delight. When I landed at the airport, there was no evidence of taxis, so an islander picking up her aunt from California gave me a lift into town. They told me stories of Graciosa of many years ago before tourists started coming. The largest town of Santa Cruz da Graciosa is a beautiful, whitewashed town strung along a seawall and wrapped around a sleepy town square.
Azores, Terceira (2 of 4)
Terceira interested me largely because of Angra do Heroismo, which is a UNESCO World Heritage City, as it was a key hub for global sailing vessels in the Golden Age of Exploration. Paved with mosaic cobbles of black and white lava rock surrounding a beautiful and well-fortified harbor full of multi colored fish, the city does not disappoint.