The essence of our style of adventure photography is that the images feel real, like a day-in-the-life of a wilderness adventure. What we do is definitely not pure journalism. It’s more lifestyle with highly contextual product placement. The subjects are very aware of the camera. And there are also times where we craft a shot with the best setting and background and time of day to help the image look exactly right. For most of the images we do try to capture authentic and genuine expressions of what it’s like to live in wild and natural spaces. But sometimes we might also create images that feel more like creative portraits.

And, yes, many times the photos are used for marketing, branding, and advertising to help companies sell their gear or services. But, often times the images have multiple storytelling purposes. For example, our images are frequently used by magazines, media publications, and conservation organizations that are working to protect biodiversity or they are promoting other forms of environmental stewardship.

The photo needs of any project vary widely by client. And often times there will be multiple end uses for the photography. For example, we recently did a project in partnership with the outdoor clothing and lifestyle brand Ridge Merino. For this adventure, we planned a high elevation trek around one of the last remaining tropical glaciers in the world in the Andes Mountains of Peru. It was a six day trek during which we climbed above 17,000ft in elevation. (See image of the Mountain Hardware tents below). Here is an excerpt from that adventure story:

It was 3am when our alarm pierced the cold, dark calm. We were snug and bundled in sleeping bags, our orange tent sheltered by a small grass covered platform that was open on one side. I hit the off button and saw the night temp was a brisk 19F (-7C).

The world around was was eerily silent as I unzipped the tent and peered into the darkness, my breath visible in the waning moon light. A shot of adrenaline electrified the senses as a ringing crack thundered from the far above. It sounded as if the earth itself had been snapped in two by some angry giant. The shock wave froze me in place as I listened to the deep fracture reverberate across the canyons below. I’d learn later that this was the sound of thousands of tons of glacial ice breaking.

A thin veil of snow covered the ground. The sky was clear. Thousands of stars crowded the night sky as we packed and readied for the climb ahead on our fourth day of the trek: an additional 2,000 feet in elevation gain scrambling up the side of a mountain in total darkness. With a little luck we’d arrive at the high point of our trek, Abra Warmisaya pass (16,300ft / 5000m) by sunrise.