A Road Less Traveled

Archive for the ‘Reflections on the Past’ Category

A Photographic Retrospective: A Look Back At 2010

Friday, December 31st, 2010

It is that time of year again and it seems like 2010 flew by just as fast as 2009 did. Where oh where does the time go? As all of us are looking forward to the promise of a new year, I like to look back on my photography work and see not only how my work has evolved, but how I can learn from my mistakes so that I can become a better photographer in 2011.

2010 was a busy year for me with photographic trips all over the place. My wife and I started out the year exploring Guatemala and Honduras, then I was on to Yosemite National Park as well as a trip to Haiti. We explored various parts of Colorado before I headed back to California and Yosemite to teach a workshop. My year ended with a three week trip through Patagonia, which turned out to be one of my new favorite places on the planet.

As I start to plan out 2011 with trips all over the globe, I wanted to stop and take the time to thank all of you for your continued support and interest in my work. I thoroughly enjoy sharing my experiences and photography work. I leave you with a small collection of my favorite images that I captured durring 2010. Enjoy!

(click on any image to view a high resolution version)

“Mayan” – Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala

“One Man’s Journey” – Lago de Atitlan, Guatemala

“Liquid Blue” – Semuc Champey, Guatemala

“Sailing Paradise” – Roatan Island, Honduras

“Nature’s Spiral” – Roatan Island, Honduras

“Half Dome” – Yosemite National Park, California

“Lost Innocence” Port au Prince, Haiti

“Mango Farmer” – Leogan, Haiti

“Lean on Me” – Vialet, Haiti

“Stuggling to Survive” – Port au Prince, Haiti

“Maroon Bells Sunrise Reflections” – Maroon Bells, Colorado

“Artistic Aspen Grove” – Maroon Bells, Colorado

“A Moon Lit Cerro Torre” – Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina

“Mirrored Reflections” – Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina

“Fitz Roy Sunrise Refelctions” – Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina

“Las Torres Reflections” – Torres del Paine National Park, Chile

“Cuernos del Paine Sunrise” – Torres del Paine National Park, Chile

Tags: 2010, Best of, Photography
Posted in Reflections on the Past | 2 Comments »

The Importance of Love

Friday, March 5th, 2010

Love

Love, like life, sometimes seems to be this intangible experience that we all know is part of our existence, but we just can’t seem to wrap our heads around what it actually is. For thousands of years, the human species have tried to define love.

_-2

What is love? Why does it make us do the things we do? and more importantly where can we find it?

The reality of love is that it is full of complexities. It is unique and yet abundant. Beautiful and yet Painful. Undefinable and yet so specific at times.

B&W Heart

Love is everything and everyone. It is all around us and within us. Love is in nature, on the street, in the ocean and even in our sleep.

Una Via

As we go through life we sometimes latch onto these ideas of what we think love is, of what we think our special someone is going to be like or what our “dream job” would be and while most of my friends would probably call me a dreamer, I have come to realize that life, like love, is so far beyond our wildest imaginations that they don’t even come close to how amazing they both are. Today marks the one year anniversary of the day I met the woman that changed my l life, Sarah. Henry David Thoreau once said, “Our truest lives are when we are in dreams awake”. That has to be true because every morning that I wake up next to Sarah, I swear I must be dreaming. Happy Anniversary Baby!

Tags: Life, Love, Sarah
Posted in Reflections on the Past, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Reflections from the Developing World…

Monday, February 8th, 2010

It is truly amazing how much we can learn, both about the world and ourselves, when we are traveling throughout the developing world. As a professional photographer I have learned to appreciate and thrive on the idea of contrast. By definition, contrast is the “the difference or degree of difference between things having similar or comparable natures”. For a piece of photography, this would entail the difference between the lightest and darkest areas of an image. What most people fail to realize is that the idea of contrast is just as relevant when it comes to life. I think we sometimes forget or ignore the fact that life outside of our borders does not consist of Starbucks and Safeways. That most of the people on this planet struggle every day just to survive. Having just returned from a month long photography trip through Guatemala and Honduras, it is difficult not to look back in reflection on the levels of contrast that exist between their world and mine.

Throughout the next three weeks I will publish not only some of my professional photography work that came out of this trip, but stories from some of the people, organizations and experiences my fiance and I came across while shooting photography throughout these beautiful countries. You will hear about how a single organic macadamia nut farm outside of Antigua, Guatemala plans to change the world through agriculture as well as Mayan Connection, a Washington D.C. based women’s initiative that is trying to demonstrate financial sustainable business practices with a small group of indigenous Mayan women around the stunning Lago de Atitlan. I will also be sharing a few articles that I am writing for “The Esperanza Project“, a new organization bent on finding and documenting creative and resourceful sustainability projects through the Americas. When all is said and done, I hope that all of you will have a better understanding the real world that exists beyond our borders.

In the meantime, here is a collection of personal photos that were taken throughout the trip (Guatemala and Honduras). I hope you enjoy the images and I look forward to sharing my experiences.

Tags: Guatemala, Honduras, Photography, Reflections
Posted in Reflections on the Past | 1 Comment »

2010 Colby Brown Photography Calendar Date “Issues”

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

It seems that with my new 2010 Calendars, both the B&W and Color editions, there are a handful of “Date” discrepancies. In utilizing a new company this year to produce my calendars, it appears that mistakes where made on both their end and mine. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you. If you wish to have a refund for your purchased calendar, please let me know immediately as I am leaving the country on Sunday for nearly 40 days. Below is a list of dates that are “off”.

MLK Jan 19^{th - Should be Jan 18th}

President’s Day Feb 16^{th - Should be Feb 15th}

Easter April 12^{th - Should be April 4th}

Mothers’ Day May 10^{th - Should be May 9th}

Memorial Day May 25^{th - Should be May 31st}

Fathers’ Day June 21^{st - Should be June 20th}

Labor Day Sept 7^{th - Should be September 6th}

Thanksgiving Nov 26^{th - Should be November 25th}

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A Year In Reflection – 2009

Thursday, December 31st, 2009

2009 was one of those years that just seemed to fly by. It was a year full of adventures, new experiences and alot of photography work. When I started Colby Brown Photography back in 2006, I was so eager to get out and explore the world that I think I neglected to acknowledge some of the amazing locations here in North America. I traveled throughout the Pacific Rim for nearly 2 years, between different trips, and while my passion and love still remains in international work, 2009 was the year that I concentrated all my photography work on the continental US. From the granite domes of Yosemite to the almost alien looking landscapes of Southern Utah, I attempted to capture what ended up being some of the most unique and amazing landscapes in the world. I fell in love with the wildness of the Wind River Range in Wyoming, with the red arches of Utah and with the mesmorizing giant sand dunes of Colorado.

This year was unique in more ways then one, but there is one in particular that stands out in my mind. In March of this past year I met a woman named Sarah. She was from Boulder, CO and was into rock climbing and the outdoors. She loved to travel and was passionate about exploration and adventure. Before we knew it she had moved in and became a permanent fixture in my life. Everywhere I went for photography, she was there. For the first time in my life I was able to share my love and passion for nature with someone else whose passion for life seems to exceed even my own. 2009 was the year that I found a partner in crime. Someone that not only shared my crazy notion that we could change the world and make a difference, but that had planned on us doing it all along.

I think it is easy for most of us to get wrapped up in the chaos and fasted paced motion of life, but I think that it is important to stop and look back at the journey that took us to where we are today. Not to focus on the past, but to appreciate the path, the experiences and the hardships that makes us who we are. 2009 was an amazing year and 2010 is going to be even better. I leave you with 15 of my favorite images of 2009. I hope you enjoy!

Posted in Reflections on the Past | 5 Comments »

Our World Through HDR (High Dynamic Range)

Monday, November 30th, 2009

In the recent years, technology, in regards to photography, has progressed with leaps and bounds. The industry itself has pushed the envelope in almost every aspect, giving photographers the ability to create images that they would of never thought possible. Just two years ago, no one would of thought about having the ability to shoot HD video out of a DSLR, now we have a handful of professional and amateur cameras that offer this unique feature. Canon and Nikon have both recently released (or announced) cameras that are going to be able to take usable photos with an ISO of 128,000, which is both insane and amazing at the same time.

Just as with any industry, these advances in technology have spurred creative art in ways that push the boundaries of what we thought was possible. One of these such advances that has picked up momentum in the recent years is High Dynamic Range photography. Also known as HDR, this realms of photography involves combining a minimum of three images of the exact same composition, using different exposures. You then combing those exposures using a program such as Photomatix, effectively blending multiple spectrums of light into a single image. Through digital processing, you can make the image as surreal or real as you like. While I will save the details of the process for another post, you can check out Trey Ratliff’s website Stuck In Customs. He is easily the most famous and talented HDR photographer in the world today. Check out his website, you won’t be disappointed.

Below is a mix of some of my favorite HDR images that I have taken over the past few years. I hope you enjoy them.

Tags: HDR, Photography
Posted in PR, Reflections on the Past | No Comments »

Happy Thanksgiving

Thursday, November 26th, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving. What an incredible year we have had so far! This Thanksgiving I am thankful for all those that I love. For my family and friends, co-workers and co-conspirators. This year I wasn’t hiking through the Himalayas or exploring the ruins of Angkor Wat. I wasn’t surfing in Australia or shooing photography in Ecuador. This year I spent an amazingly peaceful day at my house here in Colorado with my girlfriend.

While this year I am thankful for the photography trips that I have had the opportunity to take this year, I am also thank full for days like today, relaxing at home with those that I love. In anticipation of my coming adventure next year, I felt it was the perfect opportunity to watch one of my favorite movies of all time, “The Goonies”. There is no better movie out there for those of you that love adventure as much as I do. If you haven’t seen it in a while, run to blockbuster and pick it up. Like a nice wine, it only gets better with age.

Tags: Thanksgiving
Posted in Reflections on the Past, Uncategorized | No Comments »

A look back on the past…my first photography job…EVER!

Friday, March 27th, 2009

Those that know me personally, know that I am a very reflective person. I enjoy looking back on the past in appreciation of the present moment. It is amazing to think about how many different experiences, moments, relationships, jobs or missed opportunities brought you to where you are today. It should then not be a surprise that I would look back on my first paid photography job ever.

So there I was, sweating in the middle of the small village of Kerewong, Thailand, wondering how I got here. As I ran back and forth, amongst the parade of villagers celebrating Melanie & Teo’s wedding, I laughed at the thought of how this whole thing came about. I had been teaching myself photography for nearly three months while living in Vancouver, BC when I decided on a whim that I had to explore South East Asia. Three days later I had bought myself a one way ticket to Bangkok, Thailand, fully aware that I had no idea what I was doing or how I was going to make things happen.

You see, I knew I was in love with traveling, with exploring the world. I loved to idea of experiencing contrasting ways of life to what I thought I knew. I had started traveling internationally at 17 when I went to Costa Rica for a habitat for humanity type of cause. At the time, I hated it. I was there in the middle of summer…building schools, tearing down houses and building irrigation lines. It was hot….ridiculously hot actually. I remember complaining alot as I sat in the shade, where it was 110 degrees rather then 120. But it was in retrospect that that trip truly opened my eyes to a world outside of my own walls. I enjoyed being out of my comfort zone. I loved the chaos of travel. The excitement is discovering new things. But it wasn’t until I graduated from college and was looking for a new path that I found my love of photography.

Trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I sold or gave away most of my things and moved to Vancouver, BC. It was in the woods around Point Roberts that I became fascinated with photography. I bought myself an Canon Rebel xti and picked up just about every book on photography I could find. Bryan Peterson’s “Understanding Exposure” is still the book I recommend to anyone looking to get into photography. After a few months of teaching myself the basics and shooting most of British Columbia, I decided that I needed to explore all that South East Asia had to offer.

So before I knew it, I was waiting to board the plane that was going to take me for an adventure of a life time. Little did I know that I was going to land my first photography job before the plane even landed in Thailand. As the plane took off, I was looking through one of my photography magazines when I started to make small talk with the woman next to me. Her name was Melanie and she was from Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I climber by nature, she had been visiting Ton Sai beach in Thailand, one of the premiere limestone climbing meccas in the world for years. However this past year she had fallen in love with a local Thai, Teo. They were getting married in his village in a month, but she had a problem. She had no photographer, as a friend had backed out at the last minute. It was sometime over the course of the next 15 hours that I managed to get my first paying photography job, to shoot a traditional Thai Buddhist wedding in a remote village in the South of Thailand. As they say…the rest is history.

It was an amazing experience that I will never forget. I want to thank Melanie and Teo for giving me the opportunity to show what I was capable of. My photography work has certainly progressed since that day, but who knows how life would of turned out if things did not work out the way they did. They now have a child together, Railey, who was born on September 2nd of 2008. They currently live in the Seattle area.