THE EXPEDITIONS

My first safari reignited my gypsy spirit with the need to explore the raw, wild, and untouched beauty one finds off the beaten path and through harsh terrains. 

Back in those early days, we had no social media or smart phones to easily research a remote area. I did research (which could take up to five years), through Lonely Planet books, long-distance phone calls to a mysterious number, personal networks, finding a good fixer, and following my gut with what little information I could dig up. Sometimes it took three long days over African tracks, bushwhacking our way through, to reach tribal regions in southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya, or the rare desert elephants in northern Namibia. I knew I was experiencing something beyond what I could have ever imagined—things that most of us have only viewed through the pages of National Geographic. Those realizations made the adventures exciting and addicting. 

These expeditions are never without intense conditions that can be physically and mentally challenging: extreme heat, heavy rains, getting stuck for hours, becoming geographically disappointed (lost), long hikes carrying heavy gear, sleeping in huts or vehicles, and not having a proper shower for days.  Yet these are the stories that we share around a campfire, with a sundowner in hand, when we meet each other out in the real African bush. 

As areas become more accessible, I push deeper into the bush.

LIVING IN KENYA

Keeping the promise I made to myself on day three of my first safari (to live one year of my life in Africa), took almost nine years. By the time I succeeded, I’d made two previous failed attempts, but I never gave up. 

Kenya is one of the most diverse African countries, with 42 tribes, over 40 wildlife reserves, stunning deserts, and white sand beaches with turquoise water. It was ideal for the diversity of my work with African tribes and wildlife—my perfect paradise, even though electricity came and went, internet came and went, and the traffic in Nairobi will test anyone. 

Due to family illness, I was only able to live in Kenya for about two years, but I keep my Land Rover there, and it is still my home base for several months of each year. 

MY APPROACH

I am never in a rush because I know I want to return to a place before I ever arrive there. With this goal in mind, I allow myself to be in awe of my surroundings, spend time observing wildlife in a new environment, or socialize with the tribes; it maybe several days before I bring out my camera. On my first visit to a tribal community, I became fascinated with their lives, traditions, and beauty. I want the community to accept me and invite me back for years to come, so establishing trust and friendship is my priority. I visited some remote, tribal communities many times over several years before asking if I could photograph them. Over the course of my journey, I have now watched boys become warriors, and those warriors finish their tenure, get married, have children of their own, and become Junior Elders. 

You can read about a place; you can research a place; you can study photographs from a place; and you can pre-sketch your compositions, but being emotionally connected to your subjects is what creates work that touches the heart. Experiences captured with raw emotion pull viewers in as though they were personally standing beside you. 

These experiences are what define my work, enabling me to capture intimate glimpses into an unexpected world. 

Many photographers these days rush from location to location, skimming the surface in two weeks or less, which is why I feel an immense responsibility to my subjects and audience to be authentic in the stories I create through the lens. I strive to capture the truth behind the photographs. 

MORE THAN A PHOTOGRAPH—AN EXPERIENCE

This journey started out with the dream of an African safari, which delivered an experience beyond all my expectations and forever altered my path.

We have only one life to fill with extraordinary experiences that will create stories for the rocking chair. 

Every time I am in the field, whether sitting among the elephants or at a tribal ceremony, and regardless of how many times I return to the same location, I put my camera away to be fully present, reveling in the awe and gratitude I have for the experience. 

Going to an extraordinary destination only to quickly create the next limited edition collection seems like a pretty hollow victory. More often than not, it can make pictures look hollow too, rather than infusing them with the life that the experience should endow.