INTERVIEW
Powered by an insatiable wanderlust, COLBY BROWN shares his passion for respectfully capturing nature and culture
Colby Brown is a photographer, photo educator and author based in Pennsylvania in the USA. He specialises in landscape, travel and humanitarian photography across the globe. Each of his photos tells a story about life on this planet.
In 2011 Colby founded The Giving Lens, an organisation that aims to blend photo education with support for various NGOs and causes around the world.
For more of Colby’s work, head to COLBYBROWNPHOTOGRAPHY.COM
TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF – WHAT ARE YOUR SPECIALISMS? HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE YOUR STYLE?
After being in the photo industry for the last 13 years, my focus and style has certainly evolved over the years. These days I tend to specialise in landscape, travel and wildlife photography, which typically involves exploring all seven continents each year.
In terms of style, like many photographers I like to create images that have impact – photos that have something to say. With each of my images my goal is to get you to feel as if you were there with me as I was capturing the image.
HOW DOES YOUR PHOTOGRAPHIC APPROACH DIFFER BETWEEN WILDLIFE AND LANDSCAPES? WHAT KIND OF STORY ARE YOU TRYING TO TELL?
To be honest, I tend to approach both wildlife and landscape photography with a similar mindset. I look for subjects that I am both interested in and passionate about and then try to find the most impactful way of capturing the various different elements that make them unique. This includes elements such as light/atmosphere, colour variance and composition, to name a few.
I try to treat each image and subject as its own story rather than attempting to apply my own personal style to every single image I capture. All too often I see photographers push out images that all have the same colour tones – the same look and feel. In my mind this makes the image more about their story rather than about the subject.
WHAT ARE THE GREATEST CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR MOST PHOTOGRAPHED GENRES (REMOTE LANDSCAPES, TRAVEL, WILDLIFE) AND HOW DO YOU OVERCOME THESE?
I think every genre of photography has its own set of challenges, but if I could give you a more broad answer, it would be staying relevant in an ever-growing and expanding industry. As a photographer, it is a body of work that often dictates the story of one’s career, and with so many people out there taking images, the challenge is to continue to have your work stand out.
How does you do that? Well in a couple of ways. Firstly, I would say never stop learning. I am always on the lookout for new post-processing techniques or in-field skills that can help me elevate the story of the images I am trying to create. Additionally, I like looking for a subject or story that isn’t already being heavily covered on platforms like Instagram. If a million people share photos of the same waterfall, it can be hard to separate your work from the rest.
While I still enjoy going to places like Iceland, which have grown in popularity over the last few years, my favourite moments are when I am out in a remote part of the
world, photographing something that very few people on the planet might ever see with their own eyes.
OF ALL THE PLACES YOU’VE TRAVELLED TO, WHICH HAS BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE, AND WHY?
Surprisingly enough, this is a harder question to answer than you might think. Because I photograph such a wide variety of subjects, the answer varies depending on my current state of mind.
Sometimes I find myself disconnected from humanity, so I put together more humanitarian projects in places like Mongolia or Papua New Guinea, where I can work closely with people. At other times, I might need some time to reflect, so chasing sunsets in the remote regions of Patagonia in South America might be speaking to me. At other points I might miss my connection
with mother nature and plan a return trip to Brazil to photograph jaguars, or Uganda in East Africa to photograph silverback gorillas in the wild.
I have many favourite places around the world, and I truly love them all!
IS THERE A DESTINATION OR SUBJECT YOU’VE YET TO PHOTOGRAPH THAT IS ON YOUR WISHLIST, AND WHY?
Like any photographer (or traveller), I have a growing bucket list. While I am normally booked out anywhere from 12 to 18 months in advance for various projects or photography workshops, I am fortunate to be able to knock off three or four each year, as I find gaps in my schedule.
These days I find myself gravitating towards documentation of different wildlife species around the planet. This year I am
not only planning a trip to Madagascar to photograph lemurs, but I am also looking into a trip to India or Sri Lanka (or both) to finally photograph a tiger in the wild.
You might also find me searching for orangutans in Borneo and doing research on the different locations in China where I might find the golden snub-nosed monkeys. Needless to say it is going to be an awesome year!
HOW DID YOU COME TO START LEADING PHOTO WORKSHOPS, AND WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT TEACHING THESE?
While I had some experience in high school and college teaching and leading others, it wasn’t until my first job with National Geographic in 2008 when things really began to come together. Just three years after picking up my first digital camera I was hired to help expand its Student Expedition program in South America.
Originally I was hired to go to Belize, but I got a call about a spot opening up in Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, which I jumped at. It was there I realised that I not only love teaching but also creating unique trips and experiences together.
There is something about the challenge of logistical planning balanced with client
experience that I still enjoy. You can find out more about my workshops by checking out my website, COLBYBROWNPHOTOGRAPHY.COM/ PHOTOGRAPHY-WORKSHOPS.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT TO DATE AS A PHOTOGRAPHER?
I think I can honestly say it is the founding of The Giving Lens in 2011. It has been amazing to watch it grow and evolve over the years to become what it is today.
Each year we raise over $30,000, which gets donated back to our incredible NGO partners and the local communities that give those organisations a home.
Additionally, we see so many photographers come through our program to learn more about photography, giving back, working with NGOs and being better
stewards of their own communities. At the end of the day, our goal is to change lives.
TELL US A BIT ABOUT THE GIVING LENS: WHAT INSPIRED THIS, AND HOW DOES IT INTEGRATE WITH YOUR WORK AS A PHOTOGRAPHER?
The Giving Lens is an organisation that blends our collective passion for art and photography with the desire to give back and make tangible differences to the lives of people struggling all over the globe.
Essentially, we take teams of aspiring photographers to locations around the world, where we have partnered with local NGOs and charities that are helping to fight and combat various causes. These range from woman’s vocational programs and youth education projects to refugee support and everything in between. Each trip acts as a fundraiser for the communities we work in, and then the images and content created on the trip are used to help build advocacy programs for these organisations.
I created The Giving Lens because I came across so many photographers who wanted to make a difference but they didn’t know where to start. TGL can be the conduit or vehicle to connect you to causes and communities you are passionate about.