I have spent a decade as a photographer growing into who I am today. I recently did an interview with a college student just starting their journey into the field and it brought a chance for reflection to me.
This last decade didn’t start with me thinking about becoming a professional photographer, it started with me graduating high school and heading into college to pursue a degree in psychology. Which I had taken a class on in high school and found interesting, people already shared a lot of their problems with me so to me it made sense to capitalize on that. I did art as a hobby, my high school art teacher required a camera, it was his class that allowed me to discover I had a natural talent with the technology driven art that is photography.
But I had no plans to study it and was viewing it as more a hobby even as I bought my first DSLR and a few lenses. Off to college I went and the psych classes commenced— here’s the thing I was good at psychology, the theories, critical thinking, and the research. I added Sociology to my degree too. I co-authored a published paper for a peer reviewed journey and presented at conferences before I graduated with a degree.
Yet, while doing all of that I was learning and taking photos. I started with portraits but it soon grew to trying every niche area of photography looking for my passion. It became a surprise to me that it would be rodeos and equine/ events but a decade later those remain the largest aspect of what I do. It was never intentional to become a photographer— it was a stroke of luck, a great network, and honestly the sheer inability to fathom more student debt to pursue higher education to work with my degrees.
A lot of those feelings came back to me as I answered questions for the promising college student and I realized my journey was non-linear and far different from the norm. I didn’t struggle to make a name for myself, in fact I just networked and made friends which is what presented the opportunities to bring me to this point in my career. Today, I can see how lucky I was and how easy my journey was, there wasn’t a struggle to find clients I simply went to the rodeo and they were already there.
Rodeo and equestrians became my people, I spend as many hours in the grueling sun, dust, and heat as they do for the sport they love. As several of my friends and family can attest I usually come back dirtier than everyone else because I am known to lay in the dirt and the dust to get the best shots. I became known for this work, even while still doing portraiture and weddings.
I grew my network at these events and my skills. My style in the beginning was so artistic but I evolved and became a marketing photographer looking for shots that didn’t just make competitors happy but the rodeo companies and contractors who could market them and promote their events. Photography is ever evolving and as photographers we should be too, in the beginning it is hard to niche and say I am a wedding photographer or a portrait photographer without experimenting and figuring out that is what you like to do.
For me a lot of that was rodeo. I could go on with this wordy insight but I would rather share some of my favorite rodeo shots over the years. Enjoy.
To view more of my rodeo images be sure to follow my social media accounts. To own many of the images above please consider my rodeo photo-book collective “Moments of Rodeo” that is now available on Amazon.