Joseph Meldrum
@joseph.meldrum
Landscape photographer based in Canada
My passion for photography started when I was around six years old – when my mother gave my sister and I a cheap camera each and a bunch of film rolls. We used these to fill the pages of our photo books with countless blurry images of our cat, fluffy toys, favourite climbing tree, best friends and many other important aspects of our lives at the time. While I didn’t fully understand why I enjoyed taking photos so much I just knew that it satisfied the deeply creative side of me in a way that felt like it was something I could do forever. As I grew up I didn’t quite have the resources to pursue photography as much as I would have liked but the love for photography always stayed with me.
"While running a small photography blog throughout high school I particularly enjoyed landscape and travel photography, which is what pushed me to finally take up film and photography professionally."
Fast forward a few years and I was studying a film degree in university, using whatever money I can put aside to go travelling in my uni breaks. This is where I really fell in love with the whole travel and landscape photography style. Seeing so many talented artists and creators travel the world to such insane destinations inspired me to take every opportunity I could to go out and see the world. Which is why I packed up everything and moved from Australia to Canada, Vancouver. Here I am now living both of my dreams; working in the film industry and using all of my free time to explore the incredible mountains and lakes nearby pursuing my passion for landscape photography.
I have always had a love for the outdoors and I’m so interested in other cultures which has taken me on many incredible adventures from snowboarding in the capital of Japan, to hiking the trails of the amazing alpine lakes of New Zealand. One destination that stood out to me and really reaffirmed my drive to go out and explore was Hawaii. Having grown up in a region in Australia where it doesn’t rain for six months of the year, being somewhere that is so incredibly lush, with pristine beaches that you can simply swim out and experience some of the best snorkelling in the world was one of my favourite memories out of all my years of travelling.
"Before I always prioritised the cold mountainous regions of the world, so Hawaii was a destination I slightly overlooked and saw simply as a fun family holiday destination. But I was very wrong."
Hawaii has incredible mountainous landscapes too, with volcanoes, tropical jungles, black sand beaches – it really has earned its status as paradise. This opened my eyes a little to the unexpected beauty of the world around us, and I realised that landscape photography isn’t just about the snow capped mountains but also about embracing each landscape for what it is.
Some of my favourite pieces of work are random little moments like a bird flying by, a group of wildflowers, a single tree, which I think takes me back to being a kid with a cheap little camera with the freedom to just capture whatever catches my eye. It makes the image so much more personal and really expresses to the audience how each individual photographer views the world. Each environment has its own unique emotion to it, and a true landscape photographer is able to encapsulate that.
"Post processing is a fundamental part of that."
"My editing style has been influenced a lot by other photographers; I have taken elements from many of my favourite creators and combined them all into my own personal style."
I used to emphasise contrast and mood over everything else but as I am growing I am beginning to embrace colour and vibrance a lot more in my style. Especially having now lived in Canada with its very distinct seasons I have come to appreciate the natural colour shift of the seasons which I feel has come through in my work. In the world of social media having a watertight consistent aesthetic is heavily emphasised, but I have always felt that each photo has its own feel and energy. Therefore, applying the exact same aesthetic to each photo for the sake of consistency takes away the natural beauty. I feel that my style is more about letting each individual piece speak for itself, creating more of a collage of looks as opposed to having an overarching theme.
"I believe that my work, both creatively and commercially, shows that photography and film has really given me a chance to see many different sides of the world."
It has introduced me to new people, cultures, places, lifestyles, views and opinions and it has definitely helped broaden my horizons and my approach to photography and film. One project I recently did in particular; I created a tourism film for my home town in Northern Australia which had a strong emphasis on the indigenous people of the region and their culture. The goal of the feature was to show the people, lifestyle and opportunities of the region with the aim to encourage people to live and work there. The area has some of the most dense populations of indigenous people in Australia, therefore it was important to me to show the rich culture and diversity that is quite often left out when people are shown scenes of Australia.
Having grown up surrounded by the culture and people as well as having indigenous heritage myself, it has always been a goal for me to shine a light on the rich history the indigenous people have – which sadly is slowly being lost. Due to the terrible way Australia was colonised, the aboriginal culture was almost erased and the survivors are still in many ways living with the repercussions to this day. Indigenous Australians are often treated as second class citizens and there are many Australians who have never even been in contact with an indigenous person before so showing that side of the Australian lifestyle was really important for me.
Tourism is a big part of the region’s economic stability and this includes the indigenous tribes of the area who embrace outsiders as their own, proud to share their history and stories with all who will listen. This was a major highlight for me working with the ‘White Cockatoo Dancers’ especially, seeing how proud they were to be performing their cultural dances for us. Their enthusiasm to do good performance to showcase how amazing their culture is to the rest of the world gave me a whole new appreciation for my people.
"As a filmmaker it is my goal to bring a sense of national pride when people consider the Indigenous culture."
Filming those scenes helped me show the world I grew up in, but it also helped me realise where I came from. I became even more aware that there is beauty in all corners of the world, including on my doorstep. I had always glorified the places in the photos that I was constantly seeing but forgot about the true meaning of travelling and capturing images. It is about sharing experiences with people, and showing them that there is a huge world outside of their own existence. And that this is something to be embraced and celebrated. It is fine to travel, discover, or live in other countries, but we should never forget where we come from and what shaped us.
"Our roots will never disappear and also on that piece of ground, beauty is to be encountered."
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