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Eye of She
@eyeofshe
Travel and adventure photographer based in the US
Introducing Eye of She
Three years ago, Bree bought a one-way ticket to South America with nothing but a backpack, a camera and unwavering determination to chase her dreams. Today, she backpacks the globe documenting her travels in hopes to inspire others to never stop chasing their dreams.
One day after stumbling on some inspiring street photographers on Instagram, Bree decided to upgrade her first camera and began wandering the streets of Manhattan, shooting the vibrant city, and teaching herself photography. After gaining some experience, she started building her Instagram portfolio, and it wasn’t long before she was contacted by some local fashion influencers looking to collaborate with. “The more I pushed myself and focused on my goals, the easier it became to ignore everyone else and focus on creating content.” Bree says. But soon, even the concrete jungle felt confining, and Bree knew she had to spread her wings further and wider. While saying goodbye to New York was hard for her, Bree felt a burning desire to see the world and chase adventure, so she followed a dream and a boy to South America, where Eye of She became an outlet for her travel content.
The move wasn’t easy- there was a lot of uncertainty that surrounded her decision, but it sparked a new life where she became stronger, wiser, bolder. Throughout her travels, Bree has learned to be open-minded and humble, and that no matter where you go in the world, people still strive for the same things: family, love, success, happiness.
Mindset is important to Bree. “We can climb that mountain if we only allow our minds and bodies to let us.” Bree, says. Her resilience and strength began to stem once she said goodbye to the comfort of home and took that first foot off the plane in Colombia. One important piece of advice she would give artists pursuing a career as a full-time travel/landscape photographer would be, “Most people will probably tell you the same thing, but try your best in not playing the comparison game. Turn those feelings of comparison into competition with yourself instead.” We asked Bree many personalized questions; Keep reading!
Interview
Welcome Bree!
To start with, could you tell us how photography snuck into your life?
About 5 years ago, I went on my first euro-trip with a friend to the South of France. I hadn’t picked up a camera seriously yet, but fell in love photographing our experiences. We would wander through the old, cobblestone, villages with créme glacée in hand and accompanied every meal with a glass of rosé. We rode the train from city to city, exploring the vineyards in Nice to the beaches in Monaco. Travel and photography quickly became my passions and I spent the next few years traveling whenever I had the chance to. One day, I stumbled across a couple of really cool city and street photographers on Instagram. Seeing their work sparked a new interest in me, and I upgraded my first camera. I began wandering the streets of Manhattan, shooting the vibrant city, and teaching myself how to use my new gear. I couldn’t get enough of travel, and wanted to do it full time. I knew there were ways people could utilize their social media accounts to leverage travel experiences, and so I started posting my photos on Instagram to begin building up my portfolio. Soon after I was reached out to by some local fashion influencers looking to collaborate. We would meet up and I would shoot them all over the city.
"We eventually became friends and I slowly started standing in front of the camera myself."
I’ve always been in theater and throughout film school, I acted in many short films, so it wasn’t very difficult for me to pose in front of the camera, but I definitely had to get used to doing it in front of the many passersby and all of the commentary that came along with them. The more I pushed myself and focused on my goals, the easier it became to ignore everyone else and focus on creating content.
In one of your feed posts you mentioned the following: “With a head full of wanderlust and restlessness I couldn’t shake off, I took a leap of faith.” You bought a one-way ticket to South America (with a stranger!) and left NYC for a life on the road. Where did this urge to just leave and travel come from? How was it to make such a life changing decision? And… When & how did the name ‘Eye of She’ arise?
I had always felt this burning desire to see the world… To chase the adventure. I bounced around from job to job and could never settle into anything, so for me, jumping into the unknown felt terrifying but it also felt right. In the beginning, doubt had taken the best of me and I decided that if I couldn’t figure out how to travel, I would showcase other women that could. And that’s how the name Eye of She was born. But shortly after, I met my now boyfriend/partner, Jose, in an online group for photographers and creators. He was the last piece of the puzzle that helped give me the courage to say goodbye to my life back home. While I chased a dream and a boy to South America, Eye of She became an outlet for my very own travel content. One of the hardest parts about leaving New York was leaving my mom for the first time in my life. But if there was one thing I could tell my younger self, it would be to “put yourself out there more and don’t allow fear to hold you back because life is short and the world is far less scary than we make it out to be.”
While doing some research, we also read the following: “It took me a year 1/2 of hard work, dedication, and a lot of trial and error to get to the point I’m at now, and it still isn’t easy.” What have been important steps you had to take in order to make it happen, to get to where you are now – a traveler, content creator and visual storyteller?
Traveling through South America was both exhilarating and exhausting, and for the first year, we went through our savings going from destination to destination and building our portfolios. There was a lot of uncertainty, and letting go of money that had been saved up for years was terrifying. But ultimately, I feel like jumping in head first and going all in was needed to be able to establish an audience because they were intrigued by the journey.
"Thinking about content creation as a full-time job and prioritizing it as such, meant us giving it the time it required to grow as well as the motivation to improve our craft."
That trip was the best thing to ever happen to me. It sparked a new life and a new me. I became stronger, wiser, bolder. I met the very best of friends, ate the most exquisite cuisines, and experienced sights that moved me to tears. One of my all time favorite memories was traveling to the Huacachina oasis of Peru. A village in the middle of a desert where we sand boarded on our bellies down massive dunes, screaming as the board shot us faster and faster down the hills and rode dune buggies at full-speed, suspended in the air as we flew over the mounds of sand, and finally, where we climbed the highest dune at sunset and experienced a stunning sunset, overlooking the tiny illuminated village.
For many people it is a dream to be able to make a living while traveling, but I am sure many do not really know what such a life looks like. Can you take us with you and give us a look inside the world of a full time traveler and content creator?
I’m endlessly fortunate to be able to see the world and make a living doing so! But the person who said if you do what you love you’ll never work a day in your life might’ve been a little delusional LOL! It’s more like, if you do what you love, you’ll work more than you ever had to in your life. It’s usually a 12-15 hour work day, 7 days a week because you are your own boss and you have to hold yourself accountable to deadlines. Procrastination has to be a thing of the past. You’re not only creating content, but you’re managing a business, so this entails wearing many hats that people don’t see when they’re scrolling through your Instagram feed. If you are driven and determined and ready to jump over a few hurdles, it can definitely be incredibly rewarding and a pretty wild experience.
"The best part about this is that in the end, you’re doing what you love. The financial and creative freedom are just perks!"
I think wanting to better myself and put out the best content I can helps me to keep going, and the amount of people that reach out letting us know how we’ve inspired them to chase their dreams and find happiness, is one of the best feelings in the world. Some days are tough, but I remind myself of where I started, how badly I wanted to get here, and now that I am here, to be thankful for the experiences I have been fortunate enough to have due to the work we do.
For the last couple of years you and Jose have had the opportunity to explore the world and create content together. So far, which has been the most epic moment you guys have experienced together?
One of my all time favorite moments with Jose was experiencing the indescribable magic of Salar de Uyuni (The Bolivian Salt Flats). That evening’s sunset was something I’ll truly never forget. We drove out to a section of the flats that had recently been rained on. With our rain boots on, we ventured into the ankle deep water and were surrounded in what felt like an endless 360º reflection. As the sun began to set, the sky exploded from blue into pinks, purples, and oranges. The reflection mirrored the colors and the sight literally brought me to tears.
One thing that is probably clear to everyone, is that a life on the road and making a living as a visual content creator, is not particularly something that keeps you safe and secure inside the comfort zone. What fears and uncertainties were challenged? How has basically living out of your (previous) comfort zone changed your mindset?
Fortunately, throughout our travels, I’ve had very few instances that have caused me fear of being unsafe. There were a few times when walking through some sketchy streets in South America or getting lost on a few hikes definitely made me wish we took extra precautions, but for the most part, the only real fears have been the lack of financial security and not knowing where we’ll end up next especially in the beginning of our journey. It was all scary, but thrilling nonetheless.
And most importantly, the fact that our minds truly do get the best of us if we allow them to. We CAN climb that mountain if we only allow our minds and bodies to let us. I think the resilience and strength began to stem once I said goodbye to the comfort of my home and took that first foot off the plane in Colombia.
Related to that, to be able to live such a life often means to be traveling on a budget. What would be the most effective strategies to travel on a budget?
Research ahead of time how expensive a city or country is. For example, hotels and food in Switzerland are going to be way more expensive than in Colombia. In the beginning, we would book our stays at hostels using hostelworld.com and we would mostly travel via bus which allowed us to save a lot of money. We did, however, live off $1 boxes of pasta for a majority of the trip, but that’s of course if you’re trying to ultra budget yourself like we did. As photographers, we had the good fortune of also being able to collaborate with agencies and hotels to get tours and accommodations in exchange for photos. Even if you don’t yet have an audience yet, having a portfolio with impressive content to showcase to brands can still be leveraged when you’re starting out.
When traveling, we are often impacted in a very profound way, every time again. What is the most beautiful thing that travel has taught you?
I’ve learned many things throughout my travels, but one of the most beautiful things it has given me is open-mindedness and humbleness. To me, traveling all over the world and meeting different people is the best education I could’ve ever received. For people to experience other languages, skin colors, religions, and cultures and learn that they do not differentiate or divide us as we’re brought up to believe, is essential for the unity of our species. No matter where you go in the world, people still strive for the same things: family, love, success, happiness. Latin American culture has some of the most wholesome and humbling people I’ve ever had the good fortune of meeting. Families welcoming us with open arms and offering food, care, laughter, and kindness. It truly felt like we were leaving our home the day we left back to North America.
Nowadays we see so many young talented artists pursuing a career as a full time travel/landscape photographer. What four pieces of advice would you give them?
1) Most people will probably tell you the same thing, but try your best in not playing the comparison game. Turn those feelings of comparison into competition with yourself instead.
2) Stand out from the crowd by staying true to yourself by creating what feels right to you.
3) Don’t let anyone intimidate you or feel like you can’t do something you want to. This life is yours for the taking.
4) And most importantly, never give up chasing your daydream. You are the only thing standing in the way of turning your dreams into your reality. Stay determined and don’t ever give up.
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