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Riley Jensen
@riley_jensen_photo
Landscape photographer based in Canada
My passion for traveling and adventure has always been with me. Growing up in beautiful little province New Brunswick, Canada, I have always been surrounded by nature, so the “out-doors” has always been easily accessible. The province varies in topography, from its beautiful rugged mountains and rivers, to its sandy beaches and grassy, open farmland. My father grew up in a small town – Dalhousie – in the north of New Brunswick. In the north of the province, the nature is raw and powerful; rolling mountains and beautiful rocky beaches scatter the landscape. I’ve had the pleasure of visiting and exploring the region every year. With my parents and other family members we would always go on hikes and spend time at local rivers going for swims, jumping off cliffs (some 50 feet high), trekking through rocky trails to find these places. My mom’s side of the family is from upstate NY. I’ve also been fortunate enough to visit this beautiful part of the United States quite often.
"We would go on hikes regularly, visiting mountain streams, valley cliffs, and taking in the unique terrain the state and national parks had to offer. It’s these times that further enhanced my love of nature."
I started following adventure photographers when I was quite young, which opened up a whole new world for me. My favorites – Benjamin Hardman, Chris Burkard, and Braden Hall – all inspired the deep love and passion that I now have. I saw what they were doing, the world they were witnessing and from such an amazing viewpoint; that sparked a deep desire in me to just “get out there”and do the same. Once I was old enough to register for Instagram, I wanted to be able to share my passion for the outdoors with other people. I began by taking pictures of simple things with my phone, like trees and rocks. I posted them every now and then and began to get some awesome feedback from people. As I continued to take more photos I eventually upgraded to a DSLR. The DSLR is what set it off for me. I began to take photography more seriously and it stated to take up a greater and greater part of my life.
"I’m 17 years old as of writing this and am I passionately trying to explore as much of the world as I can, as well as document it along the way."
Today, outside of school, studying, and a side-job to help pay for my photography, my life consists mainly of short adventure trips with my friends. I’m always trying to find new places in the eastern Canadian provinces that I can explore. An added benefit of exploring all these places with small groups of friends is that it makes “home” feel so much more like home. Being able to inspire people to bring photography and nature into their lives inspires me.
"For me, being cooped up indoors is like a prison. Just knowing that outside, whatever the weather, there is freedom… Whether it’s a hot, sunny day or when it’s -30 and crystals have frozen on the trees, or when the waves are crashing at sunset by the beach in the fall - I feel compelled to get out there."
We have a National Park about 20 kms down the street from my house, Hopewell Rocks, which has been nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You can experience time through history there, watching the highest tides in the world come and go, twice a day. In addition, not far from New Brunswick, about a 2-hour drive north into the province of Quebec lies my favorite place in eastern Canada, the Gaspe Peninsula. The Gaspe Peninsula is in a class by itself – a truly hidden gem. It is its own little microcosm; a different world dotted with craggy mountains, tundra, deep Quebec wilderness and seacliffs rising hundreds of feet in the air. The whole vibe there just speaks backcountry and draws me in. In the mountains, they have snow for about 10 months a year and I love snow, so this makes it even more special for me. Knowing that all this “nature” is happening while I am indoors, literally drives me, pushes me to get out of the house.
"Being outside relaxes me and releases any tension from everyday life, and to be able to capture that nature on my lens is a gift."
Cold and rugged places are my favorite as they give a feeling not many other places can replicate. However, I also like the feeling of an abandoned building, or an old, decrepit home, something mysterious – maybe even a bit of darkness… Something that can help to create intrigue. I love trying to entice the audience to wonder what could have happened here. If an old house in the woods feels mysterious, I will try my best to capture that in the photo. I also like the thrill of adventure, and enjoy capturing people “in the moment”. Almost all of my photos have a person involved in some way. If it is a portrait, I make them the centre of attention. However, most of my photos involve a person mixed into the landscape somehow.
"I do this to try and inspire others to picture themselves as part of the landscape. We can relate more to a picture if we feel a connection to it."
Whether I’m backpacking, cliff jumping, jumping over rocks, or on a quick walk with my dog, Bella, I try to capture it all and show people what is possible to do in their spare time. For me, the most spectacular experience was traveling to my dream country of Iceland, which has been on my bucket list for years (well, years for my 17-year-old self). I feel Iceland is completely different than any other country in the world. The landscape, the topography, the weather, the people… At times it felt like I could have been on the moon. We traveled in a camper van, so every day was a completely new adventure; new landscapes, new views. It was heaven. Late sunsets, summer snow and ice caves, northern lights from a plane window… taking this all in – in person – when I had only seen it only from photos, was completely life changing.
"I strive to portray these emotions and intense experiences with my photos. I do try to keep my pictures as natural as possible, but, at the same time, so much emotion can be added through editing."
It’s a fine line… If I’m able to recreate the emotion I felt when taking that shot through editing, I do just that. Whether it is more lighting in the subject’s eyes, making the picture a bit darker, more obscure, or bringing a little mystique to the viewer’s eyes, I will spend hours trying to create that feeling. After being out it’s always so rewarding to upload my photos to the computer to see if I captured everything I felt while out there.
"When look at my photos at the and and I achieved to create a banger, I feel euphoric, it’s just such an accomplishment and so impactful."
I consider a banger to be a photo that is completely different from any other photo out there. It is a photo that makes you stop and look twice to figure out what is happening. You may ask, “Is that real?” “What is happening here?” “How did he capture that?” On the other hand, sometimes a banger is a simple photo that I hold dear to my heart. It could have a strong emotion attached to it which allows it to rise above all other photos. I am not a person who shares feelings easily; I am somewhat more reserved, and sometimes struggle to convey what I am trying to express.
"Photography is an outlet and allows me to show my emotions that I struggle to explain otherwise."
Photography has helped me become more comfortable with myself, in my abilities, and has given me the confidence to go after what I want. I found my best friend (another photographer) through our shared love of photography and adventure. I have met so many amazing people through the art as well. If I could dream, I would travel the world, going to the more exotic, off the beaten path places, meeting people outside of the tourist realm, taking pictures and living my dream. I want photography to remain my passion, not something I feel I have to do.
"I do not want to stray from my style, my edge, and not give in to what the “trends” may be, but to grow my style as I grow."
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