My name is Ryan R. Olson and I am a Canadian-based landscape photographer. I’ve always had an interest in dramatic and wild landscapes as I was fortunate to grow up hiking and traveling to the Rocky Mountains and the West Coast whenever possible.
Growing up my grandfather always hold me to do what I love. With his words echoing from the past, I was jarred into a state of intense self-reflection. A reflection that lead me to further combine my love of nature and self-expression in the form of landscape photography.
I use this style primarily to create that sense of isolation or solitude within nature, which I think facilitates a sort of dark melancholy laden wonder. A landscape is never more fascinating to me than when it is hidden primarily by shadows, snow or fog. I use these elements either from nature or aid them artificially in my editing process. Shadows or fog for example, can allow for pockets of unseen landscape create that sense of looking to the unknown or infinity, as our imagination is used to complete the image and we are then left focusing on the details we are able to see.
I ultimately want to help cut through the racing thoughts that can sometimes characterize our inner world. I endeavour to do this by creating atmospheres of contemplation and mystery that can instill a feeling of solitude within nature. These abstract qualities can lead to our anxieties falling away as things are put into a higher perspective.
I think it’s healthy to get out and go on an adventure, to immerse yourself in different cultures and experiences. There is something about going on a journey somewhere that brings about a heightened awareness, it becomes easier to enter fully into a state of complete observation
In this article, Robin breaks down how he photographs golden hour tulip fields — timing the light, working with the fog, and knowing exactly when to take the shot — using his Best of the Week photo as the case study
In this article, Philipp shares essential tips to help you photograph quality images of birds of prey, from choosing the right vantage point and camera settings to the moody color grading process behind his award-winning eagle photography.
In this article, Bobby Paulshock shares how a wife, a dog, and a solo 1 AM hike in a 90-mph Icelandic storm shaped his path from iPhone snapshots to his award-winning aurora shot at Búðakirkja, plus four hard-earned lessons on gear, patience, and building a career from passion.
In this article, Christoph shares how a childhood dream of the far north became a life in northern Sweden, from his award-winning blue hour image of a lone tree to his top photography spots and four lessons that keep his work grounded.
In this article, Massimo shares seven practical strategies, from embracing atmospheric haze to mastering complementary contrast, that transformed the way I approach golden hour.
Raised on film photography and shaped by years of architectural study at the Bauhaus in Dessau, Christian Stark brings a structural eye and a traveler’s instinct to everything he shoots. Now based in Sweden, he photographs the world from camper van roads across Europe to cold mountain summits in Germany — always with an open mind and often with just one camera.
