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Sam Johnson
@sjphoto21
Photographer based in the US
Growing up traveling was always a huge passion for me. Originally I am from a town in west Michigan, where many days I dreamed of traveling the world. I would look through different picture books of massive mountains and beautiful white sand beaches. Seeing and experiencing the world, the entire world, is what my heart desired.
"I made a promise to myself that I was going to leave west Michigan, and experience something new."
My passion for photography was something that I also had when I was a child. I would find different ways to get a free version of Photoshop on my old Toshiba computer and edit all the random photos that I would take. As I moved into college, I let that passion grow distant. This is one of the biggest things I wish I could go back and reverse. I let it go because I was trying to fit a mold. Go to college, get a degree and start a career. That is what was preached to me. I didn’t see photography or digital creation as a career at the time.
"And I really didn’t see photography as a career that would get me to travel, which is what I desired most."
I ended up getting two degrees in sports medicine. Working in sports medicine, specifically the collegiate setting, has allowed me to travel to many places without paying a dime of my own money. My passion for travel was finally coming true. I was no longer a midwestern boy. With my career in collegiate athletic medicine I have moved from Michigan to Mississippi, and Georgia and now Virginia. I absolutely love my field. However I often found myself needing to find an outlet for my creativity.
"I needed something to help me disconnect from the stresses of collegiate athletics. I needed a hobby that brought me joy."
Knowing I needed a hobby to destress from work, and an outlet for my creativity, I decided that I wanted to start taking and editing pictures and videos again. So on black friday of 2019 I went out and purchased, after numerous hours of budgeting and research, the Canon EOS M50. This Canon camera was a huge purchase for me, which came with a kit lens. We all learn kit lenses kinda suck when compared to other lenses out there. So for my birthday in 2020 I upgraded to the nifty 50 lens, and a couple months after that the DJI Mavic Air 2. Photography and videography was fulfilling my needs for disconnecting from my job, as well as being an outlet for my creativity.
"Photography was finally giving me the self balance I was searching for."
Once I started my instagram page to showcase my artwork, the passion was even more ignited. The positive feedback on my work pushed me even more to improve my work. This hobby was not only making me happy, but it was bringing joy to others as well. Those who couldn’t travel like I have and still do.
As I said before, I have lived up and down the east coast of the US. Now I am living in Virginia, near the Appalachian Mountains. This has been a blessing for me since most of my inspiration comes from other landscape photographers, like Peter McKinnon and Sean Dalton. Shooting in the Appalachian Mountains always is a breathtaking experience. My favorite spots to shoot from my Canon camera and DJI drone are the border of Virginia and West Virginia, and the scenic Skyline Drive.
"When it really comes to inspiration for my creating, innovating and trying new things, it's all for the joy it brings others."
I know that when Peter McKinnon or Sean Dalton post new content I get super excited. That is all I hope for with the content I am putting out there too. Taking photos and editing is what gives me joy. I share it with the world because I want others to find joy in my work. When someone leaves a positive comment on my post, it just pushes me to get even better.
When I first started taking pictures I would get really hung up on settings and if it would actually look halfway decent in Adobe Lightroom. Oftentimes I would sit there and go through my images on the camera and just delete away. My perfectionism was taking over. Once I realized what I was doing was wrong, I started telling myself to just “take the picture.” Then I promised myself that I wouldn’t delete any pictures I took until after looking at them in Lightroom. What I found was that some of these “bad” pictures I thought I took, were actually pretty amazing with a couple quick edits. Over the past year, some of my favorite pictures I have taken looked horrible on the camera.
I have learned so much about photography and videography over the past year, but I feel like I am just scratching the surface of my passion. Over the coming years I am really looking to learn more about colors and lighting. My approach to learning more about photography is going to be taking an online course, and I plan on going on photo shoots with other local photographers. Maybe we could even teach each other a thing or two. I am also a big believer in learning by experimenting, so there will definitely be times where I am out shooting just for the fun of it, all while trying to learn something along the way.
"Most recently I have been experimenting with my drone while we have these beautiful autumn colors."
During these shoots I really feel like I have been able to narrow down my post processing time, and create a more unified look to elevate my brand. With living in the mountains, shooting autumn colors is something of ease. I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by beautiful landscapes and colors. With the winter season approaching soon, I already have been scouting some potential spots to capture some aerial and landscape photography.
My favorite picture was actually the first picture I have had featured on a tourism page. I took this top down picture with my drone on the road my parents live on in west Michigan. It was when I just got the drone in the mail, and I was playing around while I was back in Michigan visiting. This picture, however, captivated me so much. Once it was featured I felt like a million bucks. The first featured picture…it really was a sign to me that I had captured something special.
"This top down picture of a road and some colorful trees is still my desktop picture to this day."
"Being creative and daring with my work has really developed myself and my brand."
What has also helped develop me personally is being recognized by other photographers. Eric Floberg, a professional wedding photographer, actually discussed photography with me…it made my day, week, month! He is also a huge photographer I pull inspiration from, so that fact that he talked to me had a huge impact on me. The one thing he speaks about is capturing moments. Take a second to think about that. Being a photographer is all about capturing moments. And it is all I want to do, capture moments. Moments of traveling and exploring this beautiful world. Moments of trying out new creative ideas. Moments of peace overlooking a jaw dropping landscape. And ultimately, sharing moments with the world.
"Take the picture."
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