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Tanner Thibert
@tannerthibertstudio
Photographer based in the US
My passion for photography, video, and design, frankly comes from absolutely everywhere. It took me many years of searching to finally find mediums like these to create work that inspires me. As a kid, I was inspired by many things such as action sports, nature, music, t.v shows, YouTubers, and entrepreneurs, just to name a few. I felt called to do something creative in life, but it felt like nothing specific naturally fell into my lap. I have started and ended more entrepreneurial ventures in my young life than I can even remember.
"Each failure taught me a learning lesson that I brought with me to my next try."
It wasn’t until one day I was with a friend passing around a soccer ball when I realized I could use a camera as a tool to create artwork out of all my interests in life – I didn’t have to choose just one path. From there it was starting from square one. I used my mom’s point-and-shoot camera and taught myself for years and years, slowly building my skills and reinvesting into my craft. I found education in many ways: workshops, online and in-person courses, job opportunities, freelance gigs, endless youtube videos, books, podcasts…
"My passion is shooting the outdoors; surfing, wildlife, and lifestyle subjects... I love both parts of the creative process when it relates to shooting these subjects."
Being outdoors is healthy, and having the chance to move my body, feel the elements, and have real experiences is something I can’t live without. On the other side, I love the editing and post-production process. Being able to not only re-experience what I had captured earlier but interact and create art with that is amazing. The most challenging is definitely harsh light scenarios. I do think however harsh conditions can produce amazing images, it just takes a lot of practice and knowing what works and what gear to use to not lose quality in the image.
I like to push the boundaries of my artistic expression while shooting as well as while editing. At the same time, I keep the subject matter and experience behind the photo at the forefront of the final result. The main tools I use to edit photos are Lightroom and Photoshop. Although my process is fairly simple, the majority of the work I put into each edit is the subtle details. Starting off with a systematic way of color correcting images, and really taking my vision to the next level by developing creative crops/compositions, using the brush and radical filters to play with the light and create contrast. Lastly, I change colors and hues again and occasionally use photoshop to blend or remove elements to create a more minimalistic image.
The adventurous lifestyle that I follow now is linked to my passion for both travel and (outdoor) photography. One trip that definitely provoked my deep appreciation of adventure is a road trip I took up the west coast of the US with one of my friends. I used to live in San Diego and upon moving out I had a friend fly down and drive with me to Washington State, zig-zagging the entire west coast. We visited locations like Death Valley, Alabama Hills, The Central Coast, Santa Cruz, Oregon Waterfalls, and many others. The reason this trip was so special is that my friend and I truly embraced the spirit of adventure. This was before I had a camper van; we slept on the roof of my honda civic in the desert under the milky way. We captured thousands of images pushing each other to always hike to the tallest peak, met the people we wanted to, essentially doing exactly what we want to do! It was a trip full of doubts, I had little money, was not sure if my car would make it, but after taking those steps on the other side of fear it was an experience I will never forget.
For me working remotely is the number one way to support my current travel lifestyle. I am currently living in Rio De Janeiro Brazil and the ability to work remotely has completely shaped my experience and allowed me to continue exploring. In the past, it wasn’t guaranteed and truthfully nothing is ever guaranteed. Many times I returned to my hometown to save money and work odd jobs. I worked as a ski lift operator for 5 years. Thankfully my persistence opened up opportunities. Lastly, one piece of advice I can offer is to realize that to continue, you will have to make an income, and sometimes using your art as the sole method to pay your bills can be very limited. Providing real valuable services to others is your best chance at finding a payable skill, and there is no limit to how many ventures you can do. Doing this can lower your financial stress to be able to have more freedom to create the projects you truly want.
It took me a lot of time to open my eyes to new possibilities to truly create work in my own style and it wasn’t until I decided to learn about the business side of being a creative that I was able to start providing products and services that actually gave value. Everything came full circle, the skills I learned in design came back to benefit my photography and business directly! I am now in the middle of what is probably my biggest entrepreneurial adventure so far. I think one thing that is always important to do as a business owner is to take a step back and analyze where you want the company to go in the future. I recently did this and found a new direction for my business by adding new products and services, finding new exciting projects, and expanding my skill sets to take on new work opportunities in the future. I’ve learned that one of the best skill sets you can develop as an entrepreneur is to adapt to this ever-changing environment. I am more motivated than ever to keep expanding all these skills. It was a slower process than one may think to get where I currently am, but it’s all been necessary!
I have one project that comes to mind as by far the most impactful on a personal and creative level. As a passion project, I decided to ask one of my friends, a yoga teacher, if he would be interested in collaborating on a project to shoot photos of him practicing yoga in nature. The concept in mind was to portray the outer world contrasting with someone exploring their inner world. We went up to Mount Rainier National Park in my home state of Washington. We hiked to a beautiful vista directly in front of the mountain at golden hour, and from there we started shooting. I quickly realized the energy was so powerful, I was absolutely in awe at the beauty of what can happen when people decide to do something for pure creative expression. The result was some of my favorite images I have ever taken. After they were published online I was contacted by the park staff at Mount Rainier to have those photos displayed in an exhibition in the park visitor center. I am super honored to have park visitors be able to experience what we did.
Projects, smaller or bigger, commercial or not, are not only an opportunity to build portfolio and earn money. It’s above all an opportunity to build confidence. This is something you can gain by experience, education, and taking on opportunities even when you don’t feel ready. At first, I didn’t have a lot of confidence mainly because there were too many unknowns. I didn’t know what the outcomes of these projects would be or if I could deliver. But with whatever skills and experience I did have I would take on any opportunity I could and use it as a learning experience. Over time you have all these experiences to take from and real confidence builds.
In addition, the experiences that went bad are very good lessons. Nothing teaches you your worth more than completely being exploited and overworked just to look back and realize, “Wait, for the amount of work I did and time I invested, I should at least be getting X amount.” You will eventually learn what the value you provide is worth.
Experiences like doing client work, passion projects, and spontaneous trips with my campervan or otherwise – in a creative and adventurous way where you have to figure out things yourself – brought me every time a little closer to who I am. They also made me more confident in pursuing my ambition and my passion. I want to explore, create, evolve, and share it with others. I feel there is one photo that explains who I am at a glance: me lying on the ground surrounded by all my favorite items, things that give me an immense feeling of freedom and happiness. I took this photo right before moving into my van and driving down to California. The van wasn’t completely built, nothing was certain but one step took me to the other, and looking back I can clearly see everything was meant to happen for a reason.
"Going forward I just want to be present for wherever life wants to take me, and not set limits on what's possible."
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