Who among you out there doesn’t like outdoor photography? Not a single one of you, I imagine. There is something deep down genetic to our love for the outdoors, to our appreciation for color and form and harmony in nature. I know that whenever I travel, I simply MUST carry a camera, not simply because I want to remember the places I’ve been, but because the photos I take are a reminder of the beauty that lies outside my door, outside my city.
And if there were any single ideal job (other than being Hugh Hefner) it would have to be adventure outdoor photographer. I have sitting here on my book shelf several volumes of outdoor photography by folks like the late Galen Rowell and James Balog. And over at NPR I noticed that there is a new volume worth checking out by the well-known photographer Gordon Wiltsie.
Wiltsie has shot some of the world’s best mountain climbers and explorers while out on expeditions, and he has compiled some of the best among those photos in a new book called To the Ends of the Earth: Adventures of an Expedition Photographer. In this NPR interview, Wiltsie talks with Alex Chadwick about his adventures and profession, including some of his other work as a writer. To wit, he was the author of a critically acclaimed study of the nomads of Mongolia’s Darhad Valley that was featured in the October 2003 National Geographic.
Take a moment away from you day and give a listen.