An Underdog Dominates With Outstanding Photojournalism

Aaron Teasdale is one of today’s most authentic and dedicated travel journalists. He is an underdog in the field and, while I follow him on nearly every possible social media platform and check his blog regularly, not too many others seem to be doing the same thing. Aaron’s article, “How to Become an Outdoor Writer and Photographer,” was the catalyst for me finding my passion for travel journalism.

But, not only is he an amazing writer, he is also a self-taught photographer. He felt it was important for a writer to do his own photography for only the person who is writing the piece fully understands how it should be visually portrayed to its readers. No other article has proven this as much as his piece, “The Monster in The Mist,” which was given the cover image for Sierra Magazine’s. This cover photograph is one of the most powerful images I have ever seen.

The way that it depicts the paddle boarder fading into the mist and towering trees of the almost spiritual-feeling mountains of the Great Bear Rainforest. It depicts exactly how Teasdale feels about Nature and man’s place within it. We often think that we are the dominant species of the world, that we are the strongest and most important, but in this photograph we can see how Nature is so beautiful, so powerful and so much more than we can ever really grasp. Yet, somehow, this photograph comes extremely close to grasping it’s magnificence.

Several other photograph from this article carry similar weight.

The way that his photographs honor the wonder and mysticalness of Nature is breathtaking and, when I see them, they never cease to make me stop and stare. In the above photograph especially, the use of color is really quite stunning.

This photograph is also one of my favorites because it shows how man can successfully coexist within Nature. The mountains in the distance and the sea lions peaking above the water as the paddle boarders float by, peacefully observing, show the beauty that can occur when man interacts with Nature respectfully and with the awe that it deserves.

The following photographs are also some of Teasdale’s best pieces, all of which have made me stop and continue to either read the article or peruse the rest of the photographs within the article.