Montana Photo Gallery

Road Trip Photography - America - Prints

Where is the line between selfishness and responsibility? As a photographer that’s had the great fortune to travel more than most I’ve always felt a responsibility to share my experiences (good and bad) in hopes that it might motivate other people to get outside their comfort zone or travel to places they’ve never been. Social media has changed my stance on that though. Instagram specifically, which I consider to be the greatest and worst thing ever invented. People will always be people, but it’s possible that Instagram has turned a lot of us into the worst version of ourselves, always trying to one up or outdo. Always trying to paint that perfect picture of a dream life.

During my travels it’s become very obvious that most humans have no interest in actually being in or enjoying a place they visit. All that matters is whether you can show others that you’re in a place better than they are. Snap a selfie and continue on. Fuck off. What kind of life is that?

A few weeks ago I had a photoshoot for a client in San Francisco then drove (with Mojo) to Spokane, Washington where I picked up Emily at the airport. Actually, that’s not really true. Her flight was delayed again, and again, and again. So I went fly fishing then relaxed at our Airbnb in Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho. She wound up taking a quick Uber from the airport at about 1am because it was just easier for all of us. The next couple days were great. Afterward we were sad to leave, but only for a minute because the rest of the trip put us in a cabin (featured below) in northern Montana near Glacier National Park. The fall colors were out and we had nothing to complain about. Showing all of the amazing things I (we) do along the way is not my strong point. Most of that is because I’d rather be present than on my phone. Nothing is worse than being in a world class location and looking around to see 95% of the humans around you with their neck hanging down in the blue light. The other part is that I don’t like what Instagram can do to a place. I’m not The Rock. Meaning I don’t have the ability to reach 227 million people with every post. Wouldn’t be able to handle that kind of power either, but imagine what happens to a place that is exploited by the wrong person? A quiet mountain town all of a sudden becomes the next Instagram hot spot where thousands of assholes are running around with selfie sticks. Thus ruining the entire culture and reason locals want to live there.

So do you live selfishly or become part of the problem? It’s important to me to share what I do for the right reasons, but there is also that other side. Many a good backcountry ski run have been ruined because it became taggable (is that a word) on social media. The same goes for thousands of low key locations all across the world. Montana as a state certainly doesn’t need any help with sales as “desirable”. It would be daunting to think how many people have moved there over the last 5-10 years and that number probably won’t slow down any time soon. I love Montana. Like a lot. Maybe more than anywhere in the US. For those reasons I hesitate to talk about it. In fear that the small towns will wind up feeling like Los Angeles. Is that selfish?

This is the cabin we stayed at in Montana. It was built in 1910 and had it’s own barn for chopping wood. Heaven. Love the muted colors of the dead grass in front of the frame. 2