The Photographer Behind The Beautiful Pursuit

    Hey, everyone! Thank you for choosing to visit my website. Before I go into my about page any further, I wanted to quickly note that while my work is being carried in fifteen galleries nationwide, I still have roughly more than two terabytes of content (50,000+ photos) still to process from my travels. I also still have projects associated with my travels that are ongoing. Needless to say, the current work that has been uploaded to the website only represents a fraction of what else is still to come! So please, check back frequently to see what else has been added since last time!

    Anyhow, there is both a little and a lot I could say about myself here. In short, my name is Austin and I am the owner of two photography studios- Studio 42 Photography and The Beautiful Pursuit. I've worked as a professional photographer for several years in just about every niche and genre imaginable. Outside of photography, I am an author with two books in print, a former valedictorian and possess an MBA. When I'm not on the road in my vocation of photography, I can be found involved in a range of activities, from working on one of my novels to playing guitar. I am also working on a second MA in Data Analytics that has me learning programming. That all said, if you wish to know more about my experience as a photographer and this studio, please, read on.

    My first photography studio, Studio 42 Photography, is a client based photography studio I opened several years before The Beautiful Pursuit and was where I forged my entry in to the profession of photography before delving into the world of fine art photography with The Beautiful Pursuit. Whether it be with my client based studio or my fine art studio, I've had the privilege to travel immensely across the United States and Canada and typically average over half of the year on the road for my photography.

    Both as a professional and a passion above all others, photography has holistically been the greatest thing to ever happen to me. Such reached a pinnacle with opening The Beautiful Pursuit. The name of my fine art photography studio was born out of the perspective photography has cultured within myself from the very beginning, the same one that has changed in large part my identity and how I view all in circumference the world around myself. Ultimately, to me, photography is the continuous and conscious pursuit and discovery of all the beautiful elements and aspects that make up life and living- whether historical, cultural, geographical or personal. Over time, I've developed a form of mindfulness from such of always looking, being able to see the beauty that exists in the world, even when I'm not actively doing photography. Even in the most challenging and tribulating of times, it's a constant reminder and engaging means of finding all the benevolence that exists and focusing far more on such than that of the negative that may exist.

    In fact, it was such with photography in my very beginning as a photographer that saw me through some of the most difficult times of my life and aided me greatly in restructuring and finding myself again after several calamitous events that completely upended and irreparably changed my life. Beyond a doubt, I do not know who I would be today without my photography. As well, so many other parts of life my life from before my photography, such as travel and writing, were given new life within it, and I found a purpose that has served as ethos for all I do in my profession since--- that aforementioned pursuit of the beautiful.  

    When I surmised the potential of expanding my business and opening my second studio, it's why I knew at once what the given name would be. Nothing better encapsulates or describes what photography is to me or what it means to me personally. Coincidentally, I also started my career shooting landscapes and doing more fine art work before venturing in to client photography. There could not have been a better business or platform within my work to bestow such a name.

    Aside from selling prints and leasing the rights to my work, I also offer several annual photo tours through my fine art studio that range in location and season from Mt. Rainier in the summer and the Great Smokey Mountains. For those looking for a guide for a given location not listed, I also do custom photo tours.  Coming in the next few months, I will also release my first photo book thru this studio, Where the Beautiful Things are, which encapsulates both many of the great places I've seen and what I've experienced in full in my wanderings as a photographer.

    I am also proud to say that I am a mental health advocate and have projects with several nonprofits in the near and distant future in regards to such. I truly believe it when I say it's okay not to be okay and that there is nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to mental illness. I believe as well in the power of human kindness and connection. Depending on our actions and choices, we can either impact people negatively and make their lives harder, OR we can elevate others, foster connection and build community and be better TOGETHER. At the end of the day, we're all just all just of a bunch of finite, consciously ordered atoms with only so much time prescribed on this spinning rock. Aside from death, all we really have is each other. This is why I am immensely privileged to be able to use my photography to help advocate for mental health awareness and be of support and courage in treating and overcoming mental illness. At this point in my career, it's arguably where I draw the most enjoyment from my work!