Meet Jordan Elder | Wedding & Elopement Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jordan Elder and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
With my photography, the biggest thing that I aim to do is evoke emotion through each image. I think the most beautiful and impactful thing about any art is the way that it’s able to bring out emotions in the viewer and make sense of the world in a different way each time it’s seen. In shooting weddings, there is so much opportunity for vulnerability and I love capturing real, organic moments that are so important to the whole story. Moments feel a lot more important when they’re rendered permanently by an image, so I never take this lightly and approach each wedding with the goal to tell the story.

Another thing that I prioritize in my work is communicating a respect and appreciation of our natural world. I shoot in some insanely beautiful places and I feel most alive and connected when I’m out exploring somewhere wild. Using imagery to convey raw, untouched natural places is so important to me because it is a way of fostering respect and admiration for the places that were here before us.

I have recently started developing my own film after shooting on 35mm film for the past few years. I now develop each roll myself and it is such an incredible way to slow down and appreciate the art of photography. Shooting on film has such a nostalgic feeling and makes me slow down and carefully consider each element of the shot. You only have so many chances, so I have found that my favorite shots come from film because of the way that I prioritize artful composition and balanced exposure. Developing it at home has been a crazy learning curve, but I love how much control I am able to have over my film images now. I offer packages with both film and digital images because I think it’s the perfect balance of vintage and modern that really completes a gallery.

One major thing that I’ve recently overcome is fear of change. I was on scholarship at a D1 volleyball program for my first 3 years of college, which was a dream of mine since I was a child. However, I was studying something that didn’t make sense for my future and I was sacrificing my photo business because I had no time left to work on it. I ended up leaving volleyball and transferring colleges to study entrepreneurship and put my whole heart into developing my business. It was an extremely hard decision and it came with a lot of fear. I was leaving security, stability, and my lifelong dream to dive into something that might not even work out. But, I knew that it was the right decision and told myself that passions are allowed to shift, I’m allowed to change, and life is too short to leave your dreams on the back-burner. I now feel like I am so much further along than I could have ever imagined and am so prepared to graduate and take on full-time entrepreneurship.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Durango is an amazing town and I feel like there are endless opportunities for things to do. I am an outdoors person who loves getting out into the incredible landscapes that surround this town, so I would definitely start there. We could go climbing outdoors at Sailing Hawks, X-Rock, or East Animas, or indoors at Gravity Lab. I’d also take them hiking near Molas Pass for a shorter section of the Colorado Trail. We could stop at Little Molas Lake to fish, camp, or paddle board. If it were winter, I’d snowshoe up Horse Gulch right in Durango or cross country ski.

To eat, I’d take them to Zia’s Taqueria, Grassburger, East by Southwest, J-Bo’s, and Akami Poke and Noodle Bar. To hang out and drink coffee, Durango Joes, 81301, Hermosa cafe, Bread, and Durango Coffee Co. are great.

We could also go ice skating or sledding at Chapman Hill, ski or snowboard at Purgatory, enjoy the views at the Lion’s Den lookout, and walk around downtown to see the cute small businesses and shops.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My family has always been incredibly supportive of my dreams and, sometimes crazy, plans. My mom Brooke and dad Scot have been my backbone and have reminded me of my value when I falter in confidence. I have made some immense sacrifices to pursue this dream of mine, and they have never questioned me and have always stood behind me in my decisions.

I also have some incredible friends in the industry who have had my back countless times. Sue Shutterbug and Kayla Willis are two other photographers who have made the industry feel less lonely and have supported my ambitions.

I have received photography mentorship from Cedar & Pines and business mentorship from Jai Long, both of which changed my life. I learned so many valuable skills from them that have changed my business for the better.

Website: https://ponderosaportraits.com/

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Image Credits
Ponderosa Portraits