Meet Christopher Taylor | Photographer

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

Hi Christopher, what role has risk played in your life or career?
How do I think about Risk:

Risk is a tricky subject. I think most of us understand the concept of making a “risky decision,” but I believe that many of us are misled by the traditional notion of Risk and how it plays a role in our overall life. Many of us look at the risky decisions as being those that could jeopardize our physical well-being, careers and financial stability, family life, etc… While this is correct, I also think it makes us believe that there are inherent “safe” options in the decisions we. This perception of a “safe” option when we come to junctures in life, tricks people into thinking and that if we take that option, we will be ok. I believe this is where we do not have a full grasp on the risks that lie in waiting.
I think every decision we make in life comes with some form of risk. In fact, I would stand to argue that there is no “safe” option and there never will be. Ok, I get it. That’s a bit extreme sounding, but let’s break that down some. We make a lot of decisions in our life. Right now, I am mainly talking about those bigger decisions, the ones that forge the path our lives. With these decisions, I believe that the “safe” decisions can often involve the most risk and cause the most damage in many cases. Those decisions that while we deem to be the safer option, begin to dismantle who we are as a person. The times we decide not to pursue a passion, put off taking a bucket-list trip, or even just starting something new that you enjoy.
Now, I’m not advocating to just make every decision based on which is the riskier path. I very much think that risks can be taken in a calculated way, but I do believe that we cannot simply look at the decisions we make as having a “Safe” option. The RISK is there, whether it be an immediate hardship, or a lifelong regret. I think we need to relook at how we perceive risk and begin making decisions based on how we want our story to be told. How do we want to remember our own life as we grow older?

What role has taking risks played in my life/career:

Risk has become the nature of my family’s life at the moment. Near the end of 2020, while the world was in chaos, my wife and I decided to take the biggest risk of our lives so far. My career aspects at the time had taken a massive downturn and I began to lean more heavily into my love for photography/videography. For a while I was working a part-time job and taking care of our two kids while my wife worked full-time as an RN. We were struggling, living mostly paycheck to paycheck and unable to enjoy many of the things we loved.
Together, we decided to do the unthinkable. We decided to sell our house, sell/donate most of our belongings and pack up our family. She became a Travel RN. I quit my job and began pursuing my creativity as a full-time photographer, plus homeschool/care for our two kids on our journey. Her job requires us to move every 8-13 weeks, requires us to locate housing situations, and constantly come up with new routines.
This risk has helped launch my new career. The constant change in environment and location has helped me progress much quicker than if I had stayed in our hometown. I am constantly able to explore and capture a multitude of new sceneries and wildlife, along with being able to connect with other creatives and small businesses across the country. This has been invaluable in order to network, obtain different clients, and make my dream a reality.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I mainly focus on nature and products in my photography. I love to showcase the natural beauty of the world around us and help promote the notion of constantly exploring! Landscapes & wildlife photography are my passion. One of my absolute favorite things about photography is that it forces you to have patience and slow down to take in the environment around it. Also, when photographing wildlife, it’s just an incredible feeling of being able to capture a unique encounter with an animal that no one else may have ever experienced. A lot of my client work involves taking photographs for other creatives or small businesses that also promote being outdoors, handmade, quality items that help create a more sustainable focused marketplace. I love being able to harmonize the beauty of nature with products.

Being a creative is both very challenging today, and has never been easier! Social media has made it extraordinarily easy to put your work out there for the world to see and has given many of us a network to connect with other creatives and even connect with potential clients. However, social media has changed the entire industry of being a creative. It becomes a mental nightmare to try and equate your work with the amount of Likes or Follows you may grab from your efforts. Even when the those values aren’t determined by your quality of work, but by algorithms that are pushing only particular content within the outlet. Also, I believe that social media, smartphones, and the digital world has developed an almost non-desire for any physical artwork. This is heart-breaking as a photographer, because one of the biggest joys is to be able to see yours (or others) artwork displayed and being able to see the finished product printed out in physical form.

Explore, Create, Inspire. These are the main tenets of which I try to pursue my creative journey and my career as a photographer/videographer. My goal is that I may one day help inspire others to pursue their passions, help them along their journey, and show that by getting out there, creating what you enjoy, and trying to inspire others, you are a successful creative.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First, I am a coffee addict so I would definitely take them to some of my favorite shop like: Dark Heart Coffee in Loveland, Brewing Market Coffee, just north of Denver, or OZO in Boulder! These places have some of the best coffee in the area! I would also have them try the Turkish coffee while at Brewing Market, its a unique process that isn’t seen much in the US that give you a delicious cup!

Next, I love to be outdoors so most of our exploring would be showing them all the amazing things to do outside!
I would have to make sure that they visited some of the best outdoor areas like Pike’s Peak, Garden of the Gods, Manitou Springs, Red Rock Amphitheater, the Flatirons, Horsetooth Reservoir, Laramier Square, and of course lots of excursions into the Rockies!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
-Kayla, my wife. None of this would be possible without her incredible support.

-The Crew, a group of dedicated creatives that are the most inspiring, amazing people I’ve ever met.

Website: https://www.christaylorcreates.com

Instagram: @chirstaylorcreates