Meet Jake Burchmore | Photographer/Filmmaker

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

Hi Jake, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
Similar to balancing school and play, I’ve been balancing work and play simultaneously. To me, the meaning of life is to play. To find something you like to do and learn how to express yourself in a creative way. With that comes a responsibility to work hard in order to fulfill those pure moments of life. Growing up in Telluride, CO taught me the importance of the environment as I became more engaged in outdoor recreation. Skiing has always been my outlet from the mundane of school/work; however, my parents always reassured me of the fact that “working hard will allow you to afford the things you love to do”. A work life balance comes in many forms. Only later in life did I discover how much recreating in the outdoors offers a balanced lifestyle, both mentally and physically. I think about all of this whenever I am feeling imbalanced (i.e. not sleeping well at night, feeling alone, unmotivated, searching for purpose). I typically use the outdoors to recalibrate my system through skiing, climbing or biking and the teeter-totter of life seems to tilt back to center. Until one side becomes heavy again and the process continues… As a teenager, I used to be afraid of imbalance because I wanted everything to be perfect for some reason; but now I realize that I can only change the things I can control and it’s about the choices and actions I take that can help manage balance. Getting work done is more rewarding when you can look forward to being active, hanging out with friends who can all relate to this. Fortunately, I’ve found a way to work and play simultaneously with my photo/film career. Nowadays, I am either traveling for work or editing from home on my computer. Overall, I would say in order to fulfill your goals you must surrender to perfection and the teeter-totter will eventually become a pendulum.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am an outdoors photographer, filmmaker, editor from Telluride, CO who can blend action and storytelling in meaningful ways. During the early days of my career, I focused more on creating beautiful photographs of landscapes. However, that began to give me anxiety because I couldn’t see much of an avenue to success with that. I felt the urge to be different with the art I was producing. My first mentorship opportunities came from Ryan Bonneau, Brett Schreckengost and Ben Knight while I was in high school. They provided some knowledge and tools to help get me started and I quickly learned how to do the basics. Though, in my college days I felt like I was lacking something crucial to my growth as a creative. Despite having my landscape work featured in galleries, I wasn’t fulfilled. Stubbornly, I decided to leave skiing behind after competing in it for 7 years and I went to Lake Forest College in Illinois to study and play soccer. Here, I found out the things I do not want to do, which is a valuable life lesson. Soon thereafter, I transferred to Western Colorado University in Gunnison, CO and the rest is history. I got involved in some great writing and film classes that gave me insights on how I can go beyond just a beautiful image. I ended up studying in the Environment & Sustainability and Business Administration programs and was able to amplify a holistic education by studying abroad as well. Personally, the most valuable class I enrolled in was a summer course with Dr. Scott Borden called “Personal Branding” because it gave me the tools, insights and freedom to choose where I wanted to go with my work whether it was a day or 5 years into the future. Overall, I am most proud of this past year working on several documentaries that have meaning. I am excited to share those with the world and see how I can do better with this year’s projects and objectives.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Rhino District is awesome and has some really unique art/murals. I also love roaming up and down 16th St, going to the movie theatre, watching Denver sports teams (Broncos mostly) and the highlands area has some great brunch (Sassafras’s).

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Kevin Nichol’s – Vail, CO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1TrBQGX7oQ

Luke Mehall – Durango, CO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lq0miM1McKg&t=2s

Website: https://burchmorephoto.darkroom.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jakeburchmore/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/burchmorephoto/

Other: https://vimeo.com/burchmorephoto

Image Credits
Jake Burchmore