Meet Jason Fazio | Landscape Photographer

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

Hi Jason, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
The thought process behind starting my own business was simple. So many times, you hear people tell you to “Chase your dreams,” or “Live every day like it’s your last,” or “Live life to the fullest.” I simply decided that’s what I was going to do. I chose landscape photography over a six-figure job because it is where my passion lies. Chasing sunrises, sunsets, and the seasons; what could be better? What better way is there to make a living then to help others see the value in and treasure each day’s sunrise?

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My business is “a love” first followed by being a business second. That is extremely important to me. The minute I feel like I am out in the field “working,” I’ll know there need to be some changes.

As far as my business itself goes, I, like many landscape photographers, sell prints and offer training. That is not entirely unique. What is a bit more unique about me and my prints is the style in which I offer them. I offer up Limited Edition, stamped, numbered, and signed prints. These L.E. Prints will never be printed again once they hit a total of 30 L.E. prints printed. A step further from that, I’ve recently introduced a line of One-Of-One Prints. As the name indicates, I will only ever print one copy of these. Not even myself will have a copy.

My other focus is training. Now, there are plenty of free educational “tools” available to the inspiring photographer such as online videos, tutorials, readings, etc. Those are great and I highly encourage their use, though they do not hold a candle to hands-on experience. That is where I come in. You can watch another do something or read about another doing something and think you know it well, but when it comes time to actually make the decision about a camera setting, lens selection, or composition, not much beats hands-on experience. From composition selection to camera settings and all-the-way through to post-processing, the act of making the decision is where, in my opinion, the most knowledge is absorbed and that is what I offer.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If I were to have a friend visit for a week’s long trip, I’d start out the first day with breakfast down at the Coffee Cup Cafe in Monument. After breakfast, we’d walk the shops downtown and then head into Colorado Springs hitting the highlights of the area like The Garden Of The Gods, The Cog Rail, and maybe the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, a pretty ambitious first day. The next day, we’d walk the streets of Manitou before heading back towards Monument with a short evening stop at the Briargate Promenade for some Cocoa from Panera on a cool evening. The next few days would be all road-trip, camping, and some photography! Yes, of course, I’d have to bring along the camera; this is Colorado!

We’d start out in Monument and head towards Woodland Park, but we’d take the scenic route over Mt. Herman Rd to Rampart Range Road. I think the entire route would look something like this: Monument – way down to the San Juans area – up to the Colorado National Monument – over to Glenwood Springs and Aspen – shoot up to Grand Lake and Trail Ridge Road before coming back down to where it all began, Monument. It’d be one full week, but it’d provide for some great Colorado views!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I, honestly, owe a shoutout to so many; the list is truly long. I draw a lot of inspiration from local photographers I shoot with, namely Candayce Abney, Bob Falcone a.k.a. Hiking Bob, Sunniye Buesing, Daniel Forster of Daniel Forster Photos, Ben Huseman of Benji’s Travel Photos, Jae Jarret of Profound Elements Photography, Lars Leber of Lars Leber Photography, and Peter Schwepker of Schwepker Arts. Along with that, I draw inspiration from photographers I see on social media, meet in the field, and especially those that come to me for instruction. No matter what level we are at, we all gain from each other’s attention to detail, persistence, dedication, and/or willingness to learn.

Along those lines, I’d have to send an individual Shout-out to James Van Hoy. I watch him when we shoot together. I’m often amazed when I see his images, especially the ones I watched him shoot. I love his passion for the composition he’s working on; so deliberate. I have a tendency to go to a location, look for, and get the shot in my head. James reminds me to look around, appreciate the small things, and be creative.

Website: www.JasonFazioPhotography.com

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Image Credits
Jason Fazio