Jake Stangel: Capturing the nuances of life in photos

SINGAPORE — Most people would agree being a travel photographer is a pretty sweet deal: Isn’t it like going on a holiday except with fancier camera gear? Not quite.

“The most misunderstood aspect of travel photography is that the assignments are all one big vacation,” said travel photographer Jake Stangel, who shoots for publications such as Afar, Wilder, Travel And Leisure, and magazines such as Dwell and Frankie. “It’s a lot of 12- to 14-hour days, a lot (of it is) on the go. There are a lot of tantalising moments when you’re in these amazing, far-flung places, but you can’t quite engage deeply in anything because the schedule is pretty packed.” Named one of America’s young photographers to look out for, the 28-year-old hopes to visit the Colorado River and put his skills to good use depicting the fresh water crisis in America’s West.

“I’d like to travel down the Colorado River from top to bottom to tell the story of America’s total ignorance of drought conditions and global warming,” he said. “We are usurping our finite amount of water from future generations.”

Q: How did you become a travel photographer?

A: I became a travel photographer through my relationship with places. I’m an avid cyclist and, in my younger years, I completed three cross-country bicycle trips across America, from the East Coast to the West Coast. In these trips, I really had to process and understand why I was attracted to certain environments, what makes “place”, what the nuances of the travel experience are, how to capture those nuances. That’s my greatest love in photography and something I still try to capture to this day.

Q: Do you think mediums such as Instagram and Pinterest make people think it’s easy to do your job?

A: I do like Instagram and how it has allowed everyone to share their visual experiences, but I don’t have any illusions that Instagram photography and higher-level photography are two very different beings.

Q: What is your travel gear like?

A: I have a Mamiya 7 with an 80mm lens, sometimes a Mamiya RZ67 and no lights. I bring a small amount of clothes.

Q: Has anything gone awry while on assignment?

A: Nothing too bad yet! No lost cameras, no lost film, no meltdowns, no missed flights. That’s part of being a professional though — having backup plans and equipment in place, and being on point at all times.

Q: Since you’ve biked thrice across America, what are some cities you think more travellers should know about and visit?

A: Good question. I love Austin, Texas. Estes Park, Colorado. The Rockies. Boise, Idaho. Savannah, Georgia. Bloomington, Indiana.

Q: What elements make a good travel photo to you?

A: If you can step inside the photo.SERENE LIM