Welcome to the “Why I Became a Nomadic Photographer” series, Part 1. Here I share my top 3 reasons for choosing the nomadic lifestyle over a sticks and bricks base along with my initial expectations for how many places I could photograph in a year. Lastly this post addresses the reality of this lifestyle for a photographer.
Unlike many videos and posts that glamorize full time travel, I share my real life challenges of life on the road.
Let’s begin by looking at my top 3 reasons for pursuing full time travel.
Reason 1: Pursuit of a Portfolio
The primary reason I chose to become a nomadic photographer was to accomplish a goal of expanding my image portfolio to include nature and travel images of beautiful places in every state in the United States.
I named this my “Mountain to Sea Photo Journey”
A contributing factor to my decision to go full time was that fact I am older and needed to photograph certain locations while I was physically able to do so now, not years later.
Reason 2: Searching for Other places to Live in the United States
The secondary reason I decided to travel full time was to explore new places to live in the U.S.
I have spent most of my life in Florida but have also lived in Colorado and North Carolina. Although I love all three states, I did not feel I had yet found a place to call home.
Maybe I had moved to the wrong cities within these states, I was not sure. I just knew I needed to spend time exploring other places to gain a better understanding of what I was looking for in a home base.
Reason 3: I was a pet mom
Another important reason I decided to travel full time instead of making short trips for photography was because of my cat, Boo.
As a young cat, Boo showed up in my yard and decided he was home. It was a couple months later before I learned he lived in a nearby home but was being beaten. Although I was not in the market for another cat at the time, I could not turn my back on him. I had to find a way to travel that included traveling safely with a cat.
Note: None of the above reasons including traveling for the RV lifestyle, my focus was and still is based on photography.
Expectations versus Reality
Reason One- Portfolio Growth
Initially, I thought, by traveling full time, I would be able to photograph a large portion of this country in a short period of time.
The reality was it was much more time consuming to constantly travel and photograph places than I had expected. Also towing a travel trailer greatly slowed my travels.
Here are some of pros and cons of trying to develop a portfolio as a full time traveler. By no means does this list address all the issues of a full time nomadic lifestyle.
Pros
Cons
To learn about the Pros and Cons of traveling as a photographer in an RV, be sure to check out : RV Living as a Photographer.
Examples of places I have photographed to date:
Oregon
Wyoming
To see images from all the places I have photographed today please visit: Portfolio.
Goal 2-Deciding Where to Live
Initially, I thought traveling to different cities and states, would help me find that picture perfect town. The reality is it does not exist. However by traveling full time I learned what size cities I was comfortable in, what amenities I needed, and what types of terrain most inspired me as a photographer.
Pros
Cons
Goal 3- Traveling with my Cat
My expectation was that traveling with a cat would be challenging initially then become easier. This was only partially true. I was not prepared for certain ongoing challenges such as how to keep my cat comfortable in the RV in climates subject to rapidly changing temperatures. For instance, it may be 40 outside when I leave in the morning for a shoot but up to 90 by afternoon. Do I turn the heat on or the ac?
Actually there are too many issues to cover related to pet travel that I have decided to start a category in this blog called Boo Bits all about traveling with a cat. Its focus will be on issues with caring for cats when on the road.
Please check back by spring of 2025 for posts.
Pros
Cons
Overall Thoughts on Full Time Travel as a Photographer
Full time travel has allowed me to photograph a number of great locations that would not have been possible otherwise. However, I now question if I have sacrificed quantity for quality with my images.
I have discovered beautiful lakes, waterfalls, mountain ranges and desert locations mostly only known by locals.
A benefit of full time travel is that I have acquired skills and knowledge of how to best photograph many diverse landscapes and terrains. Photographing mountain ranges is very different than photographing beach sunrises.
My best images are produced when I know a location well and photograph it a number of times which is in opposition to photographing new locations constantly. Again, this goes to the question of am I after quantity or quality?
The challenges and tasks associated with living full time on the road as a solo traveler took significantly more time than I expected.
Cell and Internet access were terrible at many places making it difficult to work and research future photo spots. ( Before Starlink)
Weather, in particular wildfires, were a constant and major problem at many of my western photo destinations. Because of this I left a number of amazing photo locations with few, if any good images.
What I would do differently?
In hindsight, I believe I could have done a much better job photographing destinations if I had kept my photo travels to a smaller radius. For instance, instead of trying to photograph everything from Arizona to Oregon in a 6 month time frame, I would have been better served staying in Arizona and possible Utah for that same period of time.
I should have scheduled blocks of time for tasks such as vehicle maintenance, website upkeep and other non destination specific chores instead of trying to fit everything in while at photo destinations.
Related to my desire to check out different cities as a possible home base, there is nothing I would do differently. Having extended time in many different areas of the country helped me narrow down what I need in a future home base.
Lastly, I should have reached out to local photographers in the areas I was planning to visit for insider tips and networking. Relying on information on the internet was not always reliable.
I would love to hear from fellow photographers who are also traveling a significant part of the year on what works and does not work for you.
final Thoughts on Being a Nomadic Photographer
It is my belief that road travel is still a great way to photograph this country but maybe not full time.
Speaking of things I would do differently, I would also travel in a different type of camper. Although the Lance travel trailer was a good camper, it was not made for full time travel nor did it meet some of my photography needs.
While on the topic of RV’s, be sure to read why I chose an RV for my full-time travels and also my thoughts on what I now consider to be the Perfect Photographer’s RV. (is there such a thing?)
Overall, the best parts of nomadic travel so far have been meeting so many amazing and interesting people and the exposures to the different cultures in the United States, not the photos.
As always, thanks for joining me today!