A photograph of a lance travel trailer 2185 dry camping in Cottonwood, Arizona

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, my initial expectations for photography, and the reality of this lifestyle.

There are many posts and videos that glamorize full time photography travel so let me share the realities of this life. 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 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 also lived in Colorado and North Carolina. Although I loved both states, I did not feel I had yet found a new 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 decided I would rescue him from his abusive home and become his new Mom. Once I took him in, he became incredibly bonded to me. After all he had been through, I could not stand the thought of leaving him for weeks at a time with pet sitters.

It was decided, he would go with me on my travels.

Note: I did not decide to travel full time for the nomadic/RV lifestyle. My focus was and is still purely for photography purposes.

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 an RV 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

  • Ability to photograph many places in a short period of time.
  • Discovery of great photo places along a route that may not have been found without driving from place to place.
  • When photography conditions at a destination were good, it was easier to extend stays.
  • Road travel made it possible to have more photography gear with me at all times.

Cons

  • Photographing unfamiliar places and terrains was more challenging than I expected.
  • Missed the interaction and support of being with my photographer buddies.
  • I dd not always have the time or internet access to know a new location well enough to create the best images.
  • Constant travel took time away from in the field photo time.
  • Traveling at times was so exhausting that I would be too tired to photograph both sunrise and sunsets at destinations.

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:

A horizontal photograph of the Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport, Oregon

Oregon

A photo of Canary Springs In Yellowstone National Park with mist from the Upper Terrace Drive in Mammoth Hot Springs

Wyoming

Here is a link to my current 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

  • Learned that I desired easy access to amenities such as good grocery stores. No hour long drives.
  • Discovered what types of environments I was most comfortable in for extended periods of time. (talking about weeks versus days)
  • Gained the ability to evaluate the benefits and downsides of different parts of the country and city sizes.

Cons

  • There are no cons. In fact I believe everyone should rent an RV and live in an area for at least a month before considering a permanent move.

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 in reality. I was not prepared for certain ongoing challenges such as how to handle rapidly changing temperatures in the RV while I was out in the field photographing.

In fact, there are too many issues to cover here that I have decided to start a category in this blog called Boo Bits all about traveling with a cat. Focus will be on issues RV. Please check back by spring of 2024 for posts.

Pros

  • Boo is with me most of the time.
  • He has benefitted greatly from the stimulus of new places. (He easily got very bored at home) .
  • The companionship of a pet when traveling solo is wonderful.
  • He loves walking on a leash. This was not something I could do at my previous home due to loose dogs and a neighbors cat.

Cons

  • Constant worries about him getting lost. He escaped a number of times but always came home.
  • Many times I struggled to keep my RV at safe temperatures when I was in the field photographing.
  • Boo requires a commitment of time daily.
  • Although Boo accepts travel, he does not love it. Therefore I limit how far I travel at any given time so he does not go long periods of time without eating, doing his business and relaxing.
  • He is much more prone to dangers from wildlife. For instance, while on a walk, he once tried to grab a rattlesnake that was under my car.

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 at times.

The challenges and tasks associated with living full time on the road take significantly more time than I expected. This was particularly true since I travel solo.

My best images are produced when I know a location well and photograph it a number of times which directly conflicts with frequent traveling to new destinations.

Cell and Internet access were terrible at many places making it difficult to work and research future photo spots.

Weather, in particular wildfires, were a constant and major problem at many of my 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.

There is nothing I would do differently as it relates to my reasons to travel full time in search of a new place to live or as it relates to traveling with my cat. Full time travel was the right decision.

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 very 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. Also, in the future, I will incorporate the things I would do differently into future travel plans.

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!