Meet Jeffrey Tadlock | Landscape Photographer

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

Hi Jeffrey, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think calculated risk is an important element to both life and career paths. One should not be careless, but a calculated risk, one that has thought, planning, and a goal in mind is worth taking. I think this applies to both life and career decisions.

In life, some of my formative moments have been decisions with risk involved. Post-college I made the choice to quit my job and pack up and head west, living out of a car for months while I backpacked and rockclimbed through the western states. This leap helped me meet many interesting people along the way and form a foundational amount of self-confidence since that time.

From moves cross-country, to career leaps, to starting my own photography business – risk is always a factor. But in my mind, these moments of risk have led to lots of success.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am a professional photographer, with an emphasis on landscape photography.

There are several things that make me excited about landscape photography. One, is simply sharing images of amazing locations with people that might not be able to see locations for themselves. Whether it be places they wouldn’t travel to or weather conditions that most wouldn’t go out in.

Next, I enjoy collaborating with people and helping them elevate their own photography. I find helping teach others more about their camera or compositions or light is very fulfilling. To this end I have led small workshops on camera basics and lighting, to one of my more recent endeavors – a YouTube channel focused on landscape photography and helping give people a look at what goes into landscape photography.

Getting to where I am at has not been easy, and there is still a long road ahead. This path is not without risks and challenges, but I think the reward at the end is well worth it. As a creative, it is easy to question if your work is good enough or after a series of rejections become discouraged. But no road is without hurdles, and I think if you keep the end in sight it makes continuing to move forward a little easier. Celebrate the small successes and keep moving forward!

As for lessons along the way – there is more to making a career as a creative than just being creative. There is knowing and understanding business. From accounting, understanding P&L, to marketing, to sales – these all factor into your success.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
(Note, I’m not living in AZ currently, but I am going to answer this from a Tucson perspective as if I was hosting a landscape photography workshop in the area).

There are so many amazing things to experience in the Southwest, I am a desert rat at heart!

If I want to show off the best of the Tucson area, I’d start with a day trip through Saguaro National Park East. We’d start early in the morning so we could catch the sunrise on Cactus Forest Drive, taking advantage of several of the overlooks to capture stunning photos of the desert. For people new to the desert, this is a great location to get your first introduction to what makes the desert an awesome environment. We’d spend many hours here, including some hiking on the Cactus Forest trail as well, and of course, some time to explore Javalina Rocks in the morning light.

We’d likely head to lunch at Guadalara Grill Fiesta on Kolb Road.

We’d head back out to Saguaro National Park East for sunset light that evening, likely to my “secret” spot for sunset photos in the park.

Another day we’d head out to Vail to explore Cienega Creek Nature Preserve. There are several cool things to explore out that way. I’m always up watching a train cross the train trestle with the great mountain views in the background. Sunrises are great from the upper canyon trails in the area. And then as the sun gets higher in the sky, head down into the canyon itself which is like an oasis in the desert. There are a couple of interesting surprises to explore if you poke around enough.

From there, we’d stop off for a late lunch in Montgomery’s Grill in Vail before heading back into Tucson.

Back in Tucson, we’d hit up the Tucson Museum of Art and then El Minuto Cafe for lunch! After lunch, we’d head over to the Center for Creative Photography on the UofA campus to check out their latest exhibit.

It’s not a trip to Tucson without heading up the Catalina Highway onto Mt. Lemmon. There are several photo opportunities and one can spend a good chunk of the day exploring along the highway. Then we’d stop by Firetruck Brewing East on the way back into town.

The next day we’d head to the west side of Tucson and visit the Desert Museum, Saguaro West, and Gate’s Pass at sunset.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have a couple of key influencers that have helped me along the way. First, my parents. They were always supportive of my ideas and risks I took in the past. Even when I quit my job to travel west, they were supportive. I am sure they were skeptical of my plan, but they were supportive nonetheless. Whether it be that or my leap into a photography business, they were always supportive. That level of support is always helpful when taking risk, it helps give you a foundation.

The second person is my Uncle Mike. He is the one that really gave me my love of hiking, backpacking, and seeing extraordinary places in the backcountry. Through amazing backpacking trips in the Grand Canyon or Smoky Mountains to the inspiration to learn how to rock climb, these experiences all helped give me self-confidence and the sense of freedom to make decisions that bucked the safe, traditional path.

Website: https://jeffreytadlock.com/

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

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/jeffrey-tadlock-landscape-photography/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JeffreyTadlock

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeffreytadlockphotography

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-KkTS-mub4DBqAuEWzI-Ag