Kris is a Father, World traveller, Photographer, Social Media Ninja, Environmentalist, Advisor to the UN, Author, Technologist, SXSW Advisory Board Member, BC Fashion Week Director of Photography…ok there’s a heck of a lot more that this man does…but I think you get the picture.
When I think about all that he has accomplished in his 35 years, I get exhausted but very inspired.
The one thing that never tires me out though, is reading about his latest adventures, presentations, and interviews on his blog . From documenting the plight of albatross’ on Midway Island, to giving a keynote address at the UN’s Global Youth Summit on HIV in Bamako, Mali, Kris has an intense desire to help the world be better through Social Media, Photography, and his speaking roles throughout the world. Most recently, Kris found himself in Fort McMurray, Alberta documenting the unethical cull of wolves near the Alberta Oil Sands project.
- © KK Alberta Oilsands
Kris grew up in Sacramento, CA and moved to Vancouver at the age of 17 to enjoy as he put it “the mythical 5000 feet of vertical at Whistler/Blackcomb” and stayed to be educated in Communications and Philosophy at Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia.
Besides time in Silicon Valley before the pre “Web 1.0” crash, and founding Rain City Studios, which played a huge part in the online presence of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, Kris has been on the leading edge of web development since 1999. And after watching this interview, it became even more apparent that he has done almost everything a guy could do with the world wide web.
Between all of this, Kris manages to run a highly successful fashion, portrait, event and wedding photography studio. Static Photography is based in Vancouver BC, and has captured images from not only Vancouver’s elite companies, political figures and business people, but also has shot many catalogues for some of North America’s top designers and clothing companies.
He was commissioned by National Geographic to document the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. And captured some stunning, but heartbreaking images of the disaster.
- © KK BP Oil Spill
Kris’ view on how photography contributes to his day to day really is summed up by how he describes himself. As a “Social Media Documentarian”, He has his camera with him, ready to document life as it happens.
He says “I didn’t get into Photography as a unique business opportunity, I did it because I like it. Of all the art forms I’ve ever tried, it was the first one that really clicked for me.”
Balancing the art and technical aspects of photography, are still concepts that Kris, like every photographer continues to challenge himself with, but his execution of his vision leaves nothing to be desired.
In one of the interviews we watched when researching this article, Kris said a statement regarding the photography business that really resonated with us.
“I bring income into the studio by shooting. If I’m blogging about a session, or spending time invoicing, I’m not bringing in as much income as I could, which is why I have a studio manager.”
We all can’t have a studio manager I know, but his words should help you to understand that the aspects that go into making your online presence more formidable, and the running of your business, must not ever take away from the core of what brings income into your business and must be streamlined wherever possible. The technology exists to do these things in a much more efficient manner. And spending some time investigating those technologies is necessary!
Thanks to Kris, for sharing a tiny portion of what he does and has done. I think it’s good for all of us to pause, look at what we do, and realize that it’s a big world out there! And always remember that we could be using our knowledge and skills for a greater good. Much like Kris does. We’ll continue to keep you updated with what he’s up to…Heck, we’re as curious as anybody else.
Like it, Tweet it, Share it, Pin it, +1 it!
