Daily Inspiration: Meet Ryan Taylor

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Taylor.

Hi Ryan, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Growing up, I dabbled in a lot of art mediums such as drawing, painting and fiction writing. Creativity was always a part of my upbringing.

Fast forward to high school and I took two semesters of film and digital photography. These classes really opened up what using a camera could offer. After graduating in 2015 and unsure of my future career path, I began visiting my local parks and trails with a Canon Rebel T3.

These early experiences further showed what variety subjects I could capture. Birds, flowers and winding paths in the woods took notice to me.

As the years went on, I began to hone down my techniques and skills through constant trial and error, and eventually focused on nature photography.

In 2019 I made a serious leap into pursuing this as a part-time professional career. Art galleries, festivals and fairs and other opportunities went into my schedule. This hobby now became my passion and life purpose.

To this day, I am still traveling as much as I can with the camera and my love for nature has only grown with age.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Overall, I tend to look at the bright side or silver lining of my career. It isn’t 100% how I thought things would turn out.

One specific case is my YouTube channel which I have (mostly) posted weekly for about seven years now. I knew that the long game was for me with videomaking as I don’t really make videos to feed an algorithm; no clickbait titles or goofy thumbnails, let alone a boisterous personality too. I am just being myself and sharing what I believe is worth speaking about.

As for struggles, the growth has been steady and slow in regards to YouTube. I have just shy of 400 subscribers and a few regular commenters on each video. It could always be more I guess but I appreciate any kind of engagement that shows up!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I consider myself an artist working in the mediums of images, video, writing and sound. A perhaps less pretentious way of saying this is that I am a photographer and videographer. While images are my first and foremost priority, videos and podcasting have taken on a big role in what I create.

I specialize and am known for primarily photographing in Ohio, whether that be landscapes, wildlife or anything in between. I love the Buckeye State and have lived here all of my life. Despite what cliches some will say, I see the beauty and diversity all around me. There is so much to photograph and so much I’ve yet to see.

I am most proud of carving a niche in which I mostly stick to one region of the United States, however not exactly subject overall. My work consists of nature and being outdoors, however I may photograph a bird one day and then a macro image of a wildflower the next. Some days I jump around from one type of subject to the next. I guess this is how my brain operates best on a creative scale.

It doesn’t really set me apart as many have embraced this idea but I don’t focus too much on gear. The camera is a tool to achieve an end goal of producing a photograph or video. I still use older equipment like DSLRs or film that still work great all these years later.

We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
I think it just my formative outdoor experiences. I remember hiking with my family a few times growing up, or fishing together at a lake. We also used to go to Indiana to ride four wheelers around some sand dunes. The adventurous side of me probably came about from these moments in my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ryanltaylor.com
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@ryanltaylorphoto
• Other: https://www.ryanltaylor.blog