BLACKRAPID SPOTLIGHT: Trevor Lyden

Trevor Lyden

Trevor Lyden Photography
Adventure, sports, and lifestyle photographer

I grew up in Juneau, Alaska. A relatively small city with no roads in or out of town. After graduating high school I moved to the lower 48 states so that I could explore and take as many road trips as possible. After finishing college in Oregon I became interested in photography and started bringing my camera with me while doing the sports that I loved. One thing led to another and now I have my dream career traveling the world photographing amazing athletes in beautiful locations.

Do You Have A Good Tip For Us?

People and objects move fast, don’t be afraid to really crank up your shutter speed to capture your subject in as much detail as possible.

Edge of a Cliff and Edge of My Comfort Zone

Every year I travel to a small town in the middle of Utah to shoot my favorite event of the year. The Red Bull Rampage freeride mountain biking contest. This event is invite only with roughly 15 riders competing each year. The athletes spend a week on the steep desert slopes building the most impossible mountain bike lines. They usually consist of massive jumps, mind-blowing cliff drops, and steep technical riding sections.

In order to properly photograph the action, I need to put myself where they are, and that usually means standing precariously on a cliff with no less than a 50 foot free fall below me.

I’m not afraid of heights, but being on the cliff with thousands of dollars of camera gear strapped to your body is a bit of a nerve wracking experience. I usually do my best to dig one hand into the rock face while sticking my other hand out with a fisheye lens to capture the size of the landscape. Every year I have a few slips which rattle my brain and make me question what i’m doing, however each year I keep going back and looking forward to it more and more.

The moral of the story is never be afraid to put yourself on the line to capture the image that you want. Just maybe, take a bit of care while you’re doing it.

What’s In Your Bag?

My bag is an f-stop Tilopa. The most rugged and durable camera bag that I can find.

Inside I typically have two Canon bodies (they vary depending on situation), a 15mm fisheye, 24-70mm 2.8, 50mm 1.2, 70-200mm 2.8 and a 300mm 2.8. I always keep plenty of spare cards and batteries and usually have lens wipes and rocket blower as well.

Depending on the shoot i’ll use my BlackRapid Double Breathe dual harness or a BlackRapid Curve strap.

Follow Trevor Lyden

Instagram – instagram.com/trevorlyden/

Website – trevorlydenphotography.com