Community member Russell Pearson (russellpearson) is fascinated by travel and works for an international airline getting all the great employee benefits! He is a travel photographer and has been featured in the Lonely Planet Traveler magazine! But he doesn’t want to stop there, his ambition is to get on the cover! We are positive he will reach his goals. Go get it, Russell!

Tell us a bit about yourself, how do you describe your photography style?
I’m Russell, I am 43 years old, born and raised in England until I moved to the Netherlands at the age of 19. Fascinated by travel I started working for the Royal Dutch Airlines, the KLM, which has fueled my urge to discover new places.

In one sentence what has photography done for you in your life?
Photography has taught me to put my camera aside once in a while and just enjoy the moment.

When did you start taking photos and what inspired you to get started?
I started taking photo’s back in 2008 with a Canon film camera, now I use Nikon, the D750 to be exact. I always remember looking at the Lonely Planet travel guides and wanting to be on the cover one day. I’ve managed to make it into the Lonely Planet Traveller Magazine but my big ambition is still to be on the cover of Lonely Planet.

What has been your favorite shoot and why?
I have photographed so many beautiful and special places but Bagan is one of the most magical experiences I have encountered. Armed with only a flash light at 5 am in the morning looking for a temple which wasn’t on any map, I arrived just in time. The gate keeper, a young boy opened the doors for a small fee and I made my way up to the vantage point to set up my camera. As the sun rose, the 1000’s of temples arose out of the morning mist, an amazing moment.

Do you remember a difficult photo shoot session? What happened?
The most difficult shoot I had was the Snow Monkeys in Japan, these animals are all over the place. I thought they would be subdued by the hot temperatures of the bath but during feeding time these guys are all over the place. In this case, patience really is a virtue, even if its -5 degrees.

What do you carry in your camera bag?
I always carry my Nikon D750, 18-35mm and 85mm 1.8 lens along with a small reflector and extra SD cards.

Do you have a favorite location and time of the day to shoot?
I don’t have a favorite location, I have been lucky enough to visit many amazing places in the world, and every time I am overwhelmed by the beauty and can’t wait to capture the feeling of a country in my photos.

Can you share three tips with your fellow photographers?

1. YouTube is your best friend. There are so many tutorials these days on photography, you can learn so much more than in any classroom.

2. Trust your own photography. Sometimes it doesn’t always fall into a certain category but as long as your happy with what you do then that is the most important thing.

3. You can be a super technical photographer but sometimes being at the right place at the right time is all it takes.

Please share one of your favorite photos with us with a short tutorial:
This photo called ”SNOW MONKEY” was taken in the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park in Japan. It was taken at around 3 pm and I was using a D7000 at the time and a 18-135mm lens. Since I saw a documentary on these animals I have wanted to visit them. Last January I got the chance to visit them. This young macaque was obsessed with my lens, the perfect moment for me to capture this image. I did a little bit of post sharpening and that’s it. The image was great straight out of the camera so much wasn’t needed.

Please share some thoughts on your ViewBug experience as a photographer!
Viewbug is a great community which brings fellow photographers together. I love the fact that you can enter photography competitions and be judged also by your fellow photographers. It is a growing community which I am proud to be part of.

Cannot get enough of Russell's photos? Check his profile and Instagram out!