About Life and Landscape Visual Imagery
and Andrew T. Barton
The names says it all really: Life and Landscape Visual Imagery—photographs that tell stories of our lives in the landscape in which we live. That’s my thing!
It is so much my thing that a few years ago I returned to school and earned a degree in geography from the University of British Columbia. I studied a mix of earth sciences, social sciences, and humanities, and focused in on topics like natural resource management and environmental impact assessment, and ideas like sense of place and phenomenology. Why? Well, I wanted to understand my subjects in a deeper way than just by looking at them through a viewfinder. If I understand the mechanics of a landscape and the philosophy behind a group of people, I can make stronger images and tell more powerful stories. Because that’s what good photography is—storytelling. And, I believe that photographs and stories can change the world.
What about me then? My background is a combination of artist, adventurer, and technician. I have been using a camera to record journeys and events since my first camping trip as a small boy, and have worked as portrait, wedding, and sports photographer. My images have been used in advertising material, as editorial content, and hang as fine art. I am also a lover of music and jam with a close circle of friends whenever I can. Canada is my home now and when I first arrived here in my twenties, I quickly fell in love with the mountains and rivers of British Columbia. Since then I have guided raft trips in four countries, and climbed and hiked over countless mountain ranges. My first formal training was in electronics and, prior to committing to a vocation as a research and documentary photographer, I had a long career in information technology and providing internet services.
Why Andrew T. Barton? Not because I am particularly attached to my middle name or am feeling pretentious. It is just that there are a few Andrew Barton’s on the Net and a couple of them are photographers! I am just trying to make sure you find this Andrew Barton.