Mark Owens is a professional photographer based in San Diego, California. He graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in English and studied photography at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. He was profiled previously on The Krakens for his Celebrity Photography.
What makes a landscape great? That’s a difficult call as defining greatness is a subjective exercise. Everyone’s criteria are different. For me, shots that combine technical excellence and a unique perspective are good. But if a shot also transmits meaning and can conjure an emotional response, then it’s great.
What do you travel with? It depends on the destination, time of year, and client. So it varies, but the essentials are:
- MacBook Pro laptop. These days with social media being so important, turnaround time is almost immediate.
- Camera Bodies. I always have 2 in case one breaks down. I had a sensor fried by lasers in Taiwan once, so I was glad to have a backup.
- Variety of Lenses. Always a 24-70 fixed 2.8, telephoto and a fisheye. Then depending on luggage space and location I will bring others.
- Bose noise canceling headphones. Flights are noisy.
- Flights are cold.
- iPad filled with movies. Flights are long.
Do you ever get time for yourself? Unfortunately not that often. Typically if I’m on the road with a musician and we have a few hours free it’s spent editing photos or sleeping. But if the schedule permits sometimes I will fly out early to shoot and enjoy it. (For Hawaii I went out a week early).
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All photos copyright Mark Owens.