Pasting a @jr piece #unframedproject #jrartist (at Greenwich Hotel)

5 of 5 of the #blackandwhitechallenge

Nearly 5 years ago, I quit my job and relocated to NY from CA with hopes of becoming a photographer and filmmaker. Back then, the Holy Grail would have been to land an assignment for National Geographic, but I’ve since learned that I don’t necessarily need to shoot for Nat Geo to do meaningful work and tell powerful stories. In fact, one of my favorite photographers told me that he actually turned down his first assignment for Nat Geo. To be perfectly honest, I’m not even entirely sure if I could handle the pressure of such an assignment, and the thought of shooting 40,000 - 60,000 images for a single assignment is a bit overwhelming…

This year I had the incredible experience of being a photographer in residence onboard an expedition ship in the Arctic. I absolutely loved it because I got to explore such a beautiful and remote part of our planet doing what I love, and it was a meaningful and transformative experience because it helped me understand our fragile world a bit better and the importance of safeguarding the future of our earth.

I’m beyond excited to embark on the ship again in February for a month long residency in Antarctica, especially since Antarctica has been on my bucket list ever since I did a report on it in 4th grade. It is also my last and final continent to visit.

What kind of experiences transform and bring meaning to your life?

I nominate @andrewshepherd for the black and white challenge. I love working with Andrew not only because he is an overall wonderful human, but because his work is always unexpected, beautiful, and solid.

#thisarcticlife #neverstopexploring #notgeo

4 of 5 of the #blackandwhitechallenge

Well I suppose they don’t call it a challenge for nothing. A lot of images I thought would work well in black and white simply just don’t work, and there’s no point in forcing the issue. So I dug deep into the archives and found one of my favorite black and white images from Mt. Etna, Sicily. It was the middle of the winter, very cold, and there was so much snow on the roads I wasn’t entirely sure if our car would make it up to base camp. We ended up making it and I looked up and saw this beautiful picture of 3 people hiking in perfect formation on a ridge line towards the summit of Mt. Etna, and the rest is history. This is one of my all time favorite images that I’ve ever captured, for so many reasons.

I’m breaking the rules and nominating both @miahklein and @waterproject for the black and white challenge. I owe a lot of thanks to Miah for his guidance and for helping me along the way when I decided that I wanted to pursue photography professionally. I wouldn’t be where I am today had it not of been for people like Miah. I’ve since passed on some of that knowledge to @waterproject, who is part of the next generation of up and coming photographers

#payitforward

3 of 5 of the #blackandwhitechallenge

This is a portrait I took of Neil onboard our expedition ship in the Arctic this past summer. I looked out the window and saw Neil smoking a pipe by himself, out in the cold, on the port side of the ship. I immediately knew I had to get a picture of him, so I ran outside and captured one of my favorite images from my residency. In the Arctic, often times the most memorable moments occur when you least expect it.

I nominate @leifography, a fellow New Yorker who I connected with onboard our ship in the Arctic

#thisarcticlife

2 of 5 of the #blackandwhitechallenge

It’s not very often that you get a chance to film and photograph NYC Ballet dancers on a NYC rooftop overlooking Central Park, with direct views of the top of the Empire State building. This was one of those days, and it was absolutely magical, breathtaking, and surreal. That’s why I love NYC so much; it’s full of magic, wonderful surprises, and extraordinary, talented people. There is beauty all around us.

I nominate @jen_trahan for the black and white challenge, which is quite fitting because this photo was taken by Jen Trahan for @reubenhernandez studios (at New York City Ballet)

1 of 5 of the #blackandwhitechallenge (5 B&W images / 5 days)

Thanks to my friend and fellow expedition Kayak Master, Randall Tate, for the nomination. This is an unpublished photo from a series that I started over 2 years ago. I reside in the vibrant, artistic, and diverse community of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which is home to one of the largest Satmar Hasidic communities in the world. Satmar is a Hasidic sect originating from the city of Satu Mare, Transylvania, where it was founded in 1905.

I nominate @mtmorgie for the black and white challenge. Matty took a few 35 mm B&W rolls of our recent Half Dome expedition and they turned out stellar! If you accept, post 1 B&W photo each day for 5 days and nominate someone each time to join in. (at Williamsburg Bklyn)

Exploring Storm King with @mtmorgie (at Storm King Sculpture Park)

A letter to my friend and former bandmate, Andrew McMahon (@amnthewilderness):

Dear Drew,

I’m so incredibly proud of you for everything that you’ve accomplished, from playing sold out shows across the country (and world), to being nominated for an Emmy, to bringing a beautiful daughter into this world; I could go on and on…

Watching you play a sold out show in New York City with hundreds of people singing along to your songs (and some of the songs that you and I used to perform together) at the top of their lungs was absolutely mesmerizing and moving. I truly felt your heart and soul, and the powerful energy of everyone in that room. I’m honored and lucky to have had the opportunity to share the stage with you. 

Thank you for such a beautiful and memorable night. Keep moving all of us with your music.

Your Friend,
Reuben

(at New York City)

This past summer I had the wonderful opportunity to observe and photograph polar bears in the Arctic for my first time. The mother and cub pictured here was actually my first polar bear sighting, and I remember this moment quite vividly and will probably never forget it. Seeing polar bears in the wild transformed me, and made me truly realize how fragile our environment is.

I want to share some text that was posted on the @natgeo Instagram feed yesterday:

“Polar bears have come to represent the Arctic ecosystem and we look to them as an indicator of the health of the polar region they roam. Due to human-caused climate change, the Arctic is currently experiencing the warmest air temperatures in four centuries, and sea ice losses in the summer of 2012 broke all previous records. Polar bears are feeling the pressure; their populations are declining in Churchill, Manitoba in direct correlation with the loss of sea ice. The sea ice freezes later each fall and melts earlier each spring which means less time for hunting on sea ice. We must act today to change our carbon-emitting habits. It is estimated that if current climate trends are correct, two-thirds of the polar bear population could disappear by 2050. All the creatures from the top of the food chain to the bottom who are specially adapted to life on ice depend on humans to act now to lessen their carbon emissions that have caused these changes. What daily decisions are you making to reduce your carbon footprint?”

#thisarcticlife #saveourseaice 

An unpublished image of Flåm, Norway - It’s an interesting process looking back at old images and finding something that didn’t catch your eye the first time around

#thisarcticlife #adventuretillwedie

So hood

#hoodonhood #hoodrat #adventuretillwedie

I’ve enjoyed bouncing off walls ever since I was in junior high, literally #peterparkour #selfportrait (at Williamsburg Bklyn)

I captured this photo using a tripod and intervalometer. I wish I had a behind the scenes photo to show for all of my effort but I was by myself. A bunch of bystanders got a free show and snapped some behind the scenes photos.

California knows how to party (at Half Moon Bay, Northern California)

Into the Wild (at San Francisco, California)

I’m incredibly honored to be named as one of the “20 Emerging Artists to Watch in Film & Video” by PDN and Rangefinder magazine, especially since I look up to some of the other filmmakers on this list. Check out the filmmakers and complete gallery here: http://www.inmotiongallery.com/gallery/2014/#grid (at New York City)

A Yashica B&W film photograph of me finally reaching the Half Dome summit (8844+ ft elevation), and Yosemite valley 4,737+ ft below me. I don’t recommend wearing running shoes for the final vertical granite cable section!! Photo by @mtmorgie #filmisnotdead #bucketlist #neverstopexploring

This is the best I could do at 3:56 am this morning without a tripod and on less than an hour of sleep. I’m so glad I woke up to witness and photograph this beauty. It was a peaceful, quiet, serene, and unforgettable moment that made me feel small #bloodmoon #lunareclipse #totallunareclipse #seeingred #totaleclipseoftheheart (at Dana Point, California)

I’m back in CA for the 2nd time this week. Here’s one of my favorites from last week’s Half Dome mission with @mtmorgie #yosemite #halfdome #california #bucketlist (at Dana Point, California)

We made it! This is @mtmorgie and I at the top of Half Dome. Summiting Half Dome has been on my bucket list for over 4 years, so today has been quite a beautiful and fulfilling day. I highly recommend it if you haven’t already done it; you really can’t go wrong with Yosemite. #yosemite #halfdome #bucketlist #california (at Top Of Half Dome)

We Will Become Silhouettes (at Brookhaven, New York)