Today we’d like to introduce you to Kylie Fly.
Hi Kylie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I first picked up my camera seriously when I was 20 years old and moving to China. I grew up playing around with film cameras, taking photos of my dog and sisters playing in the desert. It wasn’t until I purchased my first SLR that I began shooting constantly. Living and traveling throughout Asia instilled that spark, a thirst for storytelling and capturing moments I was seeing with my eyes so I can share them with family and friends back home. I later went back to school to finish my degree, shooting portraits on the side for a little cash. I figured if I can photograph people well, I can become a better photographer. After college, I moved to Peru and Ecuador to film and shoot stills full-time for non-profit organizations and humanitarian programs focused on sustainable development, farming, conflict zones, and natural disaster or relief efforts. This work took me all over the world from tiny sinking islands in Polynesia to Haiti, Guatemala, Cambodia, and many more. I developed my run-and-gun work style in the field, learning other languages and working cross-culturally to gain confidence in my ability and interpersonal skills. Eventually, I made the move to the big city, Los Angeles, and worked within the movie and commercial industry for a handful of years before coming back to the mountains between Idaho and Utah to shoot outdoors. I made an intentional shift into the wild places of the backcountry and big mountains where I really wanted to be and spend all my time, and here we are today.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No road is a smooth road, not without its potholes, dead ends, or speed bumps. Covid was a particular hit, as I travel for work and travel had stopped. I had to pivot and decide what else I can do, and how can I evolve in my field and continue in the industry of photography. I contemplated things I could do if I didn’t shoot for a living, but it felt impossible to conjure as I’ve done this my entire adult life. Gratefully, things came back and picked up again. Albeit a different pace, it suits my lifestyle and the place I’m at in my personal life today to provide a more balanced way of being that I can only imagine a pandemic forced upon me. To slow down. Not overwork myself. Remember why I got into this field in the first place: freedom and flexibility. I absolutely love what I do, and subject matter hardly impacts how excited I feel when I have a camera in my hands.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a professional adventure photographer, and I specialize in action sports, outdoor, and lifestyle travel photography. I shoot everything, but there are some things I’m more known for as I thrive hanging on ropes on a cliff face photographing people doing the sport they love so much. I love being in complex situations and navigating wild spaces with all the gear I need for survival on my back. I work well in extreme environments, and I get along with everyone. People intrigue me, and my curiosity to know them in a meaningful way is what drives others to feel open and safe with me. I am goofy and feel things deeply, and many people on set with me have told me they’ve never felt more comfortable, more seen, more beautiful, and more relaxed. Being a female photographer in a very male-dominated industry (outdoors and extreme sports) can be tough to say the least, so this is something that stands out perhaps in the most obvious way. I’m doing the thing.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Find your balance. Covid rocked everyone’s world. I realized when it all happened, I hadn’t stopped or slowed down for more than a minute for several years, and my body was breaking down. My heart and mind needed a break. Covid helped me to re-center and re-prioritize and figure out what needed to happen to find my stride in a new and improved way so I could enjoy my life and develop the deeper connections at home, in my community, and with those close to me more.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kyliefly.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kylie.fly/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flyproductioninc
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyliefly/
