Who Am I?
My name is Kyler Steele and I was born in New Jersey in 1997.
In 2016, I took my first trip to the Adirondack Mountains. The goal of the trip was to reach the peak of Mt. Marcy, the highest point of New York with an elevation of 5344 feet. For the group of eight people, I was designated to carry a 5-pound jar of Skippy creamy peanut butter and it was the only item in my backpack. The 7.5-mile trip to the top was miserable. It rained and I was wearing knit Adidas shoes which got soaked immediately and blistered my feet. My cotton clothes now held 27 times their weight in water and slowed me down as I trekked on.
When I approached the summit and broke the tree line there was no view. A dense low cloud lowered the visibility to less than a mile. I was defeated. I stood at the edge of the cliff alone. After what felt like an eternity of waiting, the clouds parted for less than 30 seconds and I was able to take in the breath-taking views. My spirit was raised and I completed my first real hike feeling accomplished. When I got back from the trip, my brother gave me a photograph - me standing at the edge of the mountain taking in the short view. That moment on the mountain was captured forever and held a tremendous amount of meaning to me.
The feeling from that photograph inspired me. I didn't decide to buy a new rain coat or new water-proof hiking boots. I used all the little money I had and bought my first camera. From that moment, it was my priority to create with my camera. Photography became my passion.
At first, I was terrible. My technical mind (Computer Science major) couldn't break past the creative barrier. Perfectionism made me unable to be creative in the photography process. The things that worried me in my photos were the accuracy of my colors, the straightness of my horizon, and other technical details that the average person would never notice.
It took lots of studying and advice from mentors to finally help me view the world of photography differently and start taking photos with a creative mind. I emphasized composition, color, and light but in a creative way to invoke emotions in my viewers to make them feel connected and related. I took my technical mind and used it to create structured narratives.
Photography means everything to me. I desire to be the person that the younger version of myself needed. Whether that be the person recommending gear for that first shoot or giving advice on how to edit photographs, I strive to be the role model to other creators and the best person behind the camera when hired.
