Oh, to travel across 28 Countries in two years. That was Mark Wallace’s plan and thanks to our great fortune he managed to take the time to speak to an audience at Adorama’s store in NYC. Mark is a popular photographer and videographer best known for some of his tutorials now viewable on Adorama’s YouTube channel, Snapfactory.com and creativeLIVE.com. So this internet celebrity was greeted warmly and with a great deal of curiosity as he talked us through the planning of his trip while recounting some of his adventures.
Here are five interesting things we learned from his visit.
1. Mark travelled with only six shirts.
Well, that’s not entirely true as he obviously brought some camera gear with him (more on that later). However, to prepare for his around-the-world-adventure, he sold almost all of his worldly possessions and travelled with the bare minimum on his back.
2. Why did Mark undertake such an adventure? Because he wants to change the world.
While he repeated an oft-told sentiment, “Photography is my passion,” Mark claimed that it was not his passion. Rather, he believes that through art he can change humanity in a positive way. Through education, collaboration and inspiration. “Passion is the degree of difficulty you’re willing to endure to accomplish the goal” a quote Mark credited to his friend Louie Gigilo. The key to understanding this is summed up by a term known as “Umwelt” or the “biological foundations that lie at the very epicenter of the study of both communication and the signification in human (and non-human) animal.” In other words, we see the world through our own personal lens. Mark strives to view the world through others with his photography.
3) Through trial and error, Mark found the gear he was most comfortable travelling with.
Mark Wallace initially started off with these items:
But they turned out to be too heavy on top of the additional gear he needed to bring. So, surprisingly, he switched from the above to this:
• Leica M
• Leica 21mm F/3.4 Super Elmar-M
• Leica 135mm f3.4 APO-TELYT-M
It turned out that not only does Leica supply excellent cameras and lenses, but they are compact and light to travel with as well. In addition, Mark also came equipped with these essential items:
• Tripod
• iPhone
• Deuter day pack
• Good shoes
• Garment devices like a GPS watch
4. The world is not as scary as you think. Also, the world is scarier than you think.
When announcing he was traveling to a certain country, Mark would be greeted with “why would you go there? You could be kidnapped or, worse, get killed in the middle of a drug war.” But he reassured the audience that some of these nations (like Cambodia, for example) are no longer the danger they were perceived to be. In fact, that ignorance he encountered from one country’s p.o.v. to another’s was not uncommon for him. Simply, everyone was “ok” everywhere he went. Not to mention, such a fear would risk not meeting new friends and contacts wherever you’d go. However…
When visiting a previously war-torn country, or a specific place that experienced unheard of upheaval, it reminded him of just how tenuous human nature can be. One moment society can be idyllic. The next: it could be plunged into utter chaos. He found that by understanding the experiences shared by some of the people he met on his travels, life as we know it can change on the snap of a shutter.
5. Be careful how you represent a country through your photography.
While the impetus of most photographers is to capture a moment – any moment – that best represents a slice of life and culture, sometimes the resulting image can be taken out of context. Or worse, it may not offer the bigger picture of how different societies are represented in each culture. For example, while an image of a hard-working laborer pushing a cart down a street in New Delhi seems enticing in concept, it might ruffle those who fear that such an image would affect a negative view on how the other half lives. Also: representation out of context is not just misleading but avoids the opportunity to show just how things are not what they appear to be. Mark presented a photograph of what appeared to be two spiritual gurus in India and then explained how they were nothing of the sort. Instead, they were just actors posing for tourists.
