Colorado-based Liam Doran covers all aspects of outdoor mountain life, including skiing, biking, trail running, and fly-fishing. His striking and iconic images appear regularly in commercial advertising and grace the pages of today’s top magazines in the field, including Powder, Outside, Ski, Skiing, Trail Runner, Mountain Magazine, and more.
On His First Big Break
Doran’s first major assignment was shooting for the well-known Breckenridge Ski Resort. “I was working in a local ski shop, and had been shooting all winter on spec,” recalls Doran. “At one point they called me into the office and said, ‘These images are fantastic, Liam—we want to hire you to shoot all our skiing next year.’” That turned out to be my big break, and it allowed me to move out of the shop and opened up a whole new world of shooting opportunities. What I am trying to achieve in my work is inspiration and aspiration—I want people to look at a photo or story I’ve shot and think. ‘Wow, that looks incredible—I need to get off the couch and get out there.’”
“I guess you could say that I was a serious enthusiast before I became a pro,” observes Doran. “I carried a point & shoot camera with me on all my ski, bike, and backpack adventures for years. I finally upgraded to a 35mm SLR in ’01 or ’02 and learned to shoot on slide film, which definitely helped me hone my skills. I got my first DSLR in ’06, but going pro was not really a conscious decision on my part—life was just pulling me in that direction. I never really had any formal education in photography or a mentor to guide me. Action sports and adventure photography is what influenced my work because that’s what I was doing in life. I had pictures from magazines posted all over the ski shop I worked at in Breckenridge, Colorado— Galen Rowell, Ace Kvale, and Scott Markewitz were all photographers I literally looked up to, so I guess you could say they influenced and motivated me. Anyway, if I had to define my genres, I’d say that action sports and adventure travel are the broad subjects I cover professionally.”
What’s In His Gear Bag
“As far as equipment goes, I rely on Sigma lenses on Canon DSLR bodies,” says Doran. “I shoot with the Canon 1DX, 5D Mark III, and 7D Mark II. I have quite a bit of Sigma glass and I use these lenses for every shoot. My go-to kit for action shooting includes the Sigma 12-24mm f/4.5-5.6 DG HSM, Sigma 24-105mm f/4 DG OS HSM ART lens, and the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8, EX DG APO HSM. When I’m on the road shooting travel, landscapes, portraits, etc. I’ll add a collection of the new Sigma wide-aperture prime ART series lenses or the new high-performance SPORT series telephotos. I carry everything in Clik Elite packs—they’re great for outdoor photographers like me.”
“I became a fan of Sigma lenses when I acquired a Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 for my Canon 7D,” notes Doran. “I was initially motivated by its attractive price, but I found it to be super sharp, and I wound up always carrying it in my pack. After that it was the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 that was also a great value and delivered performance that exceeded my expectations. Since then it’s been all Sigma all the time. Adventure travel photography is not the most lucrative specialty so I have to consider my expenditures carefully and getting the best quality for the buck is a big plus. I shoot with the Canon 1DX due to its incredible autofocus abilities and blazingly fast frame rate, which is fantastic for action sports shooters. I use the Canon 7D Mark II when I need to go fast and light. As I noted the Clik Elite packs are great for what I do and my Contrejour 40 has room for all my camera gear, plus essentials like a shovel, probe, skins, extra food, water, and extra layers of clothing.”
On His Proudest Moments
“Basically, my mission is to bring the intensity of outdoor action and travel to those that view my pictures so they can experience it on a visceral level and be inspired to go on adventures of their own. For me, this process begins even before I take the picture—I don’t just walk out the door and snap a photo. Usually, I’ve been to the location multiple times, so I have a good idea of the best time of year and time of day to get great shots of specific subjects. You really create the shot in your mind first and then you execute it as best you can in the moment. In many cases, it takes a lot of planning, and getting up at 4AM to be where I have to be at sunrise. You’ve got to get up early and stick around late because the best shots are the ones taken at the edges of light—at dawn and at sunset. There are several shots in my portfolio that it took me two years to get after I had planned them out in my mind, but, of course, you also have to be responsive to changing circumstances, and sometimes great shots just happen in front of your camera and you have to be ready to shoot fast.”
“One of my proudest moments was winning the Photo of the Year for Powder Magazine, which is probably the premier ski magazine in the world, says Doran. “It was a massive honor. I’m also gratified to have had my images appear on the covers of Powder Magazine, Ski Magazine, Mountain Magazine and lots of covers for Elevation Outdoors, a regional magazine of the Rocky Mountains. I love shooting landscapes; indeed, many of my action, sports, and travel images incorporate landscapes. I also try to do some pure landscape work from time to time and a few of these travel landscape pictures are essentially portraits of nature. My advice to aspiring shooters: The only reason to be a professional action sports travel photographer is because you have a passion for sports and the great outdoors. It’s not the type of photography where you’re going to get rich-:)”
“My approach to photography is simple,” concludes Liam Doran. “ It’s a way of life. If you’re shooting skiing, biking, surfing, trail running, climbing, fly fishing, etc. you really can’t be an outsider or observer as you can be with football, golf, or track and field. Action sports demands that you must be active in the sport and in the community. Photography means everything to me but it’s who I am, not what I do.”
To find out more about Liam Doran and check out more of his amazing images, please go to www.liamdoranphotography.com or Instagram @liamjski.
