Kirk Richards is a landscape and travel photographer based in Melbourne, Victoria. He’s also a Riparide Storyteller and a deadset legend, so we asked him to share a little about his photography journey so far.
- What inspired you to become a photographer?
I was doing media back in high school and I picked photography as one of the subjects. That’s when I learned to use a darkroom and all that kind of stuff. I thought it was really cool – it was all black and white photography – so we had to use interpretation to make art out of the photos. From there, I got my own camera and took my own photos of objects, or bits of nature and flowers, and just weird stuff. I just wanted to get an abstract view on it, or my own perspective.
I remember taking a photo of a drinking tap, but from over the top looking down. And it didn’t look like a drinking tap, it just looked like a weird black and white photo with water and shiny stainless steel and that was the favourite one picked at school. I liked that people had to guess what it was and I could make them see something from a different angle. Leaving something open to interpretation. Like anything I do in life, I like to do it differently or better, I can do things in my own way – it’s good and bad.
Once I turned 18 and got my licence, I was able to travel wherever I wanted to take photos. My parents got me a DSLR for Christmas, so I got my first Canon, and headed down the coast. My first adventure was to Johanna Beach, camping with friends and taking photos. From there it just grew as a passion, I suppose. Even today, if people ask me where I’d recommend going camping, I’ll say Johanna Beach and pull out the photos to show them what I was doing there.
- In your experience, what makes a good photo?
It’s all subjective, but I think a good photo needs to tell a story. It can’t be over manipulated and there needs to be a real representation of what you’re doing. I think of creating an imagination for someone who doesn’t have that type of imagination – so someone could look at your photo and think, Wow, I was there yesterday and it didn’t look like that for me, but how cool is this?
You want to open people up to see something in a new way. If you can do that, I think you’ve got a good photo. If I can inspire people to see things in a different way, it might inspire them to either go back to that spot, a different spot or even pick up a camera!
- How would you describe your style and main areas of interest?
I like to call it dynamic, a mix of mood and vibrance. I like to enhance what I’m seeing, and the colour schemes around me, and add a lot of mood and impact. Vibrant, impactful, moody? I like to balance things. Ethereal? That’s what someone used to say about my photos. Maybe that’s a bit too full on.
- Aside from Riparide (of course), what have been some career highlights for you?
Being able to work with Canon was a lot of fun. I shared some of my trip highlights from Patagonia and I also worked with the Canon Experience Store, so I got to speak to some of the customers who came in. A photo I took in Patagonia was one of the first photos featured at the front of the store and it still hangs in my lounge room.
I even love just doing wedding stuff. At weddings, it’s more about meeting a lot of different people and making friends along the way, which is a really cool thing about photography. And you get to collaborate with them as well.
And then, with Riparide, it’s amazing being able to go to different locations and inspire people to travel, which goes back to my roots – inspiring people to see things a little differently. It pushes me to see different places, and inspires others to do the same, so you get to take people on a journey through your career in photography.
- Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Just that you really have to take care of the places you visit and be sustainable towards the nature around you. On a lot of trips I take, people just leave their rubbish everywhere; at Trentham Falls, I saw a guy flick a cigarette into the water. I think if we can encourage people to think about the environment and how important it is, when they go on an escape they’ll be more mindful of the natural world.
Every week, Riparide Storytellers head out into the world to capture the feeling of escaping the city. Their stories come packed with adventure advice and tips on how to make the most of your time away, bringing unique stays and local adventures to life through inspiring photos, words and videos.