“It’s the picture that matters, not the process,” says the soft-spoken young man in blue jeans and hiking boots. He has been taking pictures since he was 11, but his passion came into focus in high school.

“Photography — that’s my schtick.”

When asked if he could see himself being a professional photographer, his answer was a qualified “yes.”  After finding a stash of magazines in his Grandpa’s attic, he had visions of being a war and conflict photographer for National Geographic, a dream that ended when NG was purchased by Fox.

“I definitely don’t want to work for Fox.  They said they wouldn’t change anything, and then they fired half the staff.”

His current goal, which gets refined every six months or so, it to have his own shop for digital and film photography.

“Digital photography has definitely watered down the talent.  Everybody carries a camera in their pocket.  Did you know Kodak is coming out with their own cell phone that is a camera first?”

At the same time, Brandon concedes that it is capturing the moment that is important — seeing the shot. With a shy smile he showed his favorite photo.  It was taken outside of Fairplay when he was off-roading in his mom’s Passport– “probably should not have been doing that. . .” he reminisced.  It is a view at sunset; navy-blue mountains in the distance and a grove of aspens at the side.  The clouds are painted perfectly across the sky.  It is a stunning image.

Even though he is a child of the digital age, he loves the craft of developing his own photos — being in the darkroom, seeing what takes shape, dodging and burning to refine each piece.

But in the end, he decides, “It doesn’t really matter if it is taken on an iPhone or a high-end DSLR” — as long as he gets the shot.

All Photos & Captions Courtesy of Bryden Smith