HOOKED

Thirty-one year-old Hari Mari pro-staffer Ryan Forbus always had a knack & passion for photography. When he was younger, he would purchase wind-up disposable cameras to take on his travels across the U.S., clicking away at everything he could, capturing the sites, and anticipating the minute his film would develop so he could sift and sort through his fresh stack of experiences, finding his best shots.

 

Like any craftsman honing their trade, Ryan’s knack for photography was matched by upgrades in his equipment. Disposable cameras gave way to iPhone photography, where his subject matter was as varied as his adventures. Piles of photographs similarly gave way to digital collections, and to eventually to Instagram, where encouragement from friends and family spurred him to invest more time in his passion.

 

But it wasn’t until a friend asked Ryan to go fly fishing, that it all clicked for him. Ryan had fished as a young kid, but had become an infrequent visitor to the rivers since. “I pulled out my old rod and reel that my father passed down to me. I fell in love, hook, line, and sinker that day. There is something about being on the river, it's almost a spiritual experience. The world seems to fade away. It's you and just that piece of moving water. The reality of the outside world fades, your frustrations and worries fade away. One gets immersed in the moment.”

 

It was the awakening of a passion that matched his love of photography that brought Ryan to marry to the two together, “So one morning at about 2am as I was racing north towards Western North Carolina to fish I had an epiphany - why not combine the two things you most love in this world into one thing? That morning half sleep in my truck, sipping gas station gut rot coffee, I knew I had found my calling in photography and in life. Since that morning I haven't looked back, spending as much time on the water, fishing, and shooting photos as I can. It has filled me with such happiness and sense of purpose than anything has. I aim to shoot content that puts the viewer behind the lens, creating an image that evokes an emotion or a feeling.”

 

Ryan does that and much, much more.  Check out his skilled work on his Instagram feed or RyanForbusPhoto.com.

 

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