Photography began as a pragmatic tool for Paul Zizka, a way to record his backcountry trips and adventures.
Today, however, he’s increasingly recognized for his high-altitude and night photography.
“Like a lot of people, I used to carry a point-and-shoot just to document people and my own trips without putting too much effort into it. Everything was shot from eye level and total disregard for composition and then I started living full-time in the mountains and occasionally someone would say, ‘you have a good eye for photography. You should consider taking it more seriously,’ ” Zizka said.
Zizka did just that in the last summer he worked at Num-Ti-Lodge at Bow Lake, upgrading his camera to a digital SLR, but really only out of curiosity. He had no plans to take it any further.
Jump forward five years to 2013 and Zizka is celebrating the release of his first photography book Summits & Snapshots: The Canadian Rockies, published by Rocky Mountain Books. Zizka is hosting a book launch at Communitea Cafe in Canmore Saturday, Nov. 29 from 7:30-9:30 p.m.
Zizka first arrived in the Rockies like many do – travelling across the country. He would return again and again and again, working for seven summers at Num-Ti-Jah Lodge on the edge of Bow Lake.
It was at the lodge that Zizka would grow to love the Rockies, as he discovered hiking, backpacking and climbing. It was also where he met his wife, Meghan Ward.
Knowing they wanted to stay in the Rockies, they chose Banff and decided to give it a year.
“We wanted to commit to live in the mountains, so we decided to try it for a year and we wanted to try and find a way to work outside. Neither of us are really career oriented and we both had a degree by then, but our priority was to spend time outside in the mountains,” Zizka said.
“Meghan started writing and I started to consider taking the photography more seriously while guiding, just to see what worked out better.
“After a couple of years of doing both independently, it was running two small businesses and there was just so much paperwork and so much time spent on the computer. I was forced to choose one and I preferred photography to guiding. I was better at it and financially it became the obvious option.”
It is working financially for Zizka because he strives to create an emotional connection for himself and the people who see his photographs.
As part of that, he’s not interested in trophy shots or perfect conditions. Instead, he prefers to work with what he’s been given, be it rain, snow, clouds, sun or wild, stormy weather.
Zizka is also willing to spend the time to get photographs he’s pleased with rather than what he thinks the markets expect. Often returning to the same location, he’s open to new experiences and he gets beautiful results.
“I like to see what it can stir up in other people; it’s just part of an evolving relationship with the mountains. You love something and you just want to know them better. For me, I don’t mind returning to the same location several times.
“It’s like being with an old friend and paying more attention to the fact that it is always different. I could go back to a place a million times and if I pay enough attention I’ll always notice something that is changed or different,” he said.
“I’m less into the trophy hunting. I’m more committed to spending time in one place and taking it all in and exploring it more thoroughly,” he said. “The experience is increasingly taking priority over if I got good shots.”
