Meet Arika Jean. A freelance photographer with a passion for film, travel, and the outdoors. "I was born and raised in Huntington beach, California, and still haven’t left! I feel really lucky to have grown up walking distance to the beach, but ironically enough have always been more drawn to the mountains. I grew up spending as much time as I could snowboarding in the winter, and summers were spent at the beach, or riding bikes around town taking photos. Being able to spend the morning in the mountains and watch the sunset at the beach in the same day is pretty hard to beat."
I’ve loved taking photos for as long as I can remember. I got my first “nice” camera when I was around 13 or so; it was a Canon 60D that my parents gifted me for Christmas, and I immediately fell in love with photography. From then on, I was constantly asking friends to let me take photos of them. We’d ride bikes around our small town all day, find new spots, and just take photos for the fun of it. Shortly after high school, and a few short-lived side jobs, I went full time with photography. I think there’s something really special and important about those first few years of experimenting with photography and being creative just for the sake of being creative. Now, 15 years later, if I’m ever in a creative rut, I always try and think back on those early years and remind myself to make time to get back to the basics and simply create for the joy of creating, and not just for work.
What is your idea of paradise?
My idea of paradise has always been being out on the open road. There’s a few specific places that are particularly special to me, but there’s just nothing like being on a long road trip heading somewhere new, or old, and documenting it along the way. There’s always been something really grounding for me about it. Between changing landscapes, the freedom of it, and the peace that comes from having nothing to do but drive—it just forces me to really be present and take note of the beauty of the world around me.
My idea of paradise has always been being out on the open road. There’s a few specific places that are particularly special to me, but there’s just nothing like being on a long road trip heading somewhere new, or old, and documenting it along the way. There’s always been something really grounding for me about it. Between changing landscapes, the freedom of it, and the peace that comes from having nothing to do but drive—it just forces me to really be present and take note of the beauty of the world around me.
Type of camera used:
Canon AE - 1, Canon 1N, Canon 5D Mark IV
I found a love for solo road trips in my early twenties and spent a lot of time exploring around Northern California. This was taken somewhere on the drive through the mountains in Santa Cruz on one of those trips.
A man and his dog on the Oregon coast
Side of the road pit stops for photos are my favorite. This is a favorite from somewhere in the mountains in Utah in the fall.
There’s an old lodge in Glacier National Park situated perfectly on Swiftcurrent Lake
and my sister and I were lucky enough to snag a room the same day we got there. This was the first morning waking up there before heading out on a hike.
and my sister and I were lucky enough to snag a room the same day we got there. This was the first morning waking up there before heading out on a hike.
Kauai rainbows and waterfalls on a sketchy stormy hike over the Na Pali coast
Some friends and I spent some time in Iceland a few years back and I remember pulling up to where we were staying super late at night and we couldn’t see a thing. The next morning driving out we saw this was the road leading up to our hostel. I’m still convinced there’s no hostel situated in a place as beautiful as this.
A frozen Lake Louise in the dead of winter in Canada
Fell in love with Idaho while driving through the small town of Stanley. Nothing like the Sawtooth mountains to make you feel real small.
Some real pretty mountain views on the north shore of Kauai
A special spot on Maui I’ve been coming to since I was in my early teens. Still just as good all these years later.
You can find more of Arika Jean's work here
