Meet Seth Langbauer of Seth Langbauer Photography in Fort Collins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Seth Langbauer.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
The farther I get into my career, the more I realize how important it is to recognize your own story and where you’re from to properly reference where you are at. For myself, I see three distinct phases so far.

I was born on Adak, a small island on the end of the Aleutian Chain in Alaska. I didn’t stay there for more than a few months before my parents relocated to the island of Sitka. On the island, I was surrounded by life. Tide pools full of marine life, towering cedars blanketed in moss, and rivers teaming with salmon were all around. I grew up doing what most young boys on the island did, building forts in the woods, fishing with my friends, and exploring the islands’ coves and coasts.

My seemingly linear life took a divergence as I found myself starting phase two, high school and an overseas move. I was no longer romping around the rugged Alaskan coast, but living in an apartment building in a dusty middle eastern town as I prepared to go to a private school. Phase two can be easily summarized in change. I worked hard to embrace the new scene and setting and quickly fell in love with everything about Egypt. However, in the winter of 2011, my new home went under a change of itself and due to unrest, I moved to New Delhi India.

In the last months of high school, I met Justin Bastien, who launched me into photography. I decided to move to Bozeman to attend Montana State University and pursue a degree in film and photo after high school.

Fast-forward to now and I’ve shot projects all over the world, worked with unforgettable art directors, brands, fellow photographers and learned more than I thought possible.

Has it been a smooth road?
This is such a weird question. It’s kind of a two-sided coin for me. Or like driving real late at night. When you’re barreling down the highway at 70 mph and it’s pitch black, you can only see about a hundred feet in front of you. It’s a smooth road, so long as a deer doesn’t wander out on the road, or your headlights don’t go out.

I built a career around challenging myself, learning, traveling, and confronting new and different ideas; how could it not be easy? My greatest struggles are more balancing my type A personality with a career that has no schedule, having esteem for my ideas, voice, photographs, and keeping up the energy to go against the grain.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
I am a professional photographer, the elevator pitch is that I am a commercial and branded project photographer, but it’s never that easy. And I normally take the stairs. I spend roughly 3/4 of the year in the states shooting a variety of projects. Normally, I shoot product catalogs, 2-3 commercial projects, editorial assignments, and advertisement projects in that time. I absolutely love the demands of this type of photography. Working with a team to execute a creative idea under pressure, whether it be time, resources, or creative constraints, is something I think I will always seek out.

I spend the rest of the year traveling and shooting. I have produced a project in Mongolia on a remote tradition that uses dogs to hunt, and a portraits project in India highlighting the pattern of illiteracy in a village in Rajasthan. I also shot a project for Keen shoes that was a blast. A friend and I drove a rickshaw 2,500km across India.

When I work with clients, I think what people are most excited about is my willingness and broad approach. I am able to apply my personal vision to their needs within their brand structure. Whether it’s working with a team that will be able to execute a large production for a client or an assignment that allows me to travel and develop stories over time, it’s these skills that sets me apart.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I definitely think this is a good time to be in the Denver area. I was based in Montana for the last six years but found a lack of resources there. Here, there’s a huge convergence of young professionals, new business, and grown arts culture which equates to more work and an interesting diversity in projects. But, I also think there are too many photographers attracted to Denver because they want a piece of this new ‘outdoor industry’ hype. It seems like many people want this line of work, but haven’t explored what they actually want to shoot or why they want to be photographers. If you’re first starting and you don’t explore what you’re interested in, you will be missing out on creating your best work.

I am relieved I had the chance to travel without a camera. At first, it gave me a firm grasp on who I am and my natural interests. Looking back, I really wish I had assisted for longer than I did. I lived in the Los Angeles area assisting photographers for a brief year or two. I got to work with such amazing photographers and the insight you learn from seeing hundreds of different sets and photographers is invaluable.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sethlangbauerphotography.com
• Phone: 970-692-4381
• Email: seth@sethlangbauerphotography.com
• Instagram: @seth_langbauer

Image Credit:
Seth Langbauer

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