Daniel Silverberg Photography @danielsilverberg - Tumblr Blog

Lifestyle, Product, and Portrait Photography for Cascade Designs, Inc.

Over the course of 2015 and 2016, I had the unique opportunity to work as a photographer at Cascade Designs, Inc. Headquartered in Seattle since 1972, Cascade Designs is the parent company of such venerable outdoor brands as Mountain Safety Research (MSR), Therm-a-Rest, Platypus, PackTowl, SealLine, and E-Case.

I was thrilled to join the team of incredibly talented people at Cascade Designs. I grew up as a kid in the Pacific Northwest around MSR WhisperLite stoves and Therm-a-Rest mattresses. Cascade Designs still manufactures the vast majority of its gear in its factories in the SoDo industrial neighborhood of Seattle. If you ask me, the gear designed and manufactured by these brands is the standard by which all other outdoor gear is judged. Highlights of my time at Cascade Designs included lifestyle shoots for Therm-a-Rest and PackTowl, portraits of all MSR employees for the #UnrulyDreamers campaign, behind-the-scenes factory and repair shop photo and video, product photography and animated how-to GIFs, instructional video for MSR Global Health, and one last portrait on my final day of Cascade Designs’ new president (and son of co-founder John Burroughs), David Burroughs.

My work was featured on Cascade Designs’ brands’ websites, social media, and workbook, not to mention Cascade Designs’ dealer partners who utilize the brands’ lifestyle and product imagery (which I also managed as Digital Asset Manager). While I have since moved on to a new full-time opportunity as a photographer in REI’s media studio (an offer I couldn’t refuse), I will remain forever grateful to the opportunities afforded to me by the wonderful folks at Cascade Designs. They are a fun-loving group of people, and they make the best damn gear around.

#cascade designs #msr #therm-a-rest #packtowl #outdoor industry #seattle

Glazers Portfolio Award Scholarship 2016 2nd Place at Seattle Central Creative Academy

Every year at Seattle Central Creative Academy’s Commercial Photography program, Glazer’s Camera hosts a Portfolio Award scholarship competition, where all 2nd-year students select their best 10-image portfolio for private review from an invited group of judges consisting of local Seattle photography industry professionals. All individual images were scored by the 12 judges with 10 points each allocated towards concept, technical execution, and overall image quality, for a possible total of 30 points per image and 360 points overall. We spent a great deal of time reviewing images and sequencing our portfolios. My final top 10 focused on a mix of outdoor adventure lifestyle and product photography. With a score of 327, I came in 2nd place overall and won a nice scholarship check. My extremely talented classmate, Mary Dee Mateo, came in 1st place overall. Thank you to Glazer’s Camera for their years of incredibly generous support of our program. They are a fixture of Seattle’s photography community.

#glazer's camera #portfolio award scholarship #seattle central creative academy #commercial photography

Backpacking and fly fishing with Big City Mountaineers in Olympic National Park for Tenkara Magazine

From the 2016 issue of Tenkara Magazine, I wrote and photographed this article about a volunteer trip with Big City Mountaineers in Olympic National Park.

Wilderness experiences were very formative in my adolescence. The opportunity to volunteer with Big City Mountaineers as a mentor and instructor-in-training enabled me to share those experiences with youth who may never have been camping, backpacking, or hiking before. Throughout my article, I reference Richard Louv’s book Last Child In The Woods. Louv writes about the divide between today’s youth and outdoor experiences, and how “nature-deficit disorder” has direct links to obesity, attention disorders, and depression. It is an excellent book for anyone interested in how time spent in nature offers measurable benefits to our physical and emotional health. On this trip to the Enchanted Valley and the Anderson Glacier in Olympic National Park, I used Tenkara as a tool to introduce youth to fly fishing while backpacking along the Quinalt River. I would like to thank Tenkara USA, which started Tenkara Magazine, for producing the first and best Tenkara products in the United States, and for supporting this work. I firmly believe that Tenkara is the simplest and most effective way to introduce anyone to fly fishing.

#fly fishing #tenkara magazine #big city mountaineers #olympic national park #backpacking #quinalt river

When We Get Together Again This Time Next Year Waist Deep Media is proud to present a short film starring Steve Duda, editor of The Flyfish Journal, reading an abridged written piece about Burning Pram, an annual gathering of fly fishers along the Yakima River in Central Washington. I produced, directed, filmed, and edited this video with my friends in fall 2015 for a quarter-long capstone video project for Seattle Central Creative Academy’s commercial photography program. This video would be a personal project for my school assignment, but I wanted to seek a wider audience for the finished film. After bouncing ideas for months off of Joey Mara (my partner at Waist Deep Media), Copi Vojta (photo editor at The Flyfish Journal), and Jason Rolfe (of Syzygy Fly Fishing and Writers on the Fly), I decided to produce Jason’s idea to have a writer read one of their written pieces. Jason plans to produce a series of such pieces, which he is calling the Blue Boat Sessions. This video would not have happened without the support from everyone involved: Steve with his soulful writing and acting; Jason with his original idea and production planning; Joey with his creative brainstorming, hard work on B-camera, and bringing it home by finishing the second half of editing while I was in finals; and Copi with his moral support and rugged good looks.

Also many thanks to: The Flyfish Journal for being home to the best writing and photography in fly fishing; Emerald Water Anglers for being the best fly shop and guide service in the Pacific Northwest; Syzygy Fly Fishing for collaborating on this project and bringing us Writers on the Fly; and FlyCaster Brewing for making damn tasty beer.

The first half of this video played at Northwest Film Forum for Seattle Central Creative Academy. The full video played at the first annual Emerald Water Anglers Film Festival and won the judge’s vote. Incredibly, this win earned us the right to show our film at the 2016 Fly Fishing Film Tour’s stop on February 3rd at the Admiral Theater in West Seattle.

I remember the first time I went to the F3T in the Redwood City years ago. Back then, the thought of having a film actually play in this festival felt like a pipe dream. This was a dream come true. Thanks again to everyone who made this possible.

#fly fishing #burning pram #waist deep media #syzygy fly fishing #writers on the fly #the fly fish journal

Patagonia Advertising Campaign for Seattle Central Creative Academy Seattle Central Creative Academy’s advertising production class in the fall of 2015 tasked us with producing an ad campaign for a brand of our choice.

I chose Patagonia and focused on their fly fishing product line. I credit the photography in Patagonia catalogs for inspiring me to pick up my camera again about five years ago in order to document my adventures via backcountry skiing and fly fishing. For this assignment, I decided to embrace the opportunity to put my own spin on visualizing Patagonia’s brand. I used on-location product and on-figure photography to directly visualize the premium nature of Patagonia’s product, in addition to playing to the aspirational desires of my target demographic via documentary-style lifestyle photography.

Our responsibilities for the ad campaign included profiling the client’s history, market position, and past advertising strategies, while assessing current advertising and communication needs, identifying a target market for the campaign, developing a campaign goal and call to action, and devising an appropriate creative strategy to achieve this goal. I developed a production plan and timeline, designed comprehensive layouts, wrote headline copy, put together multiple revisions of a job estimate, and spent a few gorgeous weekends shooting out on the Yakima River.

My work was very well-received by a panel of judges including artist rep Sally Bjornsen, brand strategist Duane Hobbs, and creative director Dan Lamont.

#fly fishing #patagonia #ad campaign #yakima river #seattle central creative academy

Seattle Met Magazine Road Trips with Allison Williams

I had the opportunity to work with Seattle Met Magazine to photograph three road trips on assignment for the October 2015 road trip cover feature written by senior editor Allison Williams.

The third and final road trip was an overland offroad tour with Tom Hession-Herzog of Adventure Ready. We drove from Packwood to Lake Chelan via the Washington Backcountry Discovery Route (WABDR), a chain of forest roads and byways that forms a scenic offroad route running through the state of Washington. Overlanding is essentially overnight off-roading, with SUVs and pickups optimized for both four wheel prowess and car camping comforts.

Tom’s Toyota Land Cruiser had a James Baroud rooftop popup tent, and he towed a two-wheel offroad trailer with another popup tent. I am slightly obsessed with adventure vehicles and thought I had a pretty rad car camping setup until I spent a couple of nights out with Tom. While hard shell popup tents come with a hefty price tag, I must admit they’re pretty damn cool-looking, comfortable, and convenient for car camping. My favorite features of Tom’s customized Land Cruiser were the auxiliary powered slide-out fridge and freezer, the dedicated offroad spare tire trash bag (the Trasharoo), and the tailgate-adapted cutting board. You can find all these accessories and more for sale at Adventure Ready.

I also filmed the behind-the-scenes video of the road trip feature’s cover shoot with photographer Dylan Furst.

It was a great pleasure to work with Jane Sherman and Sara D’Eugenio in Seattle Met’s art department. I have long admired Seattle Met’s graphic style and irresistible cover features (which always grab my attention in the checkout line at QFC), and I look forward to working with them again in the future.

#seattle met magazine #road trip #overlanding #washington backcountry discovery route

Seattle Met Magazine Road Trips with Allison Williams

I had the opportunity to work with Seattle Met Magazine to photograph three road trips on assignment for the October 2015 road trip cover feature written by senior editor Allison Williams.

The second road trip was a whirlwind tour of central Oregon’s hot springs, including Bagby Hot Springs, Austin Hot Springs, Breitenbush Hot Springs, Terwilliger Hot Springs, and Belknap Hot Springs resort. These ranged from roadside pools littered with trash, pristine hike-in undeveloped pools, hike-in developed sites, to private naked hippie retreats, and family-friendly resorts.

We managed to visit six hot springs in one day. I think I’m still wrinkly.

#seattle met magazine #road trip #hot springs #oregon

Seattle Met Magazine Road Trips with Allison Williams

I had the opportunity to work with Seattle Met Magazine to photograph three road trips on assignment for the October 2015 road trip cover feature written by senior editor Allison Williams. Allison is a hilarious travel writer and her irreverent observations captured these road trips perfectly. The full articles are available online and I highly recommend a read.

The first road trip was an updated tour of the Yakima Valley, including stops at Bale Breaker Brewing, Cowiche Canyon Kitchen, Sports Center, and Mighty Tieton. I’ve spent a lot of time fly fishing around Yakima, Naches, and Tieton over the past few years, so it was nice to dedicate some time to exploring the downtown area of Yakima, which has a lot more going on than most folks might realize.

#seattle met magazine #road trip #yakima #washington

Seattle Central Creative Academy’s Commercial Photography Program

Back to school. I can’t believe that year two is already here at Seattle Central Creative Academy (SCCA). This program has proven to be the kick-in-the-ass studio bootcamp that I waited for. My goal from day one at SCCA has been to grow my creative and technical skills and find a way to make a living via photography.

My intention before school was to build technical lighting skills and take them out on-location. However, I have learned to love working in the studio. I have learned to sculpt, experiment, visualize, abstract, and play. I get to work with incredibly talented peers in both the commercial photography and graphic design programs, and I have learned to explore my own vision.

Being in this program has proven a great excuse to connect with people. Tomás, who runs the photography program, is a force of nature and seems to know everybody. SCCA is well-connected in the area and celebrated as one of the best commercial photography programs around.

While the first year at SCCA is a studio bootcamp with a cascade of assignments focusing on specific skills, the second year at SCCA has us building out personal portfolios, brands, and businesses. I cannot wait.

#seattle central creative academy #commercial photography #seattle #tomás

Rod Time With Big Joe, Episode 2: Doing Hard Rod Time

Behold, Waist Deep Media brings you the long-awaited sequel to the original Rod Time. We joined forces with Copi Vojta, photo editor of the The Flyfish Journal, to chase pink on Whidbey island, accidentally harass bull trout on the Methow, step in cow pies at Black Pine Lake, and tour the Methow Valley Washington State Fish Penitentiary. You can find the full post with behind-the-scenes photos from Copi and myself on The Flyfish Journal’s Tailgate blog.

#rod time with big joe #fly fishing #washington #The Flyfish Journal

Mountain biking and backcountry skiing with Rachel Delacour and evo

Rachel Delacour and I pitched evo’s marketing manager on a three-day takeover of evo’s instagram. Our creative brief focused on weekend warriors enjoying a multi-sport summer weekend in the Pacific Northwest. evo recently entered the mountain bike market and was hungry for content. This photo shoot would show off why we love our lifestyle here in Washington. Where else can you backcountry ski and mountain bike in the same weekend in July? We planned to produce lifestyle imagery featuring brands that evo carries and Rachel has sponsorship relationships with, including on3p skis, Flylow Gear, Forsake, Panda Poles, and Julbo.

Special thanks to Carly Galloway for the green light, to Lauren for hooking up her mountain bike, and of course to Rachel for making this shoot happen, being a badass skier and brave newb mountain biker, and putting up with my pre-dawn call times! Totally worth it.

#mountain biking #backcountry skiing #mount rainier #evo #summer #pacific northwest #outdoor adventure #photography

Montana’s Bighorn River and The Fly Fish Journal.

From The Flyfish Journal volume 6 issue 4, this was my first photograph published in this venerable magazine. My caption for the image of hay bales and rusting riprap reads:

“Fishing Montana’s Bighorn River out of Fort Smith, we came upon what’s known as ‘Detroit Riprap.’ Used to fight riverbank erosion, this is a relic from a time when rivers were less regulated. It’s definitely not practiced anymore. Even though the engines and innards of these decaying auto bodies have been removed, they still retain plenty of residue that is not good for the river - some even manage to occasionally float away.”

All of these images were also produced on that trip to the Bighorn last summer, as was the video below, entitled “Bighorny Streamers and Asshoppers”, in honor of our guide and friend, Jeremy Gilbertson of Big Sky Fly Fishers.

#the flyfish journal #montana #bighorn river #fly fishing #streamers #big sky fly fishers

Mountain biking in the Pacific Northwest.

I can’t believe how many years of my life I lived without mountain biking. I resisted for years. I did not think I needed another expensive hobby. But my lovely lady Lauren is a badass biker and she finally convinced me to go all in. I picked up a Norco Range from Element Cycles for my birthday this year and I haven’t looked back.

This summer, Lauren and I have explored singletrack all over the Pacific Northwest, from Whistler and Squamish, to Bellingham and the Cascades, and down to Hood River.

Without a doubt, mountain biking is my new favorite.

#mountain biking #washington #cascades #pacific northwest #norco

Rod Time with Big Joe, Episode 1: Mountain Whitefish

Waist Deep Media is proud to announce a new fishing show, Rod Time With Big Joe. The first episode of Rod Time with Big Joe kicks off with a trip to the famed blue ribbon whitefish water of the Yakima River. Big Joe goes over a few tips and techniques for targeting them. Things don't always go as planned and a couple equipment malfunctions derail the trip prematurely. This video was produced for Seattle Central Creative Academy’s first year video class in spring 2015. We tested techniques with wireless lavalier microphones and filming hand-held with a multifinder. Joey improvised the character of Big Joe, and a star was born.

#rod time with big joe #waist deep media #fly fishing #yakima river #whitefish

Sasquatch and the Steelhead with This Is Fly Magazine.

When This Is Fly Magazine asked us to write about Waist Deep Media’s latest fly fishing video, Sasquatch and the Steelhead, we decided the best approach was to tell it like it really happened. The magazine cover, my first, was a complete surprise.

Filmed over the course of sevens days on six different rivers around Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, Sasquatch and the Steelhead garnered some attention in our corner of the fly fishing world, with mentions from Field and Stream and Orvis, and over 21,000 views.

Steelhead are hard to find, almost as hard as Sasquatch. Please visit Wild Steelhead Coalition to learn more about steps you can take now to help save wild steelhead.

#fly fishing #sasquatch #steelhead #this is fly #olympic peninsula #wild steelhead coalition

Backcountry skiing at Sol Mountain Lodge.

Sol Mountain Lodge is located in the Monashee Mountains, British Columbia. My good buddy Chrix had been trying to nail me down for a trip to Sol Mountain for a couple of years based on rave reviews he had heard. This year we finally made it happen with a full week surrounded by perfect terrain for ski touring. A few of my images from this trip made it on to Sol Mountain Lodge’s updated winter website, next to some of my favorite ski photographers including Ryan Creary, Steve Ogle, and Steve Shannon. Book your trip with owner and guide Aaron Cooperman at http://www.solmountain.com/. They’re also open for singletrack mountain biking in the summer time! © 2015 Daniel Silverberg Photography www.danielsilverberg.com

#backcountry skiing #sol mountain lodge #monashees #british columbia #canada #adventure #photography

Fly fishing Washington’s Enchantment Lakes with Tenkara Magazine.

From the 2015 issue of Tenkara Magazine, I wrote and photographed this article about fly fishing the Enchantment Lakes region of the Washington’s Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

I have been a fan of Tenkara (a Japanese form of fly fishing) since I was introduced to it in 2012 when I had the chance to meet Daniel Galhardo of Tenkara USA. Tenkara, in a word, is simplicity. It is an ideal tool for backpacking and fishing backcountry trout water.

You can purchase the the 2015 issue of Tenkara Magazine online through Tenkara USA.

#fly fishing #tenkara #enchantments #washington #alpine #photography

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