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Meet Travis Jensen

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Travis Jensen.

Travis, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I currently live in Los Angeles, Glendale to be exact. I’m a husband and father to two amazing boys, ages seven and nine. I work as a photographer (been doing this so long that I can shoot anything), producer, editor and creative. We moved to Los Angeles about four years ago after being priced out of our home in San Francisco.

The move made sense as I was doing a lot of photo work in LA at the time. I lived in San Francisco for 20 years prior to making the move south. I must admit, leaving San Francisco was heartbreaking, but I quite like LA. It’s great being surrounded by so many other creatives, and the city is very kid friendly. There is so much to do and see. I’m always out exploring new terrain, whether it’s out in the streets with my camera or with my family.

One thing I really like about LA is the number of parks there are. It’s amazing. San Francisco has great parks, too, but in order to fully enjoy some of them, you have to be prepared to arrive at the crack of dawn to secure a picnic table/grill. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to partner with some amazing brands, including Apple, Adidas, Acura, Adobe, MINI Cooper, UPS, and The North Face, amongst others.

I’m also the author of “Barbary Coast Now: An Ode to San Francisco.” Released in July 2017, the book features 145 carefully considered photographs spanning a decade that represent a less delicate side of San Francisco, the side I know and understand best, where the Gold Rush spirit and mentality still runs deep, and the hustle never stops. The books are entirely handcrafted in California by the talented team and family at Nonstop printing in Hollywood.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I moved to San Francisco by way of Milwaukee fresh out of high-school with $800 cash, a duffle bag, and skateboard. That’s it. The first few years, I struggled tremendously and was borderline homeless in the beginning, but somehow managed to persevere. A lot of my friends from that time didn’t make it, sadly.

My whole life has been a lot like pushing a skateboard uphill, so I’m well accustomed to the struggle. In fact, I’ve learned to thrive off it. I discovered photography via skateboarding and writing and knew almost instantly; this is what I was born to do. The skateboarding taught me to see the world and my surrounding differently, whereas the writing taught me how to tell stories effectively. I worked at the same job for nearly 11 years (not related to photography) before I was able to make photographs for a living.

I founded Travis Jensen Photo a little over five years ago and have been in business for myself ever since. I have experienced many ups and downs along the way and made plenty of mistakes, but I chalk them all up as learning experiences. This business is so competitive, especially in LA. I work hard every single day and sometimes that’s still not enough, but still, I push forward, my two kids being my motivation.

In order to make it in this craft, you really have to want it, at least in my case. I’ve never had anything handed to me. In fact, at times I feel like the photo Gods are conspiring against me, but still, I push forward. I’ve been through so much in my life that I’ve learned you can’t change the direction of the river, you can only flow with it. I’ve had some incredible ups, and some deep, dark, murky lows, but I still love this craft more than anything. It saved my life, truly, and for that, I stay forever grateful.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
As previously mentioned, I founded Travis Jensen Photo a little over five years ago. I operate as a full-service creative hub. My team is small. It’s literally me plus two; sometimes three or four depending on the job.

While my personal work focuses on candid street scenes, street portraits and urban landscapes, I work as a commercial/advertising, branding, lifestyle and editorial photographer. I specialize in providing my clients with photos that are captivating, unique, and brimming with personality and style.

Lately, I have also been doing video work, directing and producing mainly. I’m definitely known as a street photographer. That’s how I got my “break” in the business so to speak. Some key people recognized the potential early on in my career and took great risks in hiring me for some large, high stakes projects.

Working in the street, where you have no control over lighting or subject matter, it forces you to learn how to think and shoot quickly as you’re literally waiting for the unexpected to transpire. And when the moment appears, you have to be ready to capture the magic in a fraction of second. Street photography is a lot like boot camp for photographers.

Not only does it force you to be able to frame, meter and fire in less than a fraction of a second, often times in less than ideal lighting situations, it also helps you get comfortable working with people, which is equally important. Photographing people — with or without permission — is a delicate dance. And all my years making street photographs has helped me really put people at ease.

Being photographed can be intimidating, a lot like public speaking, so it’s important that everyone who steps in front of my lens feels comfortable. That’s what sets me apart, and that’s the key ingredient for making great photographs.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Coming from a broken home, my childhood was rocky. I love my mom and dad more than anything, and they always provided for me, but I honestly could have gone either way in life. I have a lot of friends that didn’t make it, whether they are no longer with us in the physical, struggled with substance abuse, or got caught up in a life of crime. But still, I always maintained a flicker of hope for the future, a desire to do something, though I didn’t know what until I was much older.

My best childhood memories are waking up during summer break and jumping on the phone with my skateboard friends, figuring out where we were going to skate, and hitting the streets with no agenda. I’d leave early in the morning and not return home until late at night. Though my dad wasn’t a fan, understandably, and the rules were much different at his house, my mom was a big proponent and recognized the artistry in skateboarding. Not only that, but it truly saved my life.

Wandering the streets on my skateboard as youth are some of my fondest memories, and there’s no coincidence that when I discovered photography, naturally, I gravitated towards the street.

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Image Credit:
Eva Dancel

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