GALLERY: Austin Trayser

As featured in the Feb. 24 edition of the Big Sky Weekly.

Austin Trayser has been photographing since he was 11 years old. His style today reflects his life on the road.

The University of Montana photojournalism graduate doesn’t feel comfortable calling any one place home, because he’s at home everywhere he travels. From documenting cock fighting rings in rural Mexico to shark fishing off coastal California, Trayser goes.

Trayser recently started his own photography company, Trayser Media Group, based out of Bozeman, and says he hopes it can keep him criss-crossing the world with his Nikon D300s at his side.

Since recently donating his piece “Gally Vertical” to the Running Free From Cancer Fundraiser, Trayser has begun working with local galleries and print shops to get his work on display to the artistic community.
T.A.

“Photographing the Gallatin River, April 2011”

Process is my favorite part about photography–whether it’s a shoot planned out for months, or a simple frame snapped that somehow captured the feeling better than I could have ever described it.

And I’m left with a photograph that becomes my reference of memory for the rest of my life. I owe thanks to Matt Riley (foreground) for helping compose Castle Rock in the Gallatin Canyon. This shot was actually taken for an April edition of the Big Sky Weekly called “State of the Rivers.”

I printed this out at three feet by one and a half, and have it hanging on my wall to remind me of where I’m blessed to be living.

“Beau’s House, August 2011”

Ask anyone, summertime in Montana is incomparable to anywhere else in the world. There’s a lot of reasons, but here’s one more—a strong music community.

I took this photo at a house near Rocky Creek Farms in Bozeman. My friend called to invite my band to play a festival they were putting together. Although my band was dispersed across the country, and I had to be up in Big Sky to guide fisherman the next morning, I grabbed my guitar and camera and headed to Rocky Creek. What a night. Walking up to the house and seeing the scene for the first time put a grin on my face that lasted until early morning.

I had to snap a few frames. This image is the perfect record for the month of August.

“Spawning Rainbows on the Missouri River, June 2011”

A buddy and I were out looking for catchable fish, which is a daily routine year round for me. We headed over to the Missouri River below Toston, to try and escape the runoff for a minute. After a dozen casts in the mud, we gave up.

On the walk back we found a cold spring, hundreds of Rainbows were spawning.

We only bugged these ‘Bows for a few images, and then left them to do their thing. Sometimes I call this one the Map of North America.

“Gooch Hill Road, April 2009”

This hat has been everywhere with me. I bought it from a woman with a glass eye in Nassau, Bahamas many years ago. I think it looks best on my dashboard.

I’m always on the road heading to see friends and family, so this is the view I see more than my own face in the mirror. I love the composition of this image because it shows my point of view perfectly.

There is a lot to be grateful for.

http://www.traysermediagroup.com/