Kierran Allen is perhaps better known for his wildlife and event photography, however like many photographers out there he's been pursuing international work, specifically travel assignments. So when this Durban-based photographer recently had the opportunity to go on a photographic adventure to China, he grabbed it with both hands. Kierran tells us a little more about how it all started and shares "Part 1" from his trip.
"Travelling the world with your camera shooting cool images is every photographers dream, however making that dream reality is no easy task, especially living in South Africa. Most photographers think it’s unrealistic or way out of their reach.
I have a different approach! As photographers we have such an awesome opportunity to really make our careers whatever we want them to be. Be it shooting live events, or traveling the world on assignment for NatGeo, the choice is really yours at the end of the day. Two years ago I made a decision to only shoot things I wanted to shoot, and channel all my energy and time into making my dreams a reality. It’s been extremely hard - I’ve had things go wrong, fall through and just not happen at all, but I have never given up. Staying motivated when you have not worked in 3 months is tough trust me, but you just have to look at the bigger picture. You need to say to yourself, if this is going to work I have to dedicate everything I have to making this happen! Pursuing international work when you don't have much international credibility is the first thing to overcome, but once you get going everything you have worked towards starts lining up and the opportunities out there are endless!
Ok let me move on to my trip to China before I bore you. About 3 weeks ago I got a call from Warren, a good friend of mine. He had an opportunity for myself and two friends to join him on an epic photographic adventure in China. At the time I thought; yeah right, how on earth are we all going to pull this off. Next thing I know, cutting a long story short and not giving to much away, we were at the airport and boarding a flight to Hong Kong.
We visited many different places around China, as well as Hong Kong. I’ve always wanted to shoot that side of the world and wow, it really is amazing. We also had the opportunity to shoot something thats going to change our lives in a way I think we can’t even begin to comprehend yet! I don't want to give to much away just yet, as in the next month or two I have something mind blowing to show you. However in the meantime, I'm sharing a few images from the first part of our trip."
Images and content shared with permission.