Howdy folks, we’re back on the interview wagon again after a couple of weeks of “you’re spending too much” rants. I feel better, thanks for asking. This week we are once again going to focus on the lifestyle of folks in the climbing industry, and the financial implications for building a sustainable life in a world where money most certainly does not grow on trees. As usual, I reached out to someone whose work I respect, the very talented photographer, filmmaker, and climber Tara Kerzhner. Not only does she do exceptional work behind the lens, she has a unique character that makes her stand out — particularly a running theme of cats, which permeates her online persona.
As with my little bit on Kris Hampton, Tara’s background has already been featured here in Climbing Magazine, and I wish not to reinvent that wheel. Tara hails from Bend, OR, where until about 5-6 years ago, she lived a fairly “normal” life. She worked a marketing job, slowly building her skills for her two passions in the margins, climbing and photography.
Eventually, she took a bold leap into full-time pursuit of photography and film. Frankly, it appears to be working, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t plenty of sacrifices and hours of hard work behind the scenes.
Tara now works across the globe with some of the world’s best climbers, including our recent interviewee, Jonathan Siegrist. Let’s let Tara guide us through her world and what it’s taken to get there….
But first…take 57 seconds to watch this video produced by Tara on her brief background.
Tara Kerzhner: The Climber
Tara is known for her photography and filmmaking, but she is no slouch when it comes to climbing. I creeped her online climbing catalog on 8a.nu, where she’s logged 55 5.13 routes and her first 5.14, Vesper at The Fins of Idaho (translation for non-climbers: Tara is an advanced climber).
But most importantly, she has done all this with self-proclaimed “kitten arms”. Now that is an achievement! I’ll list some of her route comments, for fun:
“Everybody wants to be a cat, nobody wants to put in the work”.
“Fell after clipping the anchor on my 4th try, so I got to climb it twice. How nice!”
“Batted at that 12c slab like the tantalizing ball of yarn it is. 7 tasty tries.”
“What a wonderful hummus Pâté. Pair with a fabulous Pinot Noir, or a nice glass of crumbled foot holds found at the base.”
“I prefer long vertical climbs with kittens for hands and puppy ears for feet.”
Proud Climbing Achievements
Tara: I’ve worked really hard to be a well-rounded climber; I push my limits in sport climbing, trad climbing and bouldering. I think each discipline compliments the other, and it’s always forcing me to climb outside of my comfort zone. In September I climbed my first 5.14 sport climb, and this winter I focused on my trad onsighting skills.
“One day I decided a half-sleeve tattoo was more important than rent, so I had to sell my camera to make rent. It was a shitty camera anyways.”
The Lifestyle of a Photographer/Filmmaker
Tara: Right now I don’t have a home base, however my husband (Greg) and I are considering the possibility of one in the near future. I think as glamorous as it seems to always be on the road, it’s really quite the struggle to keep everything you own in the back of a truck – especially when those things include a portaledge, a haul bag that could house 45 kittens, trad gear and all my camera equipment.
Despite each of us coming from humble (financially speaking) beginnings, we are not dirtbags today. I paid for my own college and worked in the food industry for 10 years to get on my feet. It took me 10 more years to be able to afford my first camera kit. Greg immigrated from Russia when he was ten, and eventually worked his way up to a college scholarship at Duke University. Both of us have worked really hard to make our lifestyle work, especially Greg who is an experienced web developer.
Greg studied Computer Science in college, and he’s really dedicated to success in his career. He’s strong enough to pursue climbing sponsorships, but he’d rather focus on his career. I really respect that about him actually. So when he’s working full-time, we’re basically weekend warriors. It just so happens that our weekends will sometimes be in remote climbing locations, like Spain.
Building a Career
Tara: I’ve been shooting photos since I was a little girl. When I was in my early 20’s, I started shooting photos of live shows in Bend, Oregon. I was working a 9-5 job, then would hit the venue till 2am and shoot all night. The musicians would give me like 25 bucks for the set of photos, sometimes $50. I really wanted to make it work, but it was too hard to keep shooting bands. One day I decided a half-sleeve tattoo was more important than rent, so I had to sell my camera to make rent. It was a shitty camera anyways.
Fast-forward a few years of borrowing cameras, and shooting photos on my iPhone. My now-husband Greg bought me a Canon 7d in 2011. It was my first real camera in years. At this point I was rock climbing a lot, and thus started shooting climbing because it was what I was surrounded in.
When Greg and I moved out of our studio apartment in San Francisco, we started traveling full-time to climbing destinations. He was working remotely, and I was working at this terrible job I found on Craigslist. I started selling some of my climbing photos while we were on the road. After about 3 years, I decided to quit my marketing job and pursue photography and filmmaking full-time. Now I’m heading into my 4th year as a freelance photographer, and can’t believe it worked. To be honest..
A Day in the Life
CC: Where/how do you fit in your own climbing in a typical day of shooting for a project?
Tara: Fitting in my own climbing is challenging. I take my shoots really seriously and I take my climbing really seriously. Therefore, I’ve determined that the best way for me to have success at both is to not let them interfere with each other.
This summer I was in The Fins, filming with Jonathan Siegrist for La Sportiva. Each day I would Jumar the fixed line* and film him, then I would climb on his rest days. It was a little physically exhausting to be honest, and I was getting a bit run down. Finally, one particular day that was too cold for Jonathan (I run really warm so it was perfect for me), I lowered down from filming him, tied in and sent Vesper – my first 5.14a. This is definitely an exception.
TK: Honestly, I’d rather just film during the shoot, then climb in my off-time. I can focus so much more on a hard project when I don’t have to worry about pushing my brain creatively while pushing my body physically. It’s really hard to balance both when I’m going to bed at night, miming the moves on my arbitrary rock climbing achievement. I think all filmmakers who are passionate about climbing struggle with this. It’s really, really hard to be good at both things at the same time.
*CC edit: To jumar a fixed line refers to the process of using a mechanical ascender to haul your ass up a rope. Nobody likes butt shots. At least not in climbing.
Networking and Building Clients
CC: How were you able to start working with top-level climbers? Did you meet them at the crags, or were you otherwise introduced to them? Can you elaborate on the importance of networking in your career?
Tara: I started working with my friends. And I still do, to this day. I met these climbers, because I myself am passionate about climbing. I met Jonathan Siegrist and Paige Claassen at Smith Rock circa 2009. Years later, they are close friends of mine; they support my creative career while I support theirs.
I’ve also had client companies tell me who I’m working with, which is fun too. I met Emily Harrington because Climbing Magazine asked me to shoot a feature on her at Donner Summit. Now she’s a close friend and we’re going to be in Yosemite together this spring.
Photography beyond Rock Climbing
CC: Where would you like to take your career? Do you want to stay within climbing, or do you see yourself branching out to a larger audience base?
Tara: Photography has always been about so much more than climbing to me. In high school and college I studied dark room photography. I love the fine art aspect of photography as well as the idea of getting more into conservation photography. I think if I had my way in the future, I’d get more opportunities outside of climbing to stretch my creativity and passion.
Words of Wisdom: Making it in Photography
Tara: This industry is really hard, and super competitive at times. If you’re really passionate about photography and you’re shooting all the time, your work will show it.
My little piece of advise would be to not give away your photos for free, no matter what promises of “exposure” there are. It’s important when you start taking your work seriously that others do as well. Part of that is putting a hard line on how you distribute yourself. Even if it means your work takes longer to get out there, you’re doing yourself a huge favor in the long run.
Well, that’s it my friends. If you’d like to see much more of Tara’s work — and I definitely recommend you do — please check out her Instagram account or her website. See you guys next week.
Please note, all photos used in this article are property of Tara Kerzhner and require her permission for posting.