As a young child growing up in The Catskill Mountains of New York state, I spent a lot of time running around the miles of wilderness in my backyard. I was always on the lookout for the perfect paradise landscape. It wasn’t till I moved to North Carolina and started exploring the Southern Appalachians such as Linville Gorge that I began to see the landscape with new eyes and found that paradise was there all along waiting to be discovered wherever I went. I began trying to capture and translate what I saw onto film. That was the beginning.
When I was 18, I got a summer job working in Yellowstone National Park. That was a turning point in my life. Having never been out west before it was an eye opening experience. The geysers, steaming hot springs, wildlife and mountains were more amazing than I could have ever dreamed. From that point I had the desire to travel and explore so the next summer I took a job in Yosemite Valley. I shot tons of film and further developed my outdoor lifestyle.
After coming back home from Yosemite to North Carolina I found a job working for a great outfitter to fully immerse myself in the outdoors and other people like myself. I began hiking, backpacking and photographing in some of the most beautiful places in the Southeast.
In the spring of 2007 my wife Elizabeth and I moved to Estes Park Colorado, the gateway town to Rocky Mountain National Park. I believe it to be one of the best places in the Rockies to live and photograph glacial lakes, cascading waterfalls, abundant wildlife, soaring peaks, rocky spires, glaciers, and miles and miles of open tundra. I made it a point to get out and photograph the area as often as I could.
In the spring of 2011 we moved back to North Carolina to be closer to family on the East Coast. We have been out exploring and revisiting some of my favorite places. There are many shots I missed where the lighting wasn't just right or it was a little to windy. Now is my chance to get the shots and bring them here for everyone to enjoy. We love these mountains and feel fortunate to be back in these 'hills' we call home.
Still having family in upstate New York, I have gotten back to photograph the area that introduced me to the outdoor world. I also travel as much as possible to areas such as Utah, Wyoming, the Sierras, other areas in Colorado, and beyond.
My mission is to show what a wonderful world we live in and encourage others to get out and explore this great country and planet. We really do live in paradise!
'Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.'
-Henry David Thoreau
Adam Paashaus joined Pixels on November 7th, 2013.
