September 18, 2023 • 40 mins
Welcome to the podcast!
This week, we are talking to creator, influencer and short-form video specialist Sam Reid (@SamanthaLReid) about creating content, staying authentic, and how you can make the best short-form videos. Sam is a 2-time Olympian in synchronized swimming turned mountain athlete and content creator with an incredible journey from Australia to Banff. Tune in to hear all of her tips for creating the best content, staying passionate and finding a balance between the side hustle and the full-time job.
Show Highlights:
- Learn how Sam has used short-form video to drive engagement, grow an audience and build brand partnerships.
- Delve into the best tips for making short-form videos (including music choice and scene selection).
- Understand the differences between TikTok and Instagram and how to create content for both platforms.
- Explore Sam's decision-making process when considering brand partnerships. Learn why authenticity and alignment with her lifestyle play a crucial role in her choices.
- Discover how Sam balances a full-time job, her influencer side hustle, and ensures that she can still have time to hike and explore the great outdoors.
- Hear Sam's top secrets for capturing the best content no matter where you are in the world, even in a busy place like Banff National Park.
Follow Sam:
Instagram: @SamanthaLReid
TikTok: @SamanthaLReid
Join us bi-weekly as we explore the world through the lens, uncovering hidden gems, and sharing insider tips to elevate your photography game. From capturing breathtaking landscapes to immersive cultural portraits, each episode is packed with practical hacks, creative ideas, and inspiring stories to fuel your wanderlust and unleash your creative potential.
Subscribe now and join our global community of adventure seekers and photography enthusiasts on the Travel and Adventure Photography School!
Find all the show notes and connect with Robert:
Website: robertmasseyphotography.ca
Instagram: @robertmasseyphotography
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Robert (00:00):
Welcome back to the podcast, everybody.
I'm Robert Massey.
This is the travel and adventurephotography school.
And today on the podcast, wehave a super special interview
with the incredible Sam Reid.
Sam is a local content creator,short form video specialist,
adventurer, athlete,storyteller.
Sam's just an incredible personto hang out with and we went out
(00:22):
for a hike on Tunnel Mountain ina torrential downpour to talk
about creating short form videocontent and using the stories
function on Instagram and how toreally help enhance what you are
already doing in your work bycreating short form video and
some tips and tricks for doingthis with a really minimalist
setup so you can move fast.
(00:42):
All right, let's get out on thetrails of Tunnel Mountain, just
at the edge of Banff.
Awesome.
All right.
Welcome back everybody.
I'm Robert Massey.
This is the Travel and AdventurePhotography School.
I am with Sam Reid today.
(01:04):
Hey, say hi, Sam.
Sam (01:05):
Hi, everyone.
Robert (01:06):
We are on Tunnel Mountain Trail right now.
We had other plans, but theweather got a better of us, but
a rainy hike in Banff.
It is not the worst thing in theworld, especially to go up to a
nice, beautiful viewpoint at thetop.
Yeah, welcome back.
This is gonna be a lot of fun.
So, Sam, do you want tointroduce yourself to everybody?
Sam (01:24):
Yeah, sure.
My name is Sam, or Samantha, buteveryone calls me Sam.
I originate from Australia, butI've been living in Banff for
five years now.
And, yeah, I have a lot ofpassion when it comes to social
media, short form video sothat's, my main form of content,
that's kind of it.
Robert (01:44):
Okay, Sam's underselling herself, as she typically does.
Sam is a remarkable creative,especially when it comes to like
stories and short form video andI think has probably explored.
80 percent of the trails inBanff at this point and does
some like remarkable, remarkablethings.
And on top of that Olympian.
Sam (02:02):
Oh yeah.
Robert (02:03):
Remarkable human being.
Don't undersell yourself.
Sam (02:06):
Sometimes I forget about that.
I am, I am a two time Olympian.
Very out of my comfort zone inthe mountains.
I was a synchronized swimmer.
So water based.
But yeah, now I spend all myfree time adventuring in the
Rockies.
Robert (02:17):
So let's start a little bit about.
What do you work on right now?
What do you do in the contentcreator sphere?
Sam (02:23):
Yeah I would say, if we're talking platforms, my primary
platforms are Instagram andTikTok and yeah, I have a Oh,
I'm getting out of breath,Robert.
We need to slow down
Robert (02:35):
The problem with us, we go a little too fast.
Sam (02:37):
I know, we feed off each other.
Yeah, so I would say, my primaryfocus is the short form video
space.
So I really, really enjoycreating videos.
I feel like I enjoyed it beforeInstagram came out with Reels
and that sort of thing.
Prior to Reels, I used to alwaysmake stories on Instagram, and
they were always little videoclips.
(02:58):
And so when Instagram releasedReels, I was super stoked.
And I also had like hundreds ofhours of video already.
And so I was able to like jumpright on that new feature.
And I think that's sort of,yeah, where I was able to really
start growing in that space.
I'll dabble in photography everynow and then.
But, yeah, I definitely preferthe short form video.
(03:20):
Feels a little more, like,casual and just easier for me to
create, I find, if we're talkingphotography.
I love doing it, I love gettinga beautiful shot, but I spend a
lot of time overthinking it.
And I hate spending my timeoverthinking things, and so, I
just find short form video a loteasier for me to create.
And, you know, I love havingthese little memories of all the
(03:41):
adventures that I go on.
And I think video is a really,really good way to document
that.
Robert (03:46):
I think that's a great place to jump into one of my
favorite ways to go back andlook at things is, what is that
first adventure that you reallyremember creating short form
video or that you captured onyour phone?
Sam (03:57):
Oh! I mean, I will remember the first reel that went viral.
I just posted this pan of LakeLouise.
Honestly, nothing special.
It was a beautiful day.
There was a beautifulreflection.
But I think it was like twoweeks into reels being released
and the video just went viral.
Over a million views.
And I was just like, what thehell is happening?
(04:18):
And so I was thinking aboutthat.
It's pretty crazy.
But then following that, I wenton some really great backpacking
trips that summer and I justclipped them all together.
And made quick 15 second videosout of them.
Stuck it with a good song.
That's one of my favouriteparts, is finding the perfect
song to go with the videos.
I really enjoy that when youfind something that you're like,
(04:38):
oh, it's so good.
I just think it adds so muchvalue.
There were two backpacking tripsI went on that summer.
They were both out in thePurcells.
So out near Bugaboos, that sortof thing.
There's lots of greatbackpacking out there.
And, it's fairly untouchedcompared to the Rockies, so,
yeah, I did some great trips outthere, and got some great
videos!
Robert (04:59):
That sounds wonderful, and the bugs are absolutely
stunning! So, we'll get into,talking short form, talking all
that kind of stuff.
Giving advice to actual peoplein a minute, but my favourite
part about all this is, thestories that come from the
adventures that we have, and thetravels that we have.
And so, we've talked a lotabout, like, your love for
Banff, and your love for beingin this place.
(05:19):
What is it?
What, what drives you into themountains the way that you do?
Sam (05:23):
Oh! I don't know, I always try and think about this,
because, yeah, I grew up in Auswe have, I hiked a bit, but not
a lot.
And then, when I finishedcompeting I was kind of, seeking
out ways to fill my time,because all of a sudden I had
all this free time that I usedto spend training.
I was going to school, but inthe holidays I like, started
(05:45):
traveling and the first big tripI took after Synchro, I, I
traveled a lot with Synchro, butthe first big trip I took after
Synchro was to Nepal.
And so I went to the Himalayas.
I didn't actually hike in theHimalayas.
I just took this trip to Nepal,but we spent time in the
foothills and I did this flightover Everest and it was amazing.
(06:06):
In that moment, like fell inlove with the mountains, no
specific mountains, justmountains in general.
And I went home to Aus andstarted hiking a lot more than I
had been.
And it's mainly just rainforestsand waterfalls and not big
peaks, but it was still a greatway to spend my time.
And then, when I finisheduniversity, I took a year off
(06:27):
and went traveling and on mytravels I came to Canada.
My parents had actually said tome years before they'd come to
Banff and they were like youwould love Banff.
I always say I feel like they'deat those words nowadays.
I don't think they ever thoughtI'd come here and never leave.
But because they mentioned it Ihad to come to Banff and I
planned this trip from Vancouverto Calgary.
(06:49):
10 days, I think I hiked 8 ofthe 10 days.
Did these like epic hikes inGlacier National Park.
And then into Banff.
Did a bunch of big hikes as welland I just loved it.
Just thought it was one of thegreatest places on the planet.
And yeah, then I went home andthen I moved back out here a
couple years later.
(07:09):
And I don't know, I think thething about Banff is You feel so
privileged to live here.
So many people want to visit andwe get to live here, which is
crazy in itself, but it alsomeans that it can be super busy.
But I always find on my weekendsin the summer if you pick the
right trail and you're willingto go far enough, you can get
(07:30):
these trails all to yourself.
And I think that's somethingthat I find so special about
Banff is, you know, there's somany people here, but you can
hit the trails.
And feel like you're all alone.
Like, you're just out in thewilderness.
And I don't know, I think that'ssomething I seek out more than I
realize.
Just having time in nature.
It often comes with, you know,25 kilometers of suffering.
(07:54):
Whatever.
But those blissful moments wheneverything feels so peaceful and
quiet.
It's just, there's somethingreally special about it.
Robert (08:02):
That's beautiful.
It's so totally true, right?
Yeah, everyone's like it's sobusy, but it's also a place of
extreme beauty and quiet andyeah, you go at the right time.
Like, we had most of the trailto Castle to ourselves last
year.
Yeah.
Until the summit, where therewas five
Sam (08:17):
other people?
Yeah.
Like, It's like, it's crazy.
Absolutely
Robert (08:21):
amazing.
That is coming down now.
So, you remember that moment youhad your first, viral video?
Did you ever imagine wanting toget another one of those, or
grow that into something else?
Or was it just...
You loved doing it and you justwanted to keep producing it.
What kinda happened there?
Sam (08:38):
Yeah, I guess it's funny when you sort of really try and
think about it, because there issomething, even if you try and
deny it, when you get that manyviews, that many comments, that
many likes, there's somethingthat just feels really, I don't
know, I think, like gratifying?
Even though it's like, you don'twant to base your worth on
numbers and things like that,like, it's just this.
(09:00):
Crazy space in social media.
What does it really mean?
But it definitely makes you feela certain way and it's like
really exciting.
I really try and make sure thatwhen I When I'm going out to
shoot content that it's not theprimary purpose for me being out
there.
I really try and find balanceand I always try and ask myself
(09:21):
like Would I be doing this evenif I didn't have my phone to
capture video?
And most of the time, I'm prettysure it's yes, I would be.
I mean, who really knows, butthat's how I like to look at it.
And so I really try to find andkeep that balance.
It's really important to me.
Especially, I work a full timejob, so social media isn't my
(09:42):
primary income, it's only a verysmall part of it, and so, when I
go and shoot videos, it's on my,like, downtime, it's on my
weekends, and, so I want to makesure that I'm not putting a
whole lot of pressure on myselfto the point where the weekends
become work.
And so, that's kind of how I tryto approach...
Videos and content creation, butthen sometimes I do take on
(10:06):
partnerships, which is obviouslywork And so I I do give up some
of my weekends for it.
But I still try to be reallyselective with the partnerships
I take on to make sure that theydo really just fit into my
lifestyle and I don't have to goout of my way to get the content
needed for it If that makessense.
Robert (10:24):
That makes total sense.
How do you go about thatdecision making process?
Because it could be really hardIf a brand like Google
approaches you.
Here's this big, hugepartnership.
But how do you decide if thataligns with what you want to be
doing and who you want to workwith?
Sam (10:37):
Well, I'm yet to hear from Google.
But I think it would bedependent on the brief.
Cause I find it really hard tocreate content when it doesn't
feel genuine to me.
Like get really stressed aboutit.
I'll go back and forth.
I'll spend all this time that Idon't need to be spending on it.
And then for me, I'm like, thatwas not worth whatever they're
paying me.
It's not a good use of my time.
(10:58):
I think if the brands come witha brief and it's related to the
mountains and the lifestyle thatI lead, and it feels like a good
fit and that I don't have to doa lot to incorporate it into
what I'm already doing.
That's kind of how I like toapproach things.
Robert (11:13):
That's a good way to approach it though.
Do you ever struggle with that?
Have you had a brand approachyou where it's like, maybe,
maybe?
Sam (11:19):
I think, yeah, when brands first started approaching me, it
was just really exciting.
And I would say a lot ofcreators go through this.
It's like, a brand approachesyou and it's not even paid, but
they're going to gift yousomething and it feels really
good that a brand wants to workwith you and they see value in
what you create.
And so, you know, I definitelythink at the start, they would
have been small things, but Iwould have accepted them and put
(11:42):
them in my channel and probablyfelt pretty shit about it
because I was like, this doesn'tfeel genuine to me, but I've
already agreed to it.
I've signed a contract.
I can't get out of it.
And so you have to deliver.
And so I think I made thatmistake a handful of times and
then.
I have been really, yeah, reallyconscious of those decisions
(12:02):
ever since.
Robert (12:04):
So what would you say to, there's a lot of new
creators, a lot of peoplebreaking into the space who
listen to this.
How would you navigate thoseconversations now a little
differently?
Sam (12:13):
I think...
Especially if it's not paid, notthat there's anything wrong with
that.
I think it is a good way to getexperience and sort of break
into the industry.
If it's an exchange of productand there's a similar value, if
you're like, okay, I'm gonnacreate a reel for you, I would
charge this much for a reel.
Your product is worth equal.
(12:34):
Then maybe that is a goodexchange.
But if you're getting a productthat's worth nowhere near the
value of what you're deliveringfor them, then really think
about that and really think, isthis giving me value as much or
are they just taking a whole lotof value out of this and I'm not
really getting much as a result.
But then you know, early on youwant to build a portfolio.
(12:57):
And so.
It is important to takeopportunities, but I would just
be selective with them and I'mvery grateful that I do get
offered some amazingpartnerships, just from what I
believe to be, is beinggenuinely myself and I think
that's something that a lot ofbrands seek out these days
because consumers see a lot ofvalue in genuine people.
(13:18):
They trust people more than theytrust brands.
And so you can just be true toyourself in any partnerships
that you take on.
Then I think you'll sort of besuccessful.
Robert (13:29):
I love that.
That harkens back a lot tosomething we talked about on the
podcast, two, three episodes agonow, which was taking on work
for free versus saying no to it.
And so go back, give a listen tothat.
I think that was episode 88.
Yeah, that's a good point.
You need to find places thatalign with you, and audiences
that they have that align withyou, that'll help you with your
future work, and there's allsorts of pieces that have to go
in there.
So, that ties in really wellwith what we should talk about
(13:50):
next, which is actually creatingshort form video.
So I think you're such afabulous example of somebody who
makes really good short formvideo that isn't just a bunch of
random pieces that are strungtogether, but there's a story
arc, typically, withineverything that you're posting,
which is really difficult to doin, what, 10 to 15 seconds?
(14:10):
So...
If someone's looking to startmaking short form content right
now, where do they begin?
What would be your suggestionfor a point to start, because it
looks really intimidating fromthe outside.
Sam (14:22):
I would just say, when you go out and you go to take a
photo, take a video.
The way I kind of tell storiesis not in every piece of
content, but I will share, likea hike, and I'll share it from
start to finish, so you can sortof take them on the journey.
But I like to incorporate, it'snot just beautiful scenic
vistas, it's also, feet walkingacross the trail, and all those
(14:46):
little pieces as well I think iswhat brings it together and
tells a story.
Because, I mean don't get mewrong, there's definitely value
in shooting beautiful vistas.
Like, when you get a beautifulsunset or something like that,
just that single shot.
can be all you need and, I lovesharing things like that and
they can do really well onsocial media.
But yeah, I also love to share ajourney that I've been on.
(15:09):
And then I can look back at itand be like, Oh my god, that
hike was so fun.
And then I also love, like Ilove love, doing, like, wrap
videos, so, an end of summervideo, or an end of fall video,
or an end of the year video,where I, to some extent,
chaotically piece together a tonof videos to a really fun song.
(15:31):
But for me, when I watch itback, it's just this, like,
beautiful memory of that pointin time.
And I get a lot of joy out ofthat, and that's the, the main
thing that's important to me.
Because it brings you joy, it'ssomething that you're, you're
going to want to postsignificantly more.
Yeah.
I like that.
Robert (15:49):
So we have a starting point now for people.
It's, when you're headed out,it's not about looking for a
perfect moment.
That's one of the traps that Ifall into as a photographer.
Yes.
It's like, this has to be...
Perfect, or it's really notworth doing, which is not at all
what short form video is.
Sam (16:02):
Yeah, and that's what I love about short form video,
because I completely agree.
When I try to take photos, youget caught up in making sure
everything is just right.
But if it's a video, and, youknow, maybe you only need half a
second of that video, you've gotthe shot.
And also, some of the leastperfect moments make for the
(16:23):
most fun videos.
I always love it, every singlewinter, I'll share a like, cross
country skiing fail video.
Personally I think it'shilarious.
I started cross country skiing,Oh, this will probably be my
third season now, and you know,huge learning curve to start.
I think I fell over every singletime I went out, and I'm pretty
good at it now.
But yeah, I think it's finding abalance between you know,
(16:46):
getting those perfect andimperfect moments.
Another thing with me is I dojust genuinely spend so much
time outside and because shortform video is just on your
phone, I always have it with meand so I might be out for a 6am
sunrise run before work and itcould be the most spectacular
sunrise you've ever seen and Iwas out at Vermillion Lakes
(17:07):
because it's just what I do andso it means I am able to get
some really epic content.
Almost by accident.
But the cool thing about shortform video, you just whip your
phone out of your pocket, in themoment, and it's something you
didn't expect, but it's likethis incredible, incredible,
moment in time that you wereable to capture, because.
(17:28):
You were running, you weren'trunning with your camera, and
so, you can just quickly snapsomething and it might, might be
something totally incredible.
Robert (17:36):
That is a very good point because I do find that it
a little bit of a trap herewhere, you know, we're in Banff
So you can kind of make easycontent no matter where you are
Yeah, but you can kind of dothat anywhere in the world.
You just have to be out in itYeah, you have to be actually
experiencing something You can'tsit at home waiting for the
perfect moment to come upon you.
You actually have to be out inthe thing Yeah to have it
(17:57):
happen.
Sam (17:58):
And absolutely, the Rockies are incredible and it does feel
like, sometimes I'm like oh,it's easy, look where I live,
but also we're hiking in therain right now, like, those
perfect conditions, they don'tcome often and so, you know, and
you can't plan them so, yeah, Ithink just spending a lot, if,
if you enjoy it, which I reallydo, spending a lot of time
(18:20):
outside is, A great way to getreally great content.
Robert (18:25):
What's your, what do you find working right now when you
shoot that short form video whenyou build it?
Sam (18:30):
Trending songs.
I think are a big thing onInstagram.
I actually don't know how tofind trending songs on TikTok
anymore.
I feel like it used to be easy,it's not anymore.
But you'll see, like, the samesong come up again and again.
But it's super easy to do onInstagram.
When you see the little song atthe bottom, it has a little
arrow pointing on an angle.
That means it's trending.
(18:50):
And using trending songs,especially if they've only been
used a handful of time alreadyit can be super valuable because
as they get more popular.
People click into them.
If you were early on the trend,and it did quite well, you'll be
at the top of the feed.
And so, more people will click.
They'll see your video, they'llclick through and then you just
(19:12):
gain traction that way.
Robert (19:14):
That's a huge piece of advice.
Sam (19:15):
Yeah, and I mean, honestly, I find the trending songs are
great, majority of the time.
They're trending for a reason.
I'm also a sucker for a catchypop tune.
So I'm always happy to getbehind a new trending song.
I've definitely noticed thathaving TikTok and Instagram,
they're two very differentplatforms, and there's really a
lot of value in both of them.
But you create very similarcontent for them.
(19:37):
I wouldn't say create exactlythe same.
I'm a lot more relaxed on myTikTok.
Even though I have a similarfollowing size to my Instagram,
I just feel like there's lesseyes on me on TikTok.
Less pressure than what I feelwhen it comes to Instagram
because I've had that platformfor so much longer And I feel
like people have an expectationof me on there.
Were as TikTok.
(19:58):
I'm like, I don't even know whothese people are.
My mom's not on here.
I don't need to worry about whatshe's thinking And so yeah, I
definitely would say if you'recreating short form video, do it
for both platforms
Robert (20:11):
Oh, hey, we're here.
This is definitely the wettest Ihave ever come up Tunnel in.
Beautiful view of town.
Absolutely stunning.
Ok yeah, yep, I'm good.
I feel like that's a good pointto switch back over to talking
about the other piece that youreally like, which is stories.
And what it is about them thatyou really enjoy and how you use
them versus using your shortform video pieces and why people
(20:34):
should, should dig into stories.
Sam (20:36):
If I go out in the morning before work and go for a run,
I'll throw a story up from that.
Sometimes, you know, when thedays are longer, I'll go for a
full hike before work.
And so, that's like midweekcontent, and then on the
weekends, pretty much guaranteedI'm out Saturday and Sunday
doing something.
And so I'll post a story setfrom each of those adventures.
And...
(20:56):
Yeah, my family watches them.
They get to see what I'm up to.
Lots of other people get to seewhat I'm up to.
Hopefully inspires people to,you know, spend lots of time
outside.
I enjoy posting them.
They're pretty easy to post.
To be fair, I say that when I dolike a full day adventure, it
probably does take me like anhour to post, which sometimes
I'm like, whoa, that time wentreally quickly.
(21:17):
You kind of lose track of time.
But yeah, I don't know.
It's, it's like, it lets merelive what I just did.
And I feel like it cements it inyour memory a bit more.
Ooh, chilly.
Robert (21:27):
Yeah.
That's really great insights forpeople to understand kind of the
way that like, Instagram doesit, but if you if you have a
story to tell, don't cutyourself off.
Yeah! Right?
Like, I know they say five, andit's great, and that's what
people watch, but honestly, Iclick through like, if there's a
ton of them there and it's aninteresting story to tell, do
it.
Sam (21:43):
But I mean, in saying that, if I post a single story clip,
just one, it probably gets fourtimes the views than if I post a
whole series.
Robert (21:53):
Oh, so people just watch the first one.
Sam (21:55):
No, no, no, like if I just post one individual story.
When you think about the storysets, there's still way more
views there, but like the oneindividual story compared to the
first slide of like a set, theindividual one would be like
four times more views than thefirst slide of a set.
Robert (22:12):
Oh, interesting.
Okay.
Sam (22:13):
I definitely think there is value in keeping stories light
but I just don't want to do it.
Do what feels good for you.
Robert (22:20):
But still being, judicious in that storytelling
piece where maybe don't showthat same clip of somebody
walking on a trail for twominutes.
Sam (22:26):
Yeah, exactly.
I'm a little conscious of it,but I'm not going to cut myself
short just because Instagramsays you should only do five
slides.
It's getting slippery.
Robert (22:37):
Yeah, it's getting slippery, it's getting cold.
There's a lot about Instagramand stories and trying to talk
about the social side of things.
But that's not the only thingthat I really like about coming
and having people to talk to onthese.
I also really love our storiesof adventure and travel because,
while I enjoy capturing thecontent and the video and the
photos and all that kind ofstuff, half the reason I'm out
there is to meet people and docool shit.
Sam (22:57):
Yeah.
Me too!
Robert (22:59):
I was like, it's great to have that byproduct and it
enables us to do cool things,but let's talk about your
adventure stories.
Like what's...
What's your moment that kind ofsticks out to you in your brain
in Banff?
What's your favorite story totell people?
Sam (23:11):
Okay, I'm gonna, I'm gonna riff off that a bit in something
that you said and that you lovedoing these things because you
get to get out there and you getto meet people and so one of my
my favorite things to do is, Ilove, love going trail running.
I'm not, I wouldn't say I'mparticularly good at it, but I
get a lot of enjoyment out ofit.
And like I was saying earlier, Ilove the peacefulness that comes
(23:32):
with the mountains.
And so, I love trail runningwith friends.
But, I also really enjoy goingby myself and whenever I go by
myself I'll pick a trail that Iknow I won't be the only person
out there and I have an in reachand, you know, I plan and I tell
people where I'm going, I try totake all the safety measures,
but still I don't want to gosomewhere totally remote by
(23:53):
myself and find myself introuble.
And so I tend to go on trailswhere I know I'll run into a few
people and, I don't know, oneof, one of my favorite things
when I'm out trail running bymyself is you're kind of like a
silent ninja.
So you have to yell at peoplewhen you're approaching, and
then usually you scare thembecause they think you're a
bear.
But I try to give them as muchnotice as I can.
And then normally I'll pass themand I'm like, oh, I'm so sorry,
(24:15):
and you'll normally end upchatting with them a little bit.
And, you know, I think one ofthe things I love the most is
people always seem surprised.
They're like, what is this smallAustralian girl doing all the
way out here in the CanadianRockies?
Robert (24:27):
And what's she doing creeping up on me suddenly at a
high rate of speed?
Sam (24:30):
And they always seem kind of impressed and I'm like, oh,
honestly, it's not thatimpressive.
But usually I am on like a multiday trail and they've got their
backpacks and I'm running it bymyself.
So I guess maybe it's a littlebit impressive.
You end up in a conversationwith them and, I don't know, I
think a lot of people don'trealize that living in Banff, it
is a reality for people.
I think for a lot of people itfeels like a fairy tale.
(24:51):
A big thing I love is justmeeting people on the trail and
getting to chat with them andjust sort of exchange stories.
But yeah, if I'm thinking aboutOh, my biggest, best adventure.
You can't put me on the spotlike this.
Robert (25:06):
Oh, you have so many.
Okay.
I'm going to, I'm going to bringone up for you that I think you
should tell.
It's my favorite.
And it's your bear moment.
Sam (25:14):
Yes.
Oh my goodness.
So it was my first season in theRockies and I just hit the
trails with Everything I had.
I hiked so much that summer.
I just did a bunch of stuff thatI had no experience in, had no
gear when I first got here, butI just hit the ground running.
And towards the end of theseason, I went with two of my
(25:36):
friends, and we went toKananaskis, we wanted to hike
Smutwood Peak.
And it was in the fall, it wasprobably late September, and we
knew there would be snow on thetrail.
But we kind of ended up in a, abit of a blizzard.
It was, it was pretty cold.
I had the right gear.
And we were hiking up and wewere just about to get to the
pass, where you then go over andcatch your first glimpse of the
(25:58):
lakes that lie below Smutwood.
And, yeah, we were just belowthe pass, my friends were ahead
of me, I was going a bit slowerthan them, it was freezing, I
had my head down, I had my polesin my hand, I had like four
jackets on with all the hoodsover my ears so I couldn't hear
anything, it was also windy ashell, and I'm just trudging
along, I'm like, I just gottaget to the pass, we'd already
decided we'd turn around justbecause of the bad weather, we
(26:21):
were in a blizzard, and soanyway, I know I'm nearly at the
pass and I look up at my friendsto see how far ahead they are,
And I pause and I'm looking atthem and one of them is like
motioning towards me, like cometowards me and I'm looking at
him.
I'm like, I don't need yourencouragement to get up here.
I'm sorry.
I'm a bit slower.
I was kind of annoyed about it.
(26:41):
And then I look closer and I'mlike, Oh.
Wow, he has bear spray in hishand.
Okay, okay, this changes things.
Now I understand what'shappening.
There is something behind me.
And I was like, I'm not going tolook because I don't really want
to know until I'm with them,which to me was my only real
safeguard.
Safety in numbers.
(27:02):
I have to get to them and thenI'll see what's behind me.
And so I put my head down andmove as fast as I can and I
catch up with them and thenthey're like, pull out your bear
spray and my hands were so cold,they were like claws, I couldn't
pull out my bear spray.
But they both had theirs and inthat moment I look behind me and
there's a mumma grizz and a cub,probably, at this point, 20, 30
(27:24):
meters behind us, just coming upthe trail, straight behind us.
And so we were like, Oh, what dowe do?
And we're like, maybe they don'tknow we're here, maybe it's
really windy.
They haven't heard us.
So we yell, we yell and yelluntil they react to just make
sure that they know we're thereand they look up at us.
The mom looks up at us and thenshe just puts her head down and
(27:45):
keeps going like she could notcare.
And we were like, okay, sothey're using the trail.
We're on the trail.
We're like, get off the trail.
And so we, we just make abeeline off the trail, but.
It snowed so much, and the snowis so soft, I get two steps off
the trail, and then I sink,waist deep in the snow, and my
friends have to haul me out, andand then we sort of keep going,
(28:07):
and we get far enough away, andI had my camera on me and my
friend goes, I think you canprobably take a photo, I think
we're safe enough.
And so I pull out my camera andI turn around and I take this
photo as they're going up andover the ridge.
And it is probably still one ofmy favorite photos of all time.
It's just this beautiful.
Two bears, in the snow, justthis moment, and this moment
(28:32):
that had so much chaos beforeit.
And it could have turned out sohorribly but we were just
grateful that it was fall theywere pretty fat, I don't think
they were looking for food, theywere just going on their way,
but, they were really notbothered by us, and so we let
them go on their way, and wewent back the way we came.
And then I remember this aswell, as we were hiking out,
(28:54):
there was a rainbow.
I was like, Oh wow.
And then as we were driving toleave you drive past Engadine
Lodge and that big field infront of it, and there was a
moose and her calf in the field.
And we were just like, what isthis day?
And so we never made it toSmutwood Peak, but it is 100%,
I'm glad you brought it up, oneof my most memorable days in the
(29:16):
mountains.
Robert (29:18):
That is magical.
And this view is spectacularright now
Sam (29:21):
I might be frozen but at least there's views.
Robert (29:24):
And so worth it.
Even a view we've seen a lot isstill super cool like this.
Sam (29:29):
Oh, I was just gonna say, again, I do often see a lot of
bears and wildlife, and I put itdown again to just the amount of
time that I do spend outside,and I love early mornings.
Which is when wildlife is mostactive and people are not.
So I go out in the morning toavoid the people and it often
means I get some, prettyincredible wildlife encounters
to go with it.
Robert (29:50):
That was actually, it's something we haven't talked
about much yet, but some of thetips you have for capturing, the
best moments and seeingwildlife, doing anything like
that, what would be your topthree you would give to
somebody?
Sam (30:02):
Okay, so, in Banff, there's some really cool webcams.
And I think I'm possibly theirnumber one user.
I live in a basement.
So it's hard for me to know whatthe weather is doing outside
without me actually getting outand leaving my house.
And early in the morning, I'msometimes a little hesitant.
If I've looked at the weathernight before and it could go
either way.
And so I check the webcams.
(30:23):
And you can get this, almostreal time sense of what's going
on outside.
And the gondola one for me is,my favourite for just around
Banff.
Because at night you can see thenorthern lights in it.
In the morning you can seewhat's, how sunrise is starting
to gear up.
And, I'm able to do those thingswithout having to get out, get
dressed.
(30:44):
But, if I see something good,you've never seen someone get
dressed so quickly.
And I'll be out the door.
And so, I find the webcams arereally good.
The one at Lake Louise is alsogreat.
And there's a really great oneat Emerald Lake if you're,
planning to head out there.
Cause the thing with the Rockiesis the weather varies so much
between Banff, between LakeLouise, between Emerald Lake.
It could be a totally differentthing.
And so, I always check thewebcams before I go, just to get
(31:06):
a sense of what's going on.
What you're in for.
So I find that to be a reallygreat tool.
And then yeah, early mornings isprobably my number one piece of
advice in the summer when I sayearly, it's really bloody early.
The days are really long.
So sunrise is 5am.
But you want to be out beforethat to get the really nice
light.
And so yeah, you'll often findthat means you're granted a
(31:30):
place all to yourself becauseyou're the one who has gone to
the effort of waking up at thatungodly hour but I often find it
pays off.
And then if I was to give athird tip, I think, yeah, just
think about the things that youenjoy doing.
And capture content throughthose things, like I said
earlier, I try not to go out ofmy way just to get content.
(31:54):
I mean, I will always in thewinter on a minus 40 day go out
and throw boiling water in theair so I can make snow.
I definitely am guilty of goingout just to capture content for
that.
But I also think it's reallycool.
But yeah, thinking about whatyou like to do, what you enjoy
doing and just capturing contentwhen you do those things.
But, but also at the same time,you don't want to go out and do
(32:19):
something that you love doing,but then spend your whole time
capturing content that you don'treally have a good time.
And so that's why I like shortform video because you can go
out, you can capture something.
It could be the first fiveminutes.
You stop, you take a quick videoand then you run or you hike,
and then you don't take anotherone until another few hours
(32:39):
later, and again, it's 30seconds of your day to catch the
next video.
You don't have to spend all thistime setting up the perfect
shot.
You can just capture them as yougo.
But don't spend your whole timejust capturing content, cause
then you've gone out to capturecontent, rather than do the
thing that you wanted to do.
Robert (32:56):
Does that mean that when you're out, you're not actively
always looking for somethinglike that?
Or is that always somethingthat's kind of niggling at your
brain of Oh, this would make agreat video.
Or are you able to shut that offand go, These are the times I'm
going to do it?
Sam (33:07):
I like to think yes.
And I also think that I havebeen shooting these tiny little
clips for so long that it's kindof become a second nature that I
can just whip up my phone andgrab something and I can look
back at it later and be like,Ah, sweet, I got something good.
And it didn't take me 50 shotsto get it.
I kind of try and get it reallyquickly.
(33:28):
And I think it depends on whatI'm doing as well.
If it's a really long day, thenyeah, I like to keep shooting to
a minimum because you don't wantto lengthen the day even
further.
One of my favorite trails to dois the Little Beehive.
I know people are like, whatabout the Big Beehive and the
Devil's Thumb?
Also great, Little Beehive, loweffort, amazing view.
(33:49):
And so often I'll go up and dothat after work, and I'll go up
and I'll probably want to catchthe sunset in a video.
And I'll wait for that moment.
But then before and after, I'llhave just sat and enjoyed the
sunset.
And you know, often after Ialways like to try and
consciously take some time tojust enjoy the moment.
(34:10):
So it's not just about capturingcontent.
Robert (34:13):
You're able to reflect a little and breathe a little and
not just always have your brainracing with recording.
Sam (34:18):
Yeah.
Robert (34:19):
That's beautiful.
Sam (34:19):
Yeah.
Robert (34:20):
Little Beehive, Big Beehive, all those are hikes in
Lake Louise that you hit bygoing up towards the Lake Agnes
Teahouse.
Yeah.
And they're beautiful.
Little Beehive is a super doablelittle hike for people who are
of a moderate fitness level.
Sam (34:32):
Yeah, definitely say still moderate, but the effort verse
reward on that one is like,it's, it's almost unbeatable in
Banff, I think.
Robert (34:40):
We're coming close to the end of the hike.
I feel like it's a good time forus to kind of wrap things up for
people.
What gear do you use?
Because I love that you have asuper minimal setup.
Sam (34:50):
I literally do.
I have an iPhone 11 Pro.
So not the new model.
I am thinking about upgradingbecause the stabilization in the
iPhone 14, is pretty good in the11, but it's way better in the
14.
And there's also like, betternight modes for, I'm not very
good at capturing the northernlights, but I'm obsessed.
And I think with the new phones,there's a night mode in time
(35:11):
lapse.
And so, maybe one day soon I'llupgrade, but the 11 Pro does me
well.
So that's, yeah, mainly my mainpiece.
And then.
I do have a camera that I'llshoot with occasionally.
I've had it for many years andit's been all over the world
with me.
It's an Olympus OM D E M5.
I don't even know what it is!Anyway, it's a mirrorless,
(35:33):
right?
Yeah, it's a mirrorless.
I think Robert knows more than Ido.
But it does me well and I'vealways got the manual mode set
to northern lights capturebecause that's usually what I
use it when I go out to try andtake photos of the northern
lights.
But I have many friends that doa much better job at that than I
do.
But I love, love the northernlights.
And, yeah, that's kind of...
(35:53):
Pretty much it.
Robert (35:55):
Which I so love, to be totally honest.
As we're hiking today, because Ididn't know if we were going to
do the video portion of thiswhen we got there, I have an SLR
and, like, two lenses and atripod.
Yeah.
I have, like, a 25 poundbackpack on.
Yeah.
And your kit is three pounds?
Sam (36:10):
Yeah.
Total?
I actually, yeah, so I actually,I had a really old iPhone.
I think I had like a five orsomething for the longest time.
And when I went to upgrade it, Iwas like, okay, I'm going to
invest.
And I'm going to get the newestone at the time because I really
wanted to get into trailrunning.
And I was like, I can't take mycamera trail running, but I know
I'm going to go to thesebeautiful places and I want to
(36:32):
still be able to, capture thesescenes.
And so I was like, okay, I'mgoing to get the best iPhone
that I can.
And so that was three or fouryears ago now.
It's still going strong.
It's been dunked in lakes andwe'll go into that, but they're
pretty tough.
And, and so that was kind ofwhat spurred me.
And then that, that kind ofreally shifted me figuring out
(36:52):
that I could still go out and,you know, capture these places,
but be really lightweight so Icould go further on the trails.
I try to keep it light and then,if I am specifically going out
to shoot content, then I'lloften take my camera as well
just to get some shots, but I'mpretty terrible at taking
photos.
You'll find on my iPhone that Ithink I have, like 20, 000
(37:15):
videos and maybe I still have alot of photos, but maybe like
10, 000 photos?
Anyway, But yeah, very simple,very basic.
You don't need anything crazy.
I shoot on my phone in HD60.
I don't shoot 4K because ittakes up so much space.
Occasionally I will if I'mworking with a brand so, I just,
yeah.
(37:35):
HD60 you can switch yourInstagram to upload full quality
videos, make sure you go dothat.
And that's kind of...
It.
Robert (37:44):
I so appreciate this, Sam.
Thank you for coming out on arainy, rainy, rainy night.
I am soaked.
Sam (37:51):
As am I.
Robert (37:52):
But yeah I really appreciate it and you're
spectacular.
Where can people follow yourcontent?
Sam (37:56):
Yeah, so you can find me on Instagram and TikTok.
My handle is the same on both.
It's Samantha L.
Reid.
R E I D.
The important distinction.
Yeah.
And yeah, I post prettyregularly on those channels.
So, yeah.
Robert (38:11):
What can people kind of expect to see when they come see
you?
Sam (38:14):
It's a lot of outdoor adventures.
Sometimes it might seem a littleunreasonable.
The amount of things I do.
I also think it's a littleunreasonable.
I don't know how I do it.
But I am just always out gettingafter it.
And especially in thesummertime.
And then in the winter I have toget a little more creative in
how I spend my time outside.
I'm still coming to love thewinters, I would say.
(38:35):
I'm always looking for fun waysto get out.
Cause I'm less motivated to getoutside in the winter when it's
cold and snowy and just, it'shard.
You have to put a lot of clotheson.
And so, yeah, it's generally alloutdoor things.
All my outdoor endeavors,hiking, trail running, paddle
boarding, biking cross countryskiing.
(38:58):
Jumping in lakes.
Falling into giant snow banks.
Yes, seeking out wildlife tolook at from a safe distance.
Yeah, all that sort of goodmountain stuff.
Robert (39:07):
Oh, that's fantastic.
Awesome.
Thanks, Sam.
Sam (39:11):
Thank you.
Robert (39:19):
Thank you so much for tuning in, everybody, and Sam,
thank you so much for sharingyour knowledge and insights with
all of us.
It is greatly appreciated, and Ihad such a great time hanging
out on Tunnel Mountain Trailwith you in the rain.
It was a fabulous hike and agreat night.
If you really enjoyed today'sepisode, definitely let me know
that.
Reach out to me on Instagram atRobertMasseyPhotography or
(39:41):
through my website atrobertmasseyphotography.
ca and definitely let Sam knowas well.
Let her know how much youappreciate the insights that
she's sharing, the educationaltips, and she has some fantastic
stories and adventures that areup on her Instagram and TikTok
accounts.
So definitely go and give her afollow there and follow along
with these spectacularadventures that she goes on in
(40:02):
one of the most beautiful placesin the world.
All right.
Let me know if there's anythingyou want to hear about or pieces
of information that you wouldlike to learn more about.
Reach out to me on Instagram oron my website and yeah, get out
there, explore this big,beautiful world of ours.
Let's adventure.
Bye for now.
Welcome back to the podcast, everybody.
I'm Robert Massey.
This is the travel and adventurephotography school.
And today on the podcast, wehave a super special interview
with the incredible Sam Reid.
Sam is a local content creator,short form video specialist,
adventurer, athlete,storyteller.
Sam's just an incredible personto hang out with and we went out
(00:22):
for a hike on Tunnel Mountain ina torrential downpour to talk
about creating short form videocontent and using the stories
function on Instagram and how toreally help enhance what you are
already doing in your work bycreating short form video and
some tips and tricks for doingthis with a really minimalist
setup so you can move fast.
(00:42):
All right, let's get out on thetrails of Tunnel Mountain, just
at the edge of Banff.
Awesome.
All right.
Welcome back everybody.
I'm Robert Massey.
This is the Travel and AdventurePhotography School.
I am with Sam Reid today.
(01:04):
Hey, say hi, Sam.
Sam (01:05):
Hi, everyone.
Robert (01:06):
We are on Tunnel Mountain Trail right now.
We had other plans, but theweather got a better of us, but
a rainy hike in Banff.
It is not the worst thing in theworld, especially to go up to a
nice, beautiful viewpoint at thetop.
Yeah, welcome back.
This is gonna be a lot of fun.
So, Sam, do you want tointroduce yourself to everybody?
Sam (01:24):
Yeah, sure.
My name is Sam, or Samantha, buteveryone calls me Sam.
I originate from Australia, butI've been living in Banff for
five years now.
And, yeah, I have a lot ofpassion when it comes to social
media, short form video sothat's, my main form of content,
that's kind of it.
Robert (01:44):
Okay, Sam's underselling herself, as she typically does.
Sam is a remarkable creative,especially when it comes to like
stories and short form video andI think has probably explored.
80 percent of the trails inBanff at this point and does
some like remarkable, remarkablethings.
And on top of that Olympian.
Sam (02:02):
Oh yeah.
Robert (02:03):
Remarkable human being.
Don't undersell yourself.
Sam (02:06):
Sometimes I forget about that.
I am, I am a two time Olympian.
Very out of my comfort zone inthe mountains.
I was a synchronized swimmer.
So water based.
But yeah, now I spend all myfree time adventuring in the
Rockies.
Robert (02:17):
So let's start a little bit about.
What do you work on right now?
What do you do in the contentcreator sphere?
Sam (02:23):
Yeah I would say, if we're talking platforms, my primary
platforms are Instagram andTikTok and yeah, I have a Oh,
I'm getting out of breath,Robert.
We need to slow down
Robert (02:35):
The problem with us, we go a little too fast.
Sam (02:37):
I know, we feed off each other.
Yeah, so I would say, my primaryfocus is the short form video
space.
So I really, really enjoycreating videos.
I feel like I enjoyed it beforeInstagram came out with Reels
and that sort of thing.
Prior to Reels, I used to alwaysmake stories on Instagram, and
they were always little videoclips.
(02:58):
And so when Instagram releasedReels, I was super stoked.
And I also had like hundreds ofhours of video already.
And so I was able to like jumpright on that new feature.
And I think that's sort of,yeah, where I was able to really
start growing in that space.
I'll dabble in photography everynow and then.
But, yeah, I definitely preferthe short form video.
(03:20):
Feels a little more, like,casual and just easier for me to
create, I find, if we're talkingphotography.
I love doing it, I love gettinga beautiful shot, but I spend a
lot of time overthinking it.
And I hate spending my timeoverthinking things, and so, I
just find short form video a loteasier for me to create.
And, you know, I love havingthese little memories of all the
(03:41):
adventures that I go on.
And I think video is a really,really good way to document
that.
Robert (03:46):
I think that's a great place to jump into one of my
favorite ways to go back andlook at things is, what is that
first adventure that you reallyremember creating short form
video or that you captured onyour phone?
Sam (03:57):
Oh! I mean, I will remember the first reel that went viral.
I just posted this pan of LakeLouise.
Honestly, nothing special.
It was a beautiful day.
There was a beautifulreflection.
But I think it was like twoweeks into reels being released
and the video just went viral.
Over a million views.
And I was just like, what thehell is happening?
(04:18):
And so I was thinking aboutthat.
It's pretty crazy.
But then following that, I wenton some really great backpacking
trips that summer and I justclipped them all together.
And made quick 15 second videosout of them.
Stuck it with a good song.
That's one of my favouriteparts, is finding the perfect
song to go with the videos.
I really enjoy that when youfind something that you're like,
(04:38):
oh, it's so good.
I just think it adds so muchvalue.
There were two backpacking tripsI went on that summer.
They were both out in thePurcells.
So out near Bugaboos, that sortof thing.
There's lots of greatbackpacking out there.
And, it's fairly untouchedcompared to the Rockies, so,
yeah, I did some great trips outthere, and got some great
videos!
Robert (04:59):
That sounds wonderful, and the bugs are absolutely
stunning! So, we'll get into,talking short form, talking all
that kind of stuff.
Giving advice to actual peoplein a minute, but my favourite
part about all this is, thestories that come from the
adventures that we have, and thetravels that we have.
And so, we've talked a lotabout, like, your love for
Banff, and your love for beingin this place.
(05:19):
What is it?
What, what drives you into themountains the way that you do?
Sam (05:23):
Oh! I don't know, I always try and think about this,
because, yeah, I grew up in Auswe have, I hiked a bit, but not
a lot.
And then, when I finishedcompeting I was kind of, seeking
out ways to fill my time,because all of a sudden I had
all this free time that I usedto spend training.
I was going to school, but inthe holidays I like, started
(05:45):
traveling and the first big tripI took after Synchro, I, I
traveled a lot with Synchro, butthe first big trip I took after
Synchro was to Nepal.
And so I went to the Himalayas.
I didn't actually hike in theHimalayas.
I just took this trip to Nepal,but we spent time in the
foothills and I did this flightover Everest and it was amazing.
(06:06):
In that moment, like fell inlove with the mountains, no
specific mountains, justmountains in general.
And I went home to Aus andstarted hiking a lot more than I
had been.
And it's mainly just rainforestsand waterfalls and not big
peaks, but it was still a greatway to spend my time.
And then, when I finisheduniversity, I took a year off
(06:27):
and went traveling and on mytravels I came to Canada.
My parents had actually said tome years before they'd come to
Banff and they were like youwould love Banff.
I always say I feel like they'deat those words nowadays.
I don't think they ever thoughtI'd come here and never leave.
But because they mentioned it Ihad to come to Banff and I
planned this trip from Vancouverto Calgary.
(06:49):
10 days, I think I hiked 8 ofthe 10 days.
Did these like epic hikes inGlacier National Park.
And then into Banff.
Did a bunch of big hikes as welland I just loved it.
Just thought it was one of thegreatest places on the planet.
And yeah, then I went home andthen I moved back out here a
couple years later.
(07:09):
And I don't know, I think thething about Banff is You feel so
privileged to live here.
So many people want to visit andwe get to live here, which is
crazy in itself, but it alsomeans that it can be super busy.
But I always find on my weekendsin the summer if you pick the
right trail and you're willingto go far enough, you can get
(07:30):
these trails all to yourself.
And I think that's somethingthat I find so special about
Banff is, you know, there's somany people here, but you can
hit the trails.
And feel like you're all alone.
Like, you're just out in thewilderness.
And I don't know, I think that'ssomething I seek out more than I
realize.
Just having time in nature.
It often comes with, you know,25 kilometers of suffering.
(07:54):
Whatever.
But those blissful moments wheneverything feels so peaceful and
quiet.
It's just, there's somethingreally special about it.
Robert (08:02):
That's beautiful.
It's so totally true, right?
Yeah, everyone's like it's sobusy, but it's also a place of
extreme beauty and quiet andyeah, you go at the right time.
Like, we had most of the trailto Castle to ourselves last
year.
Yeah.
Until the summit, where therewas five
Sam (08:17):
other people?
Yeah.
Like, It's like, it's crazy.
Absolutely
Robert (08:21):
amazing.
That is coming down now.
So, you remember that moment youhad your first, viral video?
Did you ever imagine wanting toget another one of those, or
grow that into something else?
Or was it just...
You loved doing it and you justwanted to keep producing it.
What kinda happened there?
Sam (08:38):
Yeah, I guess it's funny when you sort of really try and
think about it, because there issomething, even if you try and
deny it, when you get that manyviews, that many comments, that
many likes, there's somethingthat just feels really, I don't
know, I think, like gratifying?
Even though it's like, you don'twant to base your worth on
numbers and things like that,like, it's just this.
(09:00):
Crazy space in social media.
What does it really mean?
But it definitely makes you feela certain way and it's like
really exciting.
I really try and make sure thatwhen I When I'm going out to
shoot content that it's not theprimary purpose for me being out
there.
I really try and find balanceand I always try and ask myself
(09:21):
like Would I be doing this evenif I didn't have my phone to
capture video?
And most of the time, I'm prettysure it's yes, I would be.
I mean, who really knows, butthat's how I like to look at it.
And so I really try to find andkeep that balance.
It's really important to me.
Especially, I work a full timejob, so social media isn't my
(09:42):
primary income, it's only a verysmall part of it, and so, when I
go and shoot videos, it's on my,like, downtime, it's on my
weekends, and, so I want to makesure that I'm not putting a
whole lot of pressure on myselfto the point where the weekends
become work.
And so, that's kind of how I tryto approach...
Videos and content creation, butthen sometimes I do take on
(10:06):
partnerships, which is obviouslywork And so I I do give up some
of my weekends for it.
But I still try to be reallyselective with the partnerships
I take on to make sure that theydo really just fit into my
lifestyle and I don't have to goout of my way to get the content
needed for it If that makessense.
Robert (10:24):
That makes total sense.
How do you go about thatdecision making process?
Because it could be really hardIf a brand like Google
approaches you.
Here's this big, hugepartnership.
But how do you decide if thataligns with what you want to be
doing and who you want to workwith?
Sam (10:37):
Well, I'm yet to hear from Google.
But I think it would bedependent on the brief.
Cause I find it really hard tocreate content when it doesn't
feel genuine to me.
Like get really stressed aboutit.
I'll go back and forth.
I'll spend all this time that Idon't need to be spending on it.
And then for me, I'm like, thatwas not worth whatever they're
paying me.
It's not a good use of my time.
(10:58):
I think if the brands come witha brief and it's related to the
mountains and the lifestyle thatI lead, and it feels like a good
fit and that I don't have to doa lot to incorporate it into
what I'm already doing.
That's kind of how I like toapproach things.
Robert (11:13):
That's a good way to approach it though.
Do you ever struggle with that?
Have you had a brand approachyou where it's like, maybe,
maybe?
Sam (11:19):
I think, yeah, when brands first started approaching me, it
was just really exciting.
And I would say a lot ofcreators go through this.
It's like, a brand approachesyou and it's not even paid, but
they're going to gift yousomething and it feels really
good that a brand wants to workwith you and they see value in
what you create.
And so, you know, I definitelythink at the start, they would
have been small things, but Iwould have accepted them and put
(11:42):
them in my channel and probablyfelt pretty shit about it
because I was like, this doesn'tfeel genuine to me, but I've
already agreed to it.
I've signed a contract.
I can't get out of it.
And so you have to deliver.
And so I think I made thatmistake a handful of times and
then.
I have been really, yeah, reallyconscious of those decisions
(12:02):
ever since.
Robert (12:04):
So what would you say to, there's a lot of new
creators, a lot of peoplebreaking into the space who
listen to this.
How would you navigate thoseconversations now a little
differently?
Sam (12:13):
I think...
Especially if it's not paid, notthat there's anything wrong with
that.
I think it is a good way to getexperience and sort of break
into the industry.
If it's an exchange of productand there's a similar value, if
you're like, okay, I'm gonnacreate a reel for you, I would
charge this much for a reel.
Your product is worth equal.
(12:34):
Then maybe that is a goodexchange.
But if you're getting a productthat's worth nowhere near the
value of what you're deliveringfor them, then really think
about that and really think, isthis giving me value as much or
are they just taking a whole lotof value out of this and I'm not
really getting much as a result.
But then you know, early on youwant to build a portfolio.
(12:57):
And so.
It is important to takeopportunities, but I would just
be selective with them and I'mvery grateful that I do get
offered some amazingpartnerships, just from what I
believe to be, is beinggenuinely myself and I think
that's something that a lot ofbrands seek out these days
because consumers see a lot ofvalue in genuine people.
(13:18):
They trust people more than theytrust brands.
And so you can just be true toyourself in any partnerships
that you take on.
Then I think you'll sort of besuccessful.
Robert (13:29):
I love that.
That harkens back a lot tosomething we talked about on the
podcast, two, three episodes agonow, which was taking on work
for free versus saying no to it.
And so go back, give a listen tothat.
I think that was episode 88.
Yeah, that's a good point.
You need to find places thatalign with you, and audiences
that they have that align withyou, that'll help you with your
future work, and there's allsorts of pieces that have to go
in there.
So, that ties in really wellwith what we should talk about
(13:50):
next, which is actually creatingshort form video.
So I think you're such afabulous example of somebody who
makes really good short formvideo that isn't just a bunch of
random pieces that are strungtogether, but there's a story
arc, typically, withineverything that you're posting,
which is really difficult to doin, what, 10 to 15 seconds?
(14:10):
So...
If someone's looking to startmaking short form content right
now, where do they begin?
What would be your suggestionfor a point to start, because it
looks really intimidating fromthe outside.
Sam (14:22):
I would just say, when you go out and you go to take a
photo, take a video.
The way I kind of tell storiesis not in every piece of
content, but I will share, likea hike, and I'll share it from
start to finish, so you can sortof take them on the journey.
But I like to incorporate, it'snot just beautiful scenic
vistas, it's also, feet walkingacross the trail, and all those
(14:46):
little pieces as well I think iswhat brings it together and
tells a story.
Because, I mean don't get mewrong, there's definitely value
in shooting beautiful vistas.
Like, when you get a beautifulsunset or something like that,
just that single shot.
can be all you need and, I lovesharing things like that and
they can do really well onsocial media.
But yeah, I also love to share ajourney that I've been on.
(15:09):
And then I can look back at itand be like, Oh my god, that
hike was so fun.
And then I also love, like Ilove love, doing, like, wrap
videos, so, an end of summervideo, or an end of fall video,
or an end of the year video,where I, to some extent,
chaotically piece together a tonof videos to a really fun song.
(15:31):
But for me, when I watch itback, it's just this, like,
beautiful memory of that pointin time.
And I get a lot of joy out ofthat, and that's the, the main
thing that's important to me.
Because it brings you joy, it'ssomething that you're, you're
going to want to postsignificantly more.
Yeah.
I like that.
Robert (15:49):
So we have a starting point now for people.
It's, when you're headed out,it's not about looking for a
perfect moment.
That's one of the traps that Ifall into as a photographer.
Yes.
It's like, this has to be...
Perfect, or it's really notworth doing, which is not at all
what short form video is.
Sam (16:02):
Yeah, and that's what I love about short form video,
because I completely agree.
When I try to take photos, youget caught up in making sure
everything is just right.
But if it's a video, and, youknow, maybe you only need half a
second of that video, you've gotthe shot.
And also, some of the leastperfect moments make for the
(16:23):
most fun videos.
I always love it, every singlewinter, I'll share a like, cross
country skiing fail video.
Personally I think it'shilarious.
I started cross country skiing,Oh, this will probably be my
third season now, and you know,huge learning curve to start.
I think I fell over every singletime I went out, and I'm pretty
good at it now.
But yeah, I think it's finding abalance between you know,
(16:46):
getting those perfect andimperfect moments.
Another thing with me is I dojust genuinely spend so much
time outside and because shortform video is just on your
phone, I always have it with meand so I might be out for a 6am
sunrise run before work and itcould be the most spectacular
sunrise you've ever seen and Iwas out at Vermillion Lakes
(17:07):
because it's just what I do andso it means I am able to get
some really epic content.
Almost by accident.
But the cool thing about shortform video, you just whip your
phone out of your pocket, in themoment, and it's something you
didn't expect, but it's likethis incredible, incredible,
moment in time that you wereable to capture, because.
(17:28):
You were running, you weren'trunning with your camera, and
so, you can just quickly snapsomething and it might, might be
something totally incredible.
Robert (17:36):
That is a very good point because I do find that it
a little bit of a trap herewhere, you know, we're in Banff
So you can kind of make easycontent no matter where you are
Yeah, but you can kind of dothat anywhere in the world.
You just have to be out in itYeah, you have to be actually
experiencing something You can'tsit at home waiting for the
perfect moment to come upon you.
You actually have to be out inthe thing Yeah to have it
(17:57):
happen.
Sam (17:58):
And absolutely, the Rockies are incredible and it does feel
like, sometimes I'm like oh,it's easy, look where I live,
but also we're hiking in therain right now, like, those
perfect conditions, they don'tcome often and so, you know, and
you can't plan them so, yeah, Ithink just spending a lot, if,
if you enjoy it, which I reallydo, spending a lot of time
(18:20):
outside is, A great way to getreally great content.
Robert (18:25):
What's your, what do you find working right now when you
shoot that short form video whenyou build it?
Sam (18:30):
Trending songs.
I think are a big thing onInstagram.
I actually don't know how tofind trending songs on TikTok
anymore.
I feel like it used to be easy,it's not anymore.
But you'll see, like, the samesong come up again and again.
But it's super easy to do onInstagram.
When you see the little song atthe bottom, it has a little
arrow pointing on an angle.
That means it's trending.
(18:50):
And using trending songs,especially if they've only been
used a handful of time alreadyit can be super valuable because
as they get more popular.
People click into them.
If you were early on the trend,and it did quite well, you'll be
at the top of the feed.
And so, more people will click.
They'll see your video, they'llclick through and then you just
(19:12):
gain traction that way.
Robert (19:14):
That's a huge piece of advice.
Sam (19:15):
Yeah, and I mean, honestly, I find the trending songs are
great, majority of the time.
They're trending for a reason.
I'm also a sucker for a catchypop tune.
So I'm always happy to getbehind a new trending song.
I've definitely noticed thathaving TikTok and Instagram,
they're two very differentplatforms, and there's really a
lot of value in both of them.
But you create very similarcontent for them.
(19:37):
I wouldn't say create exactlythe same.
I'm a lot more relaxed on myTikTok.
Even though I have a similarfollowing size to my Instagram,
I just feel like there's lesseyes on me on TikTok.
Less pressure than what I feelwhen it comes to Instagram
because I've had that platformfor so much longer And I feel
like people have an expectationof me on there.
Were as TikTok.
(19:58):
I'm like, I don't even know whothese people are.
My mom's not on here.
I don't need to worry about whatshe's thinking And so yeah, I
definitely would say if you'recreating short form video, do it
for both platforms
Robert (20:11):
Oh, hey, we're here.
This is definitely the wettest Ihave ever come up Tunnel in.
Beautiful view of town.
Absolutely stunning.
Ok yeah, yep, I'm good.
I feel like that's a good pointto switch back over to talking
about the other piece that youreally like, which is stories.
And what it is about them thatyou really enjoy and how you use
them versus using your shortform video pieces and why people
(20:34):
should, should dig into stories.
Sam (20:36):
If I go out in the morning before work and go for a run,
I'll throw a story up from that.
Sometimes, you know, when thedays are longer, I'll go for a
full hike before work.
And so, that's like midweekcontent, and then on the
weekends, pretty much guaranteedI'm out Saturday and Sunday
doing something.
And so I'll post a story setfrom each of those adventures.
And...
(20:56):
Yeah, my family watches them.
They get to see what I'm up to.
Lots of other people get to seewhat I'm up to.
Hopefully inspires people to,you know, spend lots of time
outside.
I enjoy posting them.
They're pretty easy to post.
To be fair, I say that when I dolike a full day adventure, it
probably does take me like anhour to post, which sometimes
I'm like, whoa, that time wentreally quickly.
(21:17):
You kind of lose track of time.
But yeah, I don't know.
It's, it's like, it lets merelive what I just did.
And I feel like it cements it inyour memory a bit more.
Ooh, chilly.
Robert (21:27):
Yeah.
That's really great insights forpeople to understand kind of the
way that like, Instagram doesit, but if you if you have a
story to tell, don't cutyourself off.
Yeah! Right?
Like, I know they say five, andit's great, and that's what
people watch, but honestly, Iclick through like, if there's a
ton of them there and it's aninteresting story to tell, do
it.
Sam (21:43):
But I mean, in saying that, if I post a single story clip,
just one, it probably gets fourtimes the views than if I post a
whole series.
Robert (21:53):
Oh, so people just watch the first one.
Sam (21:55):
No, no, no, like if I just post one individual story.
When you think about the storysets, there's still way more
views there, but like the oneindividual story compared to the
first slide of like a set, theindividual one would be like
four times more views than thefirst slide of a set.
Robert (22:12):
Oh, interesting.
Okay.
Sam (22:13):
I definitely think there is value in keeping stories light
but I just don't want to do it.
Do what feels good for you.
Robert (22:20):
But still being, judicious in that storytelling
piece where maybe don't showthat same clip of somebody
walking on a trail for twominutes.
Sam (22:26):
Yeah, exactly.
I'm a little conscious of it,but I'm not going to cut myself
short just because Instagramsays you should only do five
slides.
It's getting slippery.
Robert (22:37):
Yeah, it's getting slippery, it's getting cold.
There's a lot about Instagramand stories and trying to talk
about the social side of things.
But that's not the only thingthat I really like about coming
and having people to talk to onthese.
I also really love our storiesof adventure and travel because,
while I enjoy capturing thecontent and the video and the
photos and all that kind ofstuff, half the reason I'm out
there is to meet people and docool shit.
Sam (22:57):
Yeah.
Me too!
Robert (22:59):
I was like, it's great to have that byproduct and it
enables us to do cool things,but let's talk about your
adventure stories.
Like what's...
What's your moment that kind ofsticks out to you in your brain
in Banff?
What's your favorite story totell people?
Sam (23:11):
Okay, I'm gonna, I'm gonna riff off that a bit in something
that you said and that you lovedoing these things because you
get to get out there and you getto meet people and so one of my
my favorite things to do is, Ilove, love going trail running.
I'm not, I wouldn't say I'mparticularly good at it, but I
get a lot of enjoyment out ofit.
And like I was saying earlier, Ilove the peacefulness that comes
(23:32):
with the mountains.
And so, I love trail runningwith friends.
But, I also really enjoy goingby myself and whenever I go by
myself I'll pick a trail that Iknow I won't be the only person
out there and I have an in reachand, you know, I plan and I tell
people where I'm going, I try totake all the safety measures,
but still I don't want to gosomewhere totally remote by
(23:53):
myself and find myself introuble.
And so I tend to go on trailswhere I know I'll run into a few
people and, I don't know, oneof, one of my favorite things
when I'm out trail running bymyself is you're kind of like a
silent ninja.
So you have to yell at peoplewhen you're approaching, and
then usually you scare thembecause they think you're a
bear.
But I try to give them as muchnotice as I can.
And then normally I'll pass themand I'm like, oh, I'm so sorry,
(24:15):
and you'll normally end upchatting with them a little bit.
And, you know, I think one ofthe things I love the most is
people always seem surprised.
They're like, what is this smallAustralian girl doing all the
way out here in the CanadianRockies?
Robert (24:27):
And what's she doing creeping up on me suddenly at a
high rate of speed?
Sam (24:30):
And they always seem kind of impressed and I'm like, oh,
honestly, it's not thatimpressive.
But usually I am on like a multiday trail and they've got their
backpacks and I'm running it bymyself.
So I guess maybe it's a littlebit impressive.
You end up in a conversationwith them and, I don't know, I
think a lot of people don'trealize that living in Banff, it
is a reality for people.
I think for a lot of people itfeels like a fairy tale.
(24:51):
A big thing I love is justmeeting people on the trail and
getting to chat with them andjust sort of exchange stories.
But yeah, if I'm thinking aboutOh, my biggest, best adventure.
You can't put me on the spotlike this.
Robert (25:06):
Oh, you have so many.
Okay.
I'm going to, I'm going to bringone up for you that I think you
should tell.
It's my favorite.
And it's your bear moment.
Sam (25:14):
Yes.
Oh my goodness.
So it was my first season in theRockies and I just hit the
trails with Everything I had.
I hiked so much that summer.
I just did a bunch of stuff thatI had no experience in, had no
gear when I first got here, butI just hit the ground running.
And towards the end of theseason, I went with two of my
(25:36):
friends, and we went toKananaskis, we wanted to hike
Smutwood Peak.
And it was in the fall, it wasprobably late September, and we
knew there would be snow on thetrail.
But we kind of ended up in a, abit of a blizzard.
It was, it was pretty cold.
I had the right gear.
And we were hiking up and wewere just about to get to the
pass, where you then go over andcatch your first glimpse of the
(25:58):
lakes that lie below Smutwood.
And, yeah, we were just belowthe pass, my friends were ahead
of me, I was going a bit slowerthan them, it was freezing, I
had my head down, I had my polesin my hand, I had like four
jackets on with all the hoodsover my ears so I couldn't hear
anything, it was also windy ashell, and I'm just trudging
along, I'm like, I just gottaget to the pass, we'd already
decided we'd turn around justbecause of the bad weather, we
(26:21):
were in a blizzard, and soanyway, I know I'm nearly at the
pass and I look up at my friendsto see how far ahead they are,
And I pause and I'm looking atthem and one of them is like
motioning towards me, like cometowards me and I'm looking at
him.
I'm like, I don't need yourencouragement to get up here.
I'm sorry.
I'm a bit slower.
I was kind of annoyed about it.
(26:41):
And then I look closer and I'mlike, Oh.
Wow, he has bear spray in hishand.
Okay, okay, this changes things.
Now I understand what'shappening.
There is something behind me.
And I was like, I'm not going tolook because I don't really want
to know until I'm with them,which to me was my only real
safeguard.
Safety in numbers.
(27:02):
I have to get to them and thenI'll see what's behind me.
And so I put my head down andmove as fast as I can and I
catch up with them and thenthey're like, pull out your bear
spray and my hands were so cold,they were like claws, I couldn't
pull out my bear spray.
But they both had theirs and inthat moment I look behind me and
there's a mumma grizz and a cub,probably, at this point, 20, 30
(27:24):
meters behind us, just coming upthe trail, straight behind us.
And so we were like, Oh, what dowe do?
And we're like, maybe they don'tknow we're here, maybe it's
really windy.
They haven't heard us.
So we yell, we yell and yelluntil they react to just make
sure that they know we're thereand they look up at us.
The mom looks up at us and thenshe just puts her head down and
(27:45):
keeps going like she could notcare.
And we were like, okay, sothey're using the trail.
We're on the trail.
We're like, get off the trail.
And so we, we just make abeeline off the trail, but.
It snowed so much, and the snowis so soft, I get two steps off
the trail, and then I sink,waist deep in the snow, and my
friends have to haul me out, andand then we sort of keep going,
(28:07):
and we get far enough away, andI had my camera on me and my
friend goes, I think you canprobably take a photo, I think
we're safe enough.
And so I pull out my camera andI turn around and I take this
photo as they're going up andover the ridge.
And it is probably still one ofmy favorite photos of all time.
It's just this beautiful.
Two bears, in the snow, justthis moment, and this moment
(28:32):
that had so much chaos beforeit.
And it could have turned out sohorribly but we were just
grateful that it was fall theywere pretty fat, I don't think
they were looking for food, theywere just going on their way,
but, they were really notbothered by us, and so we let
them go on their way, and wewent back the way we came.
And then I remember this aswell, as we were hiking out,
(28:54):
there was a rainbow.
I was like, Oh wow.
And then as we were driving toleave you drive past Engadine
Lodge and that big field infront of it, and there was a
moose and her calf in the field.
And we were just like, what isthis day?
And so we never made it toSmutwood Peak, but it is 100%,
I'm glad you brought it up, oneof my most memorable days in the
(29:16):
mountains.
Robert (29:18):
That is magical.
And this view is spectacularright now
Sam (29:21):
I might be frozen but at least there's views.
Robert (29:24):
And so worth it.
Even a view we've seen a lot isstill super cool like this.
Sam (29:29):
Oh, I was just gonna say, again, I do often see a lot of
bears and wildlife, and I put itdown again to just the amount of
time that I do spend outside,and I love early mornings.
Which is when wildlife is mostactive and people are not.
So I go out in the morning toavoid the people and it often
means I get some, prettyincredible wildlife encounters
to go with it.
Robert (29:50):
That was actually, it's something we haven't talked
about much yet, but some of thetips you have for capturing, the
best moments and seeingwildlife, doing anything like
that, what would be your topthree you would give to
somebody?
Sam (30:02):
Okay, so, in Banff, there's some really cool webcams.
And I think I'm possibly theirnumber one user.
I live in a basement.
So it's hard for me to know whatthe weather is doing outside
without me actually getting outand leaving my house.
And early in the morning, I'msometimes a little hesitant.
If I've looked at the weathernight before and it could go
either way.
And so I check the webcams.
(30:23):
And you can get this, almostreal time sense of what's going
on outside.
And the gondola one for me is,my favourite for just around
Banff.
Because at night you can see thenorthern lights in it.
In the morning you can seewhat's, how sunrise is starting
to gear up.
And, I'm able to do those thingswithout having to get out, get
dressed.
(30:44):
But, if I see something good,you've never seen someone get
dressed so quickly.
And I'll be out the door.
And so, I find the webcams arereally good.
The one at Lake Louise is alsogreat.
And there's a really great oneat Emerald Lake if you're,
planning to head out there.
Cause the thing with the Rockiesis the weather varies so much
between Banff, between LakeLouise, between Emerald Lake.
It could be a totally differentthing.
And so, I always check thewebcams before I go, just to get
(31:06):
a sense of what's going on.
What you're in for.
So I find that to be a reallygreat tool.
And then yeah, early mornings isprobably my number one piece of
advice in the summer when I sayearly, it's really bloody early.
The days are really long.
So sunrise is 5am.
But you want to be out beforethat to get the really nice
light.
And so yeah, you'll often findthat means you're granted a
(31:30):
place all to yourself becauseyou're the one who has gone to
the effort of waking up at thatungodly hour but I often find it
pays off.
And then if I was to give athird tip, I think, yeah, just
think about the things that youenjoy doing.
And capture content throughthose things, like I said
earlier, I try not to go out ofmy way just to get content.
(31:54):
I mean, I will always in thewinter on a minus 40 day go out
and throw boiling water in theair so I can make snow.
I definitely am guilty of goingout just to capture content for
that.
But I also think it's reallycool.
But yeah, thinking about whatyou like to do, what you enjoy
doing and just capturing contentwhen you do those things.
But, but also at the same time,you don't want to go out and do
(32:19):
something that you love doing,but then spend your whole time
capturing content that you don'treally have a good time.
And so that's why I like shortform video because you can go
out, you can capture something.
It could be the first fiveminutes.
You stop, you take a quick videoand then you run or you hike,
and then you don't take anotherone until another few hours
(32:39):
later, and again, it's 30seconds of your day to catch the
next video.
You don't have to spend all thistime setting up the perfect
shot.
You can just capture them as yougo.
But don't spend your whole timejust capturing content, cause
then you've gone out to capturecontent, rather than do the
thing that you wanted to do.
Robert (32:56):
Does that mean that when you're out, you're not actively
always looking for somethinglike that?
Or is that always somethingthat's kind of niggling at your
brain of Oh, this would make agreat video.
Or are you able to shut that offand go, These are the times I'm
going to do it?
Sam (33:07):
I like to think yes.
And I also think that I havebeen shooting these tiny little
clips for so long that it's kindof become a second nature that I
can just whip up my phone andgrab something and I can look
back at it later and be like,Ah, sweet, I got something good.
And it didn't take me 50 shotsto get it.
I kind of try and get it reallyquickly.
(33:28):
And I think it depends on whatI'm doing as well.
If it's a really long day, thenyeah, I like to keep shooting to
a minimum because you don't wantto lengthen the day even
further.
One of my favorite trails to dois the Little Beehive.
I know people are like, whatabout the Big Beehive and the
Devil's Thumb?
Also great, Little Beehive, loweffort, amazing view.
(33:49):
And so often I'll go up and dothat after work, and I'll go up
and I'll probably want to catchthe sunset in a video.
And I'll wait for that moment.
But then before and after, I'llhave just sat and enjoyed the
sunset.
And you know, often after Ialways like to try and
consciously take some time tojust enjoy the moment.
(34:10):
So it's not just about capturingcontent.
Robert (34:13):
You're able to reflect a little and breathe a little and
not just always have your brainracing with recording.
Sam (34:18):
Yeah.
Robert (34:19):
That's beautiful.
Sam (34:19):
Yeah.
Robert (34:20):
Little Beehive, Big Beehive, all those are hikes in
Lake Louise that you hit bygoing up towards the Lake Agnes
Teahouse.
Yeah.
And they're beautiful.
Little Beehive is a super doablelittle hike for people who are
of a moderate fitness level.
Sam (34:32):
Yeah, definitely say still moderate, but the effort verse
reward on that one is like,it's, it's almost unbeatable in
Banff, I think.
Robert (34:40):
We're coming close to the end of the hike.
I feel like it's a good time forus to kind of wrap things up for
people.
What gear do you use?
Because I love that you have asuper minimal setup.
Sam (34:50):
I literally do.
I have an iPhone 11 Pro.
So not the new model.
I am thinking about upgradingbecause the stabilization in the
iPhone 14, is pretty good in the11, but it's way better in the
14.
And there's also like, betternight modes for, I'm not very
good at capturing the northernlights, but I'm obsessed.
And I think with the new phones,there's a night mode in time
(35:11):
lapse.
And so, maybe one day soon I'llupgrade, but the 11 Pro does me
well.
So that's, yeah, mainly my mainpiece.
And then.
I do have a camera that I'llshoot with occasionally.
I've had it for many years andit's been all over the world
with me.
It's an Olympus OM D E M5.
I don't even know what it is!Anyway, it's a mirrorless,
(35:33):
right?
Yeah, it's a mirrorless.
I think Robert knows more than Ido.
But it does me well and I'vealways got the manual mode set
to northern lights capturebecause that's usually what I
use it when I go out to try andtake photos of the northern
lights.
But I have many friends that doa much better job at that than I
do.
But I love, love the northernlights.
And, yeah, that's kind of...
(35:53):
Pretty much it.
Robert (35:55):
Which I so love, to be totally honest.
As we're hiking today, because Ididn't know if we were going to
do the video portion of thiswhen we got there, I have an SLR
and, like, two lenses and atripod.
Yeah.
I have, like, a 25 poundbackpack on.
Yeah.
And your kit is three pounds?
Sam (36:10):
Yeah.
Total?
I actually, yeah, so I actually,I had a really old iPhone.
I think I had like a five orsomething for the longest time.
And when I went to upgrade it, Iwas like, okay, I'm going to
invest.
And I'm going to get the newestone at the time because I really
wanted to get into trailrunning.
And I was like, I can't take mycamera trail running, but I know
I'm going to go to thesebeautiful places and I want to
(36:32):
still be able to, capture thesescenes.
And so I was like, okay, I'mgoing to get the best iPhone
that I can.
And so that was three or fouryears ago now.
It's still going strong.
It's been dunked in lakes andwe'll go into that, but they're
pretty tough.
And, and so that was kind ofwhat spurred me.
And then that, that kind ofreally shifted me figuring out
(36:52):
that I could still go out and,you know, capture these places,
but be really lightweight so Icould go further on the trails.
I try to keep it light and then,if I am specifically going out
to shoot content, then I'lloften take my camera as well
just to get some shots, but I'mpretty terrible at taking
photos.
You'll find on my iPhone that Ithink I have, like 20, 000
(37:15):
videos and maybe I still have alot of photos, but maybe like
10, 000 photos?
Anyway, But yeah, very simple,very basic.
You don't need anything crazy.
I shoot on my phone in HD60.
I don't shoot 4K because ittakes up so much space.
Occasionally I will if I'mworking with a brand so, I just,
yeah.
(37:35):
HD60 you can switch yourInstagram to upload full quality
videos, make sure you go dothat.
And that's kind of...
It.
Robert (37:44):
I so appreciate this, Sam.
Thank you for coming out on arainy, rainy, rainy night.
I am soaked.
Sam (37:51):
As am I.
Robert (37:52):
But yeah I really appreciate it and you're
spectacular.
Where can people follow yourcontent?
Sam (37:56):
Yeah, so you can find me on Instagram and TikTok.
My handle is the same on both.
It's Samantha L.
Reid.
R E I D.
The important distinction.
Yeah.
And yeah, I post prettyregularly on those channels.
So, yeah.
Robert (38:11):
What can people kind of expect to see when they come see
you?
Sam (38:14):
It's a lot of outdoor adventures.
Sometimes it might seem a littleunreasonable.
The amount of things I do.
I also think it's a littleunreasonable.
I don't know how I do it.
But I am just always out gettingafter it.
And especially in thesummertime.
And then in the winter I have toget a little more creative in
how I spend my time outside.
I'm still coming to love thewinters, I would say.
(38:35):
I'm always looking for fun waysto get out.
Cause I'm less motivated to getoutside in the winter when it's
cold and snowy and just, it'shard.
You have to put a lot of clotheson.
And so, yeah, it's generally alloutdoor things.
All my outdoor endeavors,hiking, trail running, paddle
boarding, biking cross countryskiing.
(38:58):
Jumping in lakes.
Falling into giant snow banks.
Yes, seeking out wildlife tolook at from a safe distance.
Yeah, all that sort of goodmountain stuff.
Robert (39:07):
Oh, that's fantastic.
Awesome.
Thanks, Sam.
Sam (39:11):
Thank you.
Robert (39:19):
Thank you so much for tuning in, everybody, and Sam,
thank you so much for sharingyour knowledge and insights with
all of us.
It is greatly appreciated, and Ihad such a great time hanging
out on Tunnel Mountain Trailwith you in the rain.
It was a fabulous hike and agreat night.
If you really enjoyed today'sepisode, definitely let me know
that.
Reach out to me on Instagram atRobertMasseyPhotography or
(39:41):
through my website atrobertmasseyphotography.
ca and definitely let Sam knowas well.
Let her know how much youappreciate the insights that
she's sharing, the educationaltips, and she has some fantastic
stories and adventures that areup on her Instagram and TikTok
accounts.
So definitely go and give her afollow there and follow along
with these spectacularadventures that she goes on in
(40:02):
one of the most beautiful placesin the world.
All right.
Let me know if there's anythingyou want to hear about or pieces
of information that you wouldlike to learn more about.
Reach out to me on Instagram oron my website and yeah, get out
there, explore this big,beautiful world of ours.
Let's adventure.
Bye for now.
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