Grand Scenics of Asia

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Worldwide | Thursday, October 14, 2010 | 5 photos

My name is Dan Ballard. I am a 24 year old aspiring photographer from Colorado. Photography, travel and playing music are my main passions. I love speaking with everyone I come in contact with, and listening to anyone with a good story or a little wisdom.

Why should I be chosen for this scholarship? Because not only do I Want to learn, I have spent the last five years of my life getting into a position that would Allow me to learn from someone at Jason's level. Photography is not something I do only while I travel or when it's convenient. This is my life. I go out and shoot almost everyday in my area, and visit the mountains as often as possible. I've read a million photography books and picked many a painters brain for composition and color tips. I have spent hours with local photographers learning everything I could from them. In short, I have prepared myself to be in a position to really learn from Jason, and I feel that shooting with him would help me get to the next level artistically.

I am an avid hiker and getting up at 3 am to hike xx miles through the forest looking for a rare bird in Bhutan sounds amazing, although I'm aware it may not be easy. I've been lucky enough to visit and photograph over 40 countries around the world, so I've had a taste of what it's like to be a travel photographer. (hitchhiking and backpacking on the cheap:) I've spent days on end waiting in the rain for a shot, been bitten to close to the point of insanity by tiny ants in the rain forest, and waited hours in customs attempting to enter one crazy country or another. For some reason, I love it!!

I hope my photo's show the beauty of Asia and the people who live there. I chose photo's that moved me before and after I took them.

Thank you for this opportunity.

Dan