I have been asked many times recently why I do not tag locations of my photos on Instagram and/or Facebook. I take my work as a nature and landscape artist seriously and so it is difficult not to share that important location information with my followers. We are, after all, documenting the wild lands that we choose to visit and trying to do so in a way that glorifies the outdoors. We want to share that information with the viewers of our art but, due to the power of social media, it has unfortunately become an issue.

It wasn’t long ago that I made the decision to stop tagging and it was actually difficult to follow through with initially. The first photo that I posted without a location tag or detailed location description left me feeling as if I hadn’t told the entire story and we are wired as photographers to tell a story, to evoke an emotion. If I couldn’t let the viewer know the location, would the image still have the same impact? Would it be as interesting if the viewer didn’t know where the photo was taken from? I literally had to think when entering hashtags for an image so that I wouldn’t give it away but in a matter of a week I trained myself to just find another way to tell the story.

As an outdoor enthusiast I always follow the ‘Leave No Trace’ ethos. So now I’ve arrived at a spot where ‘Leave No Trace’ isn’t just meant for your physical experience in the outdoors - it extends to social media as well. If tagging locations leads to a future negative impact on the land then you in fact have violated the “Leave No Trace’ rules of enjoying the outdoors. An argument can easily be made that the tagging of locations or detailed location sharing can have an elevated level of impact on the land because of social media and therefore can be just as harmful as not packing out what you pack in. Therefore, the decision was an obvious one to make.

So, how do photographers, who are actually operating as photo journalists of the landscape, tell their story and the story of nature without sharing this seemingly very important information? I decided to make some rules for my photo sharing endeavors and here is the basic summary. I am happy to share general location information such as the region where a photo was created while avoiding the precise data of where the photo was taken from. There is no need for that as it diminishes the wonder and excitement of the adventure for others. When I go out to photograph I often have a feeling of excitement and sometimes confusion all wrapped up into one. It’s a feeling of uneasiness at times. The feeling one gets when you’re not sure if you’re lost and that is one of the joys of being a landscape photographer. Figuring it out on your own can be very enlightening and why shouldn’t others have that same opportunity. As photographic artists we gravitate towards the unknown, the less traveled areas that provide us with great opportunities to create the art we’ve envisioned.

I hope my art inspires others to experience the great outdoors but to do so in a manner that is respectful of both the land and the other folks enjoying what the land has to offer. I’ve looked at thousands of landscape images over the years and they have inspired me to make art and to do so by getting out and exploring the landscape. Years of exploring the landscape, especially the PNW landscape, has had a major impact on who I am as a person. I’ve had great experiences exploring and wouldn’t want to take that opportunity away from others. Not tagging locations is good stewardship of the land and I would encourage all other photographers to take the same step.