A photographer who has travelled extensively through British Columbia and Alberta, Chloe Hibbert’s favourite season to photograph is the window between autumn and winter. “It’s my absolute favourite when everything gets dusted with snow but the lakes aren’t frozen yet so you get that beautiful reflection in the water. It’s just perfect,” says Hibbert. Her go-to places in the Rocky Mountains are Moraine Lake, Johnston Canyon trail (especially in the winter when the ice formations are breathtaking) and the view from the little beehive trail at Lake Louise. Here’s how @clo.photo found inspiration in the Canadian Rockies.
Describe a typical day in your life
I work for the family company and typically my life in the workplace is either behind a desk staring at a huge computer screen or squinting through the viewfinder of my camera in the photography room.
Once I get home I’m either off to yoga or plonking myself in front the computer again to work on portraits or landscape images.
Weekends are like gold to me.
It’s a chance to get outside and escape the glow of the computer screen. Although much of my life is spent in an office-style setting, I constantly feel satisfied by the end results.
Lake Louise
What do you find inspirational about the Canadian Rockies?
This was a tough one to nail down not because there aren’t things about the Rockies that inspire me but because it runs deeper than simply being impressed with the landscape.
Some of my best memories of the mountains have been during the worst times in my life.
During those times I rarely took note of my surrounding and often was just lost in thought and would aimlessly take pictures along the hiking trails.
I was adjusting to different changes and not dealing with it very well. I enjoyed being away from people and just taking time to myself without the buzz of the city in my ear.
Over time, as I spent more time up there, it morphed into an appreciation for the landscape and I started to take nature photography a little more seriously.
I felt inspired by the way each view and scene would adapt to a new season. It would look different and feel different but it was still the same scene.
It really encouraged me to be okay with change and know that if I stand fast and have courage, the changes in my life will adapt to me and everything will be okay.
Name three favourite restaurants in Canada
In downtown Calgary there is a French restaurant called Parc Brasserie which I really love.
I’m a huge fan of Indian cuisine so Namskar is one of my favourite places to go in Calgary when I need some spice in my life.
Finally I am a HUGE fan of diners, especially when they serve a good Eggs Benedict so the Blue Star diner in the downtown Bridgeland Community is definitely my place of comfort when I need a hearty, healthy breakfast.
If you had to live somewhere else in Canada where would you go?
Canmore. Full stop. I love that town. The British Columbia coast would be a close second. I love the ocean.
Do you have any advice for photographers/instagrammers visiting Canada?
If you are visiting Alberta, don’t forget about the Icefields Parkway! In my opinion, the route from Banff to Jasper is the most scenic I’ve ever driven. There are endless places to stop at.
Also, bring good socks. It’s cold here.
Name three places on your bucket list
I’d like to visit Quebec City, Churchill to see the polar bears and Tofino on Vancouver Island for the whale watching.
When did you become a photographer?
I became a photographer, so to speak, as soon as I started my Instagram account.
I’d been doing jobs since I was 17, mostly for family and friends but I remember the first time I considered myself a real photographer was when I was writing my bio information for my Instagram account.
I am mostly self-taught but I’ve taken a couple courses here and there.
My full time job is in advertising. I do all the product photos for the company. I also do portrait sessions part time which makes my landscape work even more part time.
Life is very busy but diverse and I like that!
What are the pros and cons of Instagram vs commercial photography?
From a personal standpoint, commercial photography is likely going to make me more money. I suppose that’s one difference between the two.
Instagram is a sharing platform, so typically I see the benefit of it as a way to express myself, which is fun because you have complete control over the content you post whereas you don’t have that much control when people are requesting specific services.
However, Instagram is time consuming, especially if you make a habit of responding to the feedback on each image.
Was it your dream to be a photographer?
Nope. Definitely not. My very first dream job was to protect killer whales, which is not an actual job per say, but at six years old it seemed like a noble thing to do.
The Free Willy series was pretty much my life until I was about nine.
After that I discovered the Alaska movie and instantly wanted to save the polar bears.
Years later, I was definitely convinced I would be a piano teacher and then after that I thought I’d be a mystery novel writer.
It wasn’t until I was nearly graduated from high school that I considered photography as a job that I could be constantly doing and never get tired of.
Is Instagram a hobby or profession?
This February it will be two years since I started my account. I never expected to have such a significant following and I definitely only consider my landscapes a hobby.
So it’s a little surreal and at times, daunting.
It’s incredible to get instant feedback and refine and develop new skills however I do feel the need to express my belief that social media cannot take priority over real relationships and experiences.
I’ve been really grateful for the journey so far with it and I still consider it a hobby despite some great business opportunities that have arisen from it.
It aids my photography business quite a bit but I strive to keep it personal and a reflection of the things I value and desire to promote.
What’s the secret of growing a successful Instagram account?
In a bizarre way it’s sort of similar to the methods you use to secure an important job interview.
You have to be that annoying person who gets in everyone’s line of vision. You submit your resume to everyone. You nag. You follow up. You tweak your methods. You push and fight until you get their attention and are successful in securing that job.
With social media, it’s sort of similar except you are doing all of that behind a computer screen.
You have to nag others for an opinion and comment and ask advice and tag as many accounts as possible to get someone to notice your work.
You have to research what people are interested in and constantly change your approach; notice what people are passionate about and ask yourself what you can share with people that is interesting and captivating.
You have to find the convergence between what you can offer and what people love to see.
You might be the most qualified person ever. You might take stunning photos and have an endless range of talents and passions but if you don’t make your work available to a wide range of individuals, it’s much harder to get feedback because they aren’t going to notice you.
That might be an unorthodox way of looking at things because it might be considered “pushy” or “unauthentic” or even “business driven” but if you want to build a successful account, it’s pivotal in most situations to make your work available to as many people as possible.
You need to elbow your way through the sea of talented people and present something fresh.
That being said, I don’t believe that aiming for success alone will make you feel fulfilled, which is what we all want in life, right?
It’s so important to present a product, gallery or lifestyle that carries a small piece of your heart in it. If you believe in the product or are confident in your skills and passions people WILL recognize it and they WILL be inspired.
So I guess the secret in a short sentence would probably be to make it personal before anything else.
Show us the three photos that received the most “likes”
Hey guys! So, i know i’ve featured this exact photo in my feed already (actually, MANY variations of this spot have been featured to be quite honest)