The work of Kevin Ebi, a landscape and wildlife photographer based out of Seattle, is featured this month at the Muse Art Gallery and Studio in downtown Centralia.
“He visited the gallery with friends,” said gallery owner Marlaena Wright, “they gave me a link to his website, and I asked him right away if he would show here.”
Ebi has worked as a professional photographer for more than 10 years, traveling throughout the Pacific Northwest, documenting the beauty of the landscape. His images have been used in the Lonely Planet travel guides, National Wildlife magazine, Outdoor Photographer and Washington State Tourism, and many other books and publications.
Ebi has always loved the outdoors and has enjoyed hiking and getting out into nature, he said.
“Years ago I started taking a camera with me, but the picture I’d bring back didn’t really reflect what I had seen,” Ebi said. “It’s not just a picture, it’s the emotion of the moment I’m trying to capture.”
Ebi said that he has used trial and error over the years to learn to craft the image he is looking for.
Over the years Ebi has produced thousands of images. The work on display at the Muse Art Gallery has been selected from his recently published book, “Running in Circles.”
“The images tell the story of the journey of water,” said Ebi, “from the ocean to clouds and rain into the rivers, to the wildlife that rely on the water.”
As incredible as Ebi images are, they are not significantly altered or Photoshopped.
“I didn’t become a professional photographer so I could spend all my time in front of a computer,” he said.
Sunsets are particularly hard to render through digital media, he said, and usually require color correction.
Ebi spends a lot of time working from his inflatable kayak. He said wildlife will often ignore him in the kayak.
“I go out with an open mind, wandering around, and I ask myself ‘What is really speaking to me here?’” Ebi said, “and then I try and tell that story.”
Ebi chases after his images, taking the time to study weather patterns and topographical maps, using information to increase his chances of success. Most shots, Ebi said, take a lot of time and a bit of luck to get right.
“Every now and then you arrive at the right moment, when something incredible is happening, but that doesn’t happen very often,” Ebi said.
When everything goes right, when the image has captured the glory of nature, that is when Ebi takes the time to sit down and reflect on what he has just seen.
“You don’t get days like that very often,” he said. “It’s something to cherish.”
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Kimberly Mason is a freelance writer based in Cinebar. She can be contacted at kz@tds.net.
