Cover Artist - Robert Stephens

By John Shivers

“T here’s a wonderful little spot on the outskirts of Beckley, West Virginia called Babcock State Park,” writes North Carolina outdoor photographer Robert Stephens. And with those sixteen little words, this self-taught hunter of breathtaking natural images, hooks you. Perhaps it’s his phrase “wonderful little spot” that does the trick, but you absolutely must see what he’s seen that makes him so rhapsodic.

A Strangers Kindness

Stephens doesn’t disappoint, because his skills with the camera are as sharp and precise as his ability to weave words so intricately, you begin to see the picture before you really see his picture. In this case, it’s the historic grist mill that has helped to make this state park, one of many across the country, so famous. But there’s just something extra-special about the way he seems to reach through the lens to grab the dimension and depth of the mill and cascading waters. “Southern by birth, utterly confusing accent by the grace (and good humor) of God,” this artisan with a camera says of his roots and nurturing. While his birth certificate hails from Georgia, his parents were from mid-America and New England. Now he calls North Carolina home. When he’s home, that is, because he’s been on the prowl for something to photograph since he got his driver’s license. This was the beginning of his journeys as the “Solitary Traveler,” as he styles himself.

He recalls that maiden voyage into outdoor photography in 1992, and again, you can literally picture the twelve year-old Pontiac LeMans that he affectionately christened “The Pontiac Lemons,” because of the car’s various mechanical ailments. “I carried a spare quart of transmission fluid,” he says, as he describes the car’s tendency to guzzle the elixir that kept the gears shifting at least somewhat smoothly, which meant he could get on down the road.

Stephens recalls those early days with fondness. ”I was young and broke and couldn’t go too far.” But he was able to go far enough to whet his appetite for stalking, capturing and preserving images of the great outdoors. “Now I’m old and broke,” he says and laughs. “Still can’t go too far.” But he’s gone far enough that thanks to better equipment, enhanced skills, and social media, he’s able to better share what he finds. And those who view his work are the winners.

One look at the ordinary images he captures with such extraordinary panache gives you the idea that the same God responsible for Stephens’ unique accent is also responsible for the light and shadows that draw the eye of the beholder to his images. The career this self-described southern looking guy, this solitary traveler, has built for himself has been responsible for transporting many an armchair traveler to places they would never physically have been able to go themselves.

“By nature,” he says, “I have always been a solitary figure, enjoying my own company yet still making time for friends.” But in the way of building connections, Stephens has put many miles under him in the name of pointing his camera and capturing the image of the moment. The result of almost thirty years of work is Seasons / A Collections of Photographs and Stories. Measuring twelve inches square with page after page of photos and accompanying details about the photos, this may be classified as a coffee table book. However, once you pick it up and begin to lose yourself in the sheer majesty of Stephens’ work, this book isn’t going to spend a lot of time on the table. And unlike a novel, or even a book of non-fiction, you get to decide the route you take and how long the journey lasts. There’s no strict beginning, no definite ending. But in between, a lot of enjoyment awaits. For all the slickness and pizazz of the finished book, the journey for Stephens as he labored to deliver a publication that would be both acceptable to him from a professional perspective, and of intrinsic value to its readers, was anything but a slam dunk. There were several hurdles. The determination to put together such a book as Seasons began in 2012. But those pesky hurdles got in the way. For starters, he might have been a pro at photography, but he was a greenhorn novice at book publication. What ensued was a combination of broken publishing arrangements, broken bones, dissatisfaction, disappointment, disillusionment and finally euphoria. Stephens will tell you quickly that the book you see today is a far cry from what it might have been. Yet, at the end of the day, Seasons is exactly how he envisioned it almost ten years ago. Just like he says in the narrative about Babcock State Park. On previous visits, he arrived at the wrong time of day, and his pictures lacked that extra element that sets them apart. But when he shot his pictures at the right time, magic was the result. And so it was with the publication of this wonderful book of memorable photos. The timing was right. Seasons is for sale through Stephens’ web site www. solitarytravelerphotography.com, and for somewhere around the price of one tank of gas or so at today’s prices, you can travel thousands of miles in Robert Stephens’ footsteps. He’s gone places many people would never be able to visit, and in some of the most breathtaking photography you’ll ever view, he’s brought the outdoors to your very doorstep.