Bowen Island’s Emmett Sparling started snapping pictures when he was 13 years old. His mother handed him her camera and told him to explore the garden. From that moment, he was enthralled by the world behind the lens.
That afternoon shooting insects developed into professional fashion photography, which eventually landed him in the front row seat of being a highly sought after travel photographer and videographer.
For Sparling, travelling has been his job and life for the past two years.
After a few years of travelling the globe, Sparling has made friends with like-minded, equally passionate creators. They travel together, create together and inspire one another.
Over the past year, they realised that they wanted to start doing trips with “a bigger purpose and more meaning,” says Sparling. The idea is to use their massive influence for positive change.
In October 2018, Sparling and his mother, Tiffanee Scorer, founded Triplit.
Triplit’s focus is on telling stories with purpose and impact, rather than simply taking good photos.
The launch for Triplit comes to Bowen Island in August through a five day conference, facilitated by Scorer, Sparling and his fellow travel companions, some of the leading names in the travel photography industry.
The days will be filled with presentations, workshops, outdoor activities and connecting with like-minded individuals, growing a global community. Participants are coming from all over the world.
Sparling has visited roughly 40 countries and has come across many truths about the state of the oceans and pollution.
But he has also seen just how much of a change a country can make if they put their resources behind it. Bali, for example, has transformed itself over the past two years says Sparling.
“Bali’s been cleaned up like crazy which is cool to see,” he says.
“When you’re doing travel photography you’re always in new situations and seeing something super beautiful in a really cool place,” says Sparling.
Speakers at the conference include: Emmett Sparling; Chelsea Yamase, a leading female travel “influencer;” Sam Kolder, an influential travel videographer; Amir Zakeri and Timothy Sykes, creators of the documentary Save The Reef; Renee Hahnel and Matthew Hahnel, full time travel photographers based in Seattle; and Kalen Emsley from Tentree.
Sam Kolder recently released his latest video, one he has been working on for more than two and a half years about his brother’s tragic death, which ignited a spark across the internet and has been viewed by almost a million people in a matter of days.
The conference is the first step of building the community that they want, Sparling says. Traveling full time is not always easy but it’s a rewarding choice for him, as long as he is able to keep a healthy balance.
To Sparling, the essence of success is to “become obsessed with what you’re passionate about.”
For more information on the event, visit www.gotriplit.com.
Tickets are still available for Amir Zakeri’s Save the Reef documentary and presentation on August 22, and Sam Kolder and Emmett Sparling’s evening presentation on August 23.
