I am Adam Chapin.
Professional AVL Photographer and Storyteller.
When you go to a photographer’s site, you want to know who they truly are,
not a bunch of bullet points on why they are good at what they do (that should be a bare minimum) or where they went to school (because who cares) or how many participation awards they've paid for and have emblazoned on their sites. You want to make sure the photographer isn't some crazy glue sniffer, I've seen it a hundred times (name that movie...Tommy Boy...a classic). Nope, you're not interested in that drama.
You want to feel a connection with the human being that you are about to spend your time and your money with. Hopefully someone who, like you, is always looking for creative ways to break the mold of what could or should be, ‘cause it's just more interesting that way. A teammate to help you feel at ease in front of the camera and who will capture you as your truest, best, most authentic self.
Let me go ahead and introduce myself.
I could tell you a ton about how I got here. How it all started back in 1997 because a zen monk in Philadelphia canceled our training last minute, so I picked up a camera instead. How photography became my passion. How I found my authentic voice in this world telling stories from behind my camera.
I could tell you those stories and if you ask, I will. But that’s not who I am, or at least that doesn’t cover the whole story, that’s just the photographer me.
MY CORE VALUES
Truth
The truth leads to trust which leads to access which leads to deeper connection. I’m a bloodhound for genuine characters and real talk.
Perspective
Perspective is everything, until you realize that it can change too. So I am always working to keep mine open.
Laughter
Laughter is the best distraction. When is the last time you laughed without holding back?
Adventure
Freedom is doing what you want, where you want, and with who you want. Sometimes that’s a solo road trip and sometimes it’s a packed van. Clock’s ticking, start living.
Respect
We all got here somehow, and none of it was on our own. Know not only where you came from, but who was there to lift you up along the way.
Experience
There is no better teacher than experience. Read about it, talk with people about it, but until you go and physically and emotionally put yourself in front of the thing - you really have no idea. Besides, failures are better stories than successes.
BEHIND THE LENS:
Why Do Any of This?
I am a storyteller, simple and plain. I thoroughly enjoy getting to serve my couples and my clients. I posess zero art for brevity, only the long, fully detailed, and epic depiction will do, but still believe that 99% of movies over two hours need to trim the fat. Does that make me a hypocrite? Maybe.
I crack jokes when I am nervous, and I sweat profusely when I am in large groups of people I don’t know well. I am an introvert, but a good, deep conversation one-on-one is a massive charge for me. I am a very slow reader, but it doesn’t stop me from buying books on top of books (currently I am reading Lonesome Dove, Dare to Lead, Filthy Animals, and The Joy of Living), because I will get to them one day. And I listen to a lot of podcasts - really loving Armchair Expert as well as This American Life a lot right now.
I am a father to two crazy boys. They are both inspirational in their own ways: one is always happy to go along for the ride and the other always wants to lead the charge. Teaching them that real life happens outside of screens, in between lines, and maybe even more so when you get dirt under your nails and skid across the finish line is a huge joy for me.
The mountains have always been home for me. Not a particular set of mountains, simply any of them. I have this weird sense of being where I should be anytime I am in them...one of the many reasons I love living in Asheville. Though I wish we got more snow, because my other happy place is snowboarding.
And I have been married now for 16 years and with my wife for almost a quarter of a century. My best tip for marriage is...it ain’t for everyone. But if you choose that route, then learn to be the best communicator, know what it means to fight fair, remember that not everything needs to be solved immediately, and everyone who looks like they have the perfect life is full of shit.
WHY ASHEVILLE?
After years of traveling up to Asheville for work, fun, and friends and with COVID proving to us all that if you can work from anywhere why not be where you want to be - my family made the move in the summer of 2020 from Raleigh to AVL.
I love the creative community. I love the wildly reliable 3PM summer thunder storms. I love the misty fall mornings. I love getting out and photographing Asheville and the surrounding areas. And I love the access to some of the best trails in the country.
Asheville is definitely home for a good while now.
What’s Good in Asheville...
Best Snacks and Wine - Mother
Best Beer Bar - The Whale
Best Low Key Lunch on the River - Zadie’s
Best Dinner - Limone’s
Best Live Shows - Salvage Station
Best Book Store - Malaprop’s
Best Brewery - Burial
Best Chill Hike - Laurel River
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS
Chapin is my middle name, my real last name is Brophy. I was named after my great-grandfather, a Bostonian architect. And because I am somewhat neurotic, I didn’t like the -phy in my last name rhyming with the -phy in photography. Anyone else a little OCD? So…here we are.
Desert Island Wishlist:
Food - a breakfast burrito with bacon and sausage from Roberto’s in Del Mar, CA
Book - The Overstory by Richard Powers
Movie - The Big Lebowski (though would have to make room for Christmas Vacation)
Music - The Head and The Heart’s first album
Other Random Tidbits
I have 8 tattoos and likely more as I go. The longest one took four six-hour sessions and the most painful was my rib cage. Feel free to ask me about them.
Tacos > Sandwiches // Hugs > Handshakes // Mountains > Beaches // Winter > Summer
Favorite quote of the moment: “You got to be crazy. It’s too late to be sane. You got to go full tilt, bozo! Because you’re only given a little spark of madness, and if you lose that you’re nothing. Don’t…from me to you…don’t ever lose that because it keeps you alive.”
- Robin Williams
