Meet Geoff
I was raised in Oregon on the slopes of an extinct volcano, but I’ve also lived atop a hill made of music in Minnesota farmland, a rural mountain camp in the Rockies of Colorado, amidst the piney woods of Mississippi, and overlooking the graveyard of Edvard Munch in Norway. For over a decade though, I’ve called Austin home - a city that shares the weird soul as my hometown of Portland.
Live Oak Lens is my new Austin-based photography studio, where I seek to make photography more than just a hobby. My photos have been featured by Texas Monthly, the documentary Making Waves: The Rise of Asian America, New Mexico Magazine, Equality Texas, the Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT), and others.
My journey in photography started in 4th Grade when my parents gifted me a disposable camera. Perhaps inspired by the way my mother meticulously created photo albums chronicling both the significant and day-to-day moments of my childhood, I can often be found with my camera in hand, hoping to provide the gift of a memory that friends and family can hold onto.
I’m a former middle school science teacher now working in education policy. When my camera batteries are charging, you can find me hiking, singing in a choir, and playing viola in an orchestra.
Photo Credit: Brittany Taylor (@britttaylorphotography)
Why Live Oak Lens?
The name Live Oak Lens is a nod to the roots of this business in Central Texas, where the live oak tree is more than just part of the landscape, it’s part of the identity. A branch from the live oak even appears on the official State Seal of Texas.
The photo below shows a tunnel of live oaks in my neighborhood, their branches forming a canopy above the road. These trees, with their expansive limbs and timeless presence, inspire the kind of photography I aim to create: grounded, honest, and beautiful.