About Me
A creative life built between home and the road.
Hey, I’m Kyle. I’m a photographer and filmmaker based in Arizona, where I share a home with my partner, Danielle, when I’m not traveling, working, and living from the back of my truck.
This Way Wild began when I gave up my apartment, moved into that truck full-time, and set out to live closer to the stories I wanted to tell. It was an experiment in what might happen if I stopped waiting for the perfect time and simply started.
The experiment evolved. I found a home with Danielle, but the road remained an important part of my life and work. These days, I split my time between the two.
This Way Wild is the record of what happens in between: commercial assignments and personal projects, carefully planned trips and spectacular wrong turns, familiar places and roads I have never seen before.
The truck is still my bedroom, office, kitchen, and gear locker when I’m traveling. It just isn’t my only home anymore, although I still have the storage unit.
What You’ll Find Here
Short, thoughtful YouTube episodes from the road and wherever the story leads
Photo essays and stories about real-life adventure, creative work, and real-life messes
A behind-the-scenes look at the people, places, and productions I encounter along the way
Gear that actually works, along with stories about the stuff that didn’t
The occasional life lesson disguised as a coffee-fueled ramble
This Way Wild is a creative life shaped by curiosity, storytelling, and a willingness to figure things out as I go. Some days that means sunrise hikes, unfamiliar roads, and edits from the back of the truck. Other days, it means coming home, digging through what I captured, and turning it into something worth sharing.
If you’re trying to build more adventure into a real life, make work that matters, or simply see what happens beyond the polished final image, you’re in the right place.
Take the Detour
The Detour Map is a growing field guide to the campsites, backroads, trails, fishing spots, meals, and unexpected places I find along the way.
These aren’t scraped recommendations or a list of places I found on somebody else’s blog. They’re locations I’ve personally visited, photographed, camped at, driven through, or decided were worth remembering.
Supporting This Way Wild unlocks the full map and helps fund the miles, stories, and questionable route decisions that keep this project moving.
Where You Might’ve Seen My Work
Outside this project, I run KPL Studios, a commercial photo and video studio I built from the ground up. I’ve led campaigns for travel, lifestyle, and hospitality brands, blending high production value with a real-world, boots-on-the-ground approach.
Some of the brands I’ve worked with include:
Amazon
Opendoor
Ohm Fitness
Roadtrip Oregon
Desert Diamond Arena
Kokopelli Packrafts
Radica Outdoors
Niner Bikes
Arizona Hideaway Collection
Sandia Resort & Casino
Current Collaborations
Right now, I’m on the road filming the first season of This Way Wild, producing commercial projects for brands I believe in, and testing the gear I live with every day.
I'm currently working with:
Radica Products – My Moonlander Truck Camper
River Outdoors- Arizona based mechanical Overlanding Specialists: suspension, accessories and living systems design.
Spirit of 1876- Colorado based adventure showroom and install garage.
KPL Studios clients – continuing client photo/video support from the road.
(…maybe you?)
If you're working on something that aligns, let’s talk.
Stuff People Always Ask
Do you actually live in your truck full-time?
Not anymore. I share a home in Arizona with my partner, Danielle, and live and work from the truck during extended trips.
When I’m on the road, it’s still a very real home: bedroom, office, kitchen, gear locker, and occasionally a cramped little weather station. It just isn’t my only home anymore.
How do you work from the road?
The truck has solar power, battery systems, satellite internet, and an unreasonable number of hard drives. It gives me enough power and connectivity to manage projects, edit, upload, and keep KPL Studios running while I travel.
Sometimes that happens at a campsite with a mountain view. Sometimes it happens in a parking lot because the campsite had no service and the deadline did not care.
Is this a vanlife thing?
Not exactly. The truck is a major part of This Way Wild, but the project isn’t about pretending life on the road is permanently effortless or escaping normal life altogether.
It’s about building a life with room for curiosity, meaningful work, adventure, and the people who matter. Sometimes that happens from the truck. Sometimes it happens at home. The interesting part is figuring out how those pieces fit together.
What camera gear do you use?
My primary camera is the Nikon Z8, with the Nikon Zf serving as my smaller everyday camera. I also travel with a DJI AIR 3 drone, a few insta360 compact action cameras, and enough lenses, audio equipment, and carefully organized storage bins to make the phrase “traveling light” highly debatable.
The exact kit changes depending on the story, the assignment, and how far I have to carry it.
Do you still take on client work?
Absolutely. I run KPL Studios, where I produce commercial photography and video for brands across travel, hospitality, lifestyle, and outdoor recreation.
Some projects happen naturally along the road. Others involve assembling a full crew and traveling wherever the production requires. Either way, the scale of the project never changes the standard of the work.
Where are you going next?
Guatemala is next, followed by a few weeks in the Pacific Northwest.
Beyond that, I plan around assignments, weather, curiosity, and the stories that feel worth following. The route is rarely fixed for long, which is usually where the good stuff begins.
Get in Touch
Have a story worth following, a place I should know about, or an idea that belongs somewhere beyond the pavement? I’d love to hear about it.
For commercial photography, film production, licensing, or brand partnerships, visit KPL Studios.
For everything else, send me a note. I check messages from home, the road, and occasionally from the front seat of the truck while waiting for a storm to make up its mind.