New York-based photographer Mike Bailey-Gates draws inspiration from folklore and varied storytelling media for his emotive and, at times, cinematic style of photography. With his Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi in tow, Bailey-Gates treads into nature, whether it be in the depths of a forest or the serene escape atop a tree in one’s own backyard, to capture what he aptly refers to as an “exaggerated reality.”
It is perhaps the teen’s own thirst for adventure coupled with the legends, fairy tales, and mythologies he’s grown up reading that have produced the bulk of the young photographer’s portfolio. A common theme appears to be a muted curiosity with a strong presence of youthful wanderers seeking to explore their surroundings as they yearningly look on. Location plays an equally effective role in each of his images as the subjects do. Wherever the destination may be, Bailey-Gates uses the setting to his advantage, allowing it to not only be a backdrop but to add value to his own visual storytelling.
