cell# 208-353-0666
email: leedsphotography1@gmail.com

I am an Idaho native and started shooting photos seriously after a major shoulder injury obtained while kayaking several years ago. I couldn't spend as much time on the river in my kayak, so I got serious about the art of taking pictures. I started cata-rafting with my Dad on the Payette River in 1992 and whitewater kayaking quickly followed. Having these tools to travel rivers opened up new doors for my photography. I soon found myself surrounded by deep canyons, amazing whitewater, and athletes pushing the limits. The challenge was portraying the feeling, magnitude, and power the river brings to your life.
It’s an interesting job and also stressful watching some of your good friends run large waterfalls and dangerous rivers. They're searching for their moment of connection with the water and I'm trying to capture it. I try to photograph the landscape and action together, showing the beauty of what is happening with the athlete and their environment.
I get to capture my lifestyle from behind the camera by documenting events only few see and even fewer understand. I find shooting kayaking to be very rewarding and fulfilling on a spiritual level. I am also a father with a 4 year old son, Caleb, I can’t wait to show him the world and our ways!

My favorite subjects to shoot are Landscape, Kayaking, Lifestyle, and learning off camera lighting techniques. Favorite photographers that inspired me to pick up a camera, Grant Amaral, Erik Boomer, Charlie Munsey, Mark Lisk, Steve Sieren, just to name a few.

Photo shown: Mike Leeds in Sheep Creek at flood. Photo: Grant Amaral