Some of the best ideas don’t come in a meeting room, they happen while running up a mountain with a friend who just gets you. The kind of friend who, in one breath, is helping you brainstorm new ways to grow your business, and in the next, is pointing out the light hitting the peaks just right for a photo.
That’s what it’s like sharing the trails with my friend Tamara Susa, an incredibly talented adventure photographer and filmmaker based right here in Aspen.We both come from Eastern Europe; she’s from Serbia, and I’m from Romania, two mountain souls who somehow found each other in the heart of the Rockies. What started as casual meetups turned into a powerful friendship rooted in trail running, snowboarding, coffee, and creativity.
We’ve challenged ourselves through trail races, monthly workout goals, and winter days spent snowboarding through fresh powder. But it was during one of our regular trail running days that something shifted for me. I had been dreaming about starting a coffee business for years, talking about it often, over many cups and conversations. And then, on that run, I said it out loud: “I’m done postponing. I am starting an LLC.”
Tamara has been there all along, cheering me on and offering insight from her creative journey. She’s not just an incredibly skilled adventure and elopement photographer, she’s someone who captures the emotion of wild places, the stories behind people who enjoy the outdoors, and the spark of something meaningful.
She’s helped me see my brand through a different lens, one that values beauty, storytelling, and authenticity. Through our trail runs and creative sessions, we’ve helped each other grow our businesses in ways that feel true to who we are.
Because from screen to bean, what truly fuels the process is connection, courage, and a little mountain magic.
If you’re looking for a photographer who captures the soul of wild places and the raw emotion of real moments, you’ll fall in love with Tamara’s work. Whether she’s documenting epic elopements in the mountains or creating cinematic visuals that move you, she brings a rare blend of talent, heart, and adventure to everything she does.
You can explore her work at Tamara Susa Photography and her wedding and elopement photography at Be The Experience.
Here’s to creativity, friendship, and always finding the spark on the trail or in a cup of coffee.
Happy Brewing!
