We recently had the chance to connect with Ed Chang and have shared our conversation below.
Ed, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: Are you walking a path—or wandering?
Definitely both and sometimes they seem one and the same. Real growth and progress take time, persistence, and commitment. But it’s also important to detach, daydream, learn and be inspired by the unexpected and unplanned. Sometimes it’s the wandering that shows you that you’re not on the path you thought you were. So, wandering becomes an essential part of the path. But this makes it sound like such a balance is easy to reach. Maybe in another few decades, I’ll have mastered it. Whether it’s walking a path or wandering, all I know if that I have to keep my eyes open the whole time.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Ed Chang and my brand is Rabbit in the Moon Photography. My focus is primarily on landscape and nature photography. Few things give me such awe, inspiration, peace, and gratitude as experiencing Earth’s natural wonders firsthand.
There are moments that I find myself in disbelief that I am standing there to witness because they seem too beautiful, complex, and wondrous to be true. It looks so perfect that I feel like I am on a fantasy set for a movie. But it is indeed the reality of this world, and I feel lucky to be alive to see it.
This is what I hope to capture in my work and hope that people can feel a taste of that awe and gratitude when they see it.
I also find myself amazed by things that people create and accomplish. So occasionally, something manmade will sneak its way into my portfolio.
Right now, I’m also working on two other art-related projects.
I’m collaborating with my friend Barbara Lolli, a fused-glass artist. We are combining my photography and her glasswork to make these scenes that are multidimensional, layered, and are like a symbiosis and conversation between two types of art media. And we’re always coming up with new ideas to experiment with, both in subject matter as well as different ways to display our work together. So far, most of our work has been hung on walls, but we are also working on pieces that can sit on a countertop, stand independently outdoors, or involve moving parts, internal lighting, etc. Collaboration has opened to door to so many new possibilities.
We’ve also started a company called ArtSpark. We’re an artist-run company that supports other artists. Being a full-time artist and simply paying the bills is daunting for many. So, we hire local artists to teach group art classes to both private and corporate groups. The classes also help foster engagement in and excitement about the arts. The income from the classes help keep the artists alive and working on their craft, and they also get some exposure to potential buyers in the process. But we also feel that engagement in the arts and creativity is beneficial to mental health and well-being.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
As a child, I’d say I was an observer and a dreamer. Fascinated by the world around me, full of questions, and excited about all the possibilities that life had in store for me. Everything and anything seemed possible, and everything I learned seemed to lead to more possibilities. I feel most alive when I find myself in that state again, but as I age it also sometimes feels overwhelming when I realize that my time is more and more limited.
But as much as I want to do and experience more than I will ever be able to, I am so grateful to have experienced what I have so far and realize that it’s not over yet!
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering is one of the greatest teachers. It’s difficult to picture who I’d be without all the suffering in my life and what I learned from it. So many times I wanted to give up, and many times I did. So many times I thought about the unfairness of it, the cruelty of it, and whether it would ever end. But every time I came out of it, I felt such gratitude to be on the other side, if even it felt like a moment of peace or joy might only last as long as a breath until I had to dive back down into the darkness.
But overall, I learned that the key is to hang on. Somehow, it always seems to pass, and some kind of light will enter my life and remind me how lucky I am to still be here. Suffering makes the light look so much brighter when it comes your way.
And whether suffering is inflicted upon me by someone else, myself, or an act of the universe, I always hope it teaches me to be more compassionate to other people and do my best to help reduce suffering in someone else’s life.
At the very least, I would like the spread hope that if we hang on, persist and endure in times of suffering, something good will find us. The light is always there, but sometimes it takes time to find it again.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Whom do you admire for their character, not their power?
I often joke that Greta Thunberg is my spirit animal. She embodies many of my values as well as my emotions about certain subjects. It’s hard to say if all of her activism and protesting have actually turned into significant results. The various leaders and governments she has pleaded with don’t seem to have moved even a millimeter in the right direction.
Yet, she doesn’t give up and she backs her words with action. She educates people with facts and reason. She’ll risk her own safety and freedom to stand up for what she believes in like she has no other choice. Whether it’s popular or not, whether people are willing to listen or not, whether they like her presentation style or not, she seeks truth and justice.
It’s rare to see that kind of bravery, integrity and commitment that comes from compassion and a sense of responsibility. People like her inspire me to stand up for what I believe in, and remind me to honor those parts of myself that are essential for self-respect.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
In a way, yes. But it often feels like tap dancing with ankle weights on! I’m really excited to start a new photography trip, imagining what incredible things I might witness and capture. But getting there usually involves a long drive, long hikes at high altitude while carrying a lot of weight on my back, dealing with the elements, sleeping in my car and waking up at 3-4am in the morning to get where I want to be by sunrise, and a lot of waiting and hoping.
There’s always a lot on my mind during every trip, the cost of it, safety concerns, and whether I’m going to be there too early or late, whether I can find my way back if I stay too long past sunset, whether I have enough time to spend days in one location to wait for conditions to be just right. There’s a lot of prep work before I even leave home to make sure I’ve cleaned, charged, and packed everything related to my camera gear, camping and hiking gear, food, and emergency equipment.
And to be honest, I’m usually not excited to sit behind a computer for hours editing my pictures. I find myself wanting to be back there in person, outside.
But it’s all worth it, even if that magic moment lasts for just a few moments of an entire trip and I get that shot that makes me say “wow”. It actually makes it that much more rewarding when it actually does happen because I realize how difficult it can be to capture something special. That uncertainty is both stressful and exhilarating.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rabbitmoonphoto.com
- Instagram: @rabbitinamoon
- Other: Artspark.art (Private and Corporate Group Art Classes)
Image Credits
Photos by Ed Chang, Rabbit in the Moon Photography @rabbitinamoon
Glass by Barbara Lolli @lolliglassart
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
