2018: Year in Review

I was going to do this the traditional way where I tell you about all the amazing work that I have done and wow you all with the places I’ve been and the things that I have done.

However, I realized that my purpose here or better yet, the reason that you are here is because of my photos. I just want to take you through a year of my photography (explaining as I go) with more photos than words.

This was the first series that I shot in 2018 and strangely one that will have a big impact in 2019

Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics were a high point of the year for me. Not only did I get a chance to work for Visa and Flixel and lead some of the best photographers in country but I also got to enjoy the games as well.

This was a great time out as I had been working a lot on the event side of the olympics. I finally got a chance to see Team Canada play and it was great.

After the Olympics I lead the first “international” Flixel in Seoul. It was a great way to introduce cinemagraphs to local creatives.

This was the group shot. It was a little sketchy as there was a massive protest going on outside the front gate of the palace but I am glad everyone enjoyed themselves.

Shortly before my 40th birthday I got out for some photos at a local hot spot. Orangdae is one of the place on the photographers map out here. You will see tons of similar shots on instagram.

Spring is always beautiful in Korea. I set out this year to document the blossoms as much as I could. Not to mention get a few cinemagraphs as well.

In May, I took a trip to Fukuoka, Japan a place that I love to visit. Also one of the places that visited when I first started into the world of photography.

This was one of my favorite photos. After this I met one of the festival organizers. It was total chance that I came across these performers.

Love this area in Fukuoka. I believe this is the Nakasu district and it is typically a lively area at night. It also reminds me of my first years here in Asia. I can still remember walking alongside the waterway when I first came here in 2003.

These are Ema boards and are typically sold at Japanese Shinto shrines. For me the are one of the many symbols of my time in Japan. When I look at this shot I can almost hear the gentle clack of the boards when the wind blows through them.

I remember stumbling across this temple with my late friend Dave Harvey. Ever since that day I wander back when I am in Fukuoka and remember that amazing time.

Towards the end of May was Buddha’s Birthday. This year I set out to try and improve on some fairly standard shots. Here at Beomosa, they were setting up for a huge festival. The human element here shows both sides of the celebration.

During this time of year I try to really experiment and get some different shots. Here I wanted to make use of the blue our and the lights along with the shadow of the temple.

You can’t shoot a Buddha’s Birthday without getting this kind of shot. It just shows how beautiful the celebration is and just how many lanterns there are!

This year also marked a bit of a new era for me. I bought a drone and really started to enjoy aerial photography. Once I got over the fear of crashing!

This was the field where I cut my teeth in the world of sports photography. I remember how awesome it felt to on the pitch watching the action from closer than anyone else except for the other photogs and the players.

The summer was VERY in Korea and I remember the heat while taking this shot. Fortunately, in Korea you are never too far away from a cafe and an iced americano.

I love the straight down shots a lot. This one is one of my favs. From the lines and the workers to the pop of green. It is just something that I could not have shot while standing on the ground.

During the summer I took some time off and visited family in Canada. This was the first time in a long time that I went home with my wife.

This is a grain elevator just outside of my hometown. It is sort of an icon of the Canadian prairies and the older I get, the more I appreciate them.

I was pretty lucky to get to stay up at Clear Lake for a night with my wife. It was her first time to be in such a wild place. For me it was long overdue.

Soon after we travelled to Whistler, BC. This place is filled with fond memories. I spent a summer here working and I also tinkered with film photography back in the day here as well. If I ever retire, I will relocated here.

One of the cooler things that we did was get tickets to Vallea Lumina, a multimedia hike through the woods. It was a really great experience and they allow tripods!

When I lived in Whistler, I used to walk down this path pretty much every day. I don’t know why but it always intrigued me and I was happy to walk down it again with my wife.

Pink Muhly grass was all the rage in Korea. Thousands of people would stroll through this patch in Gyeongju. I did my best photoshop wizardry to remove all the people from this shot.

A drone is an awesome tool for getting shots like this from above. What I find funny is that I was not so nervous about the park officials but rather the kids running towards me screaming “drrroooooooooone!!! iddddaaaaa!” Which is basically saying “there’s a drone!!!” and then I get surrounded by kids telling what they want the drone to do.

This was a shot that I have been wanting to get for some time. Without the use of a drone, I am afraid that I would not have been able to achieve it. Not to mention that this area has now become my go-to spot for fall colours in Korea.

Beomosa is a great place and one that I regularly go to when I want to just clear my head. This shot is a short but steep hike up to a hermitage that overlooks the main temple grounds. It was stunning this past fall.

This was one of the shots that I mentioned in a previous article. It really stands out as a top shot for this past year. I also really enjoyed just being here in this streambed hearing the sounds of nature all around me.

Pete DeMarco came back to Korea for a it and it was great to finally grab a coffee with him and chat. He also set up a small photowalk and we all managed to get some cool shots from the evening. I also got to meet a few photographers that I had only met online previously.

This shot was one that was completely by accident. I run another community website as well and I had set out to grab some shots of the downtown area decorated for Christmas. As I walked there, the sky popped with colour. It was amazing to see so many people stop and admire the colours.

Merry Christmas 2018

The view from our new apartment on Christmas morning. This was a great way to start our Christmas and perfect way to wrap up the year. Thank you all for making it this far. I hope that you enjoyed the images.


I also want to take this time to thank everyone for their help and support over this past year. I sincerely thank you for all the love, comments, and feedback. I hope that 2019 is a great year. If you are ever in Korea or in Ulsan, give me a shout. I would love to show you around and take some photos.

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Jason Teale 

Photographer, educator, podcaster

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Photographing Korea and the world beyond!