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Brandon William Sharpe

Designer, Photographer, and Explorer.


"I wanted to quit and to do this forever, sleep in a bed and in a tent, see what was over the next hill and never see a hill again. All of this all at once, every moment, on the trail or off." -Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods. 33 days until I attempt to hike 2,663 miles on The Pacific Crest Trail.

“I wanted to quit and to do this forever, sleep in a bed and in a tent, see what was over the next hill and never see a hill again. All of this all at once, every moment, on the trail or off.” -Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods.



A transplant from the south, now living in the great city of Chicago, Brandon Sharpe is a designer, photographer, and explorer always looking for the next big adventure. Moving from the design world and into photography, he became better known through his architectural and adventurous photos, as well as his unique and hard to obtain views of the city of Chicago.

Always being more attracted to the adventure and process of getting the photo, I typically set out to communicate that message through my photography, as well as give an interesting and unique narrative to accompany it. Originally from the state of South Carolina, I moved to Chicago four years ago and it completely opened my eyes to the possibilities of communicating that message through the art of photography. Being from a city not even half the size of Chicago, it allowed the city to stand in as a playground for my work, and provide me opportunities to take some of my best photos yet. In this time I gained some exposure and luckily acquired a large audience of 37,000 people through the popular photo-sharing app Instagram, as well as other popular social sharing platforms, and online publications.

This exposure opened up the possibilities of where this medium could take me and my work, so I decided it was time to take on the next challenge. I have always believed that nothing great in life comes with out some risk, and I have found this to be particularly true in my case. I was working a desk job like most people, and realized that my true potential was somewhere else, somewhere out in the wild, somewhere experiencing the world in a different way, and somewhere other than sitting at a desk for 8 hours a day. This is when I decided I would attempt something I have never done in my life, something that would challenge me directly, change my life, and leave me with an interesting and unique story to share.

With that said, I decided I would challenge myself through a change of scenery, and attempt a thru-hike on The Pacific Crest Trail. The Pacific Crest Trail is a 2,663 mile hike that leads hikers through 25 National Forests, 7 National Parks, and 3 states including; California, Oregon, and Washington. The hike will take approximately 6 months to complete, and with a start date of April 10th at the U.S./Mexico border, I hope to be arriving at my final destination of Manning, B.C., Canada by the end of September or start of October.

This experience will not only be about documenting my personal journey, but also a journey where I attempt to engage my audience in a sense that they get the feeling they are hiking right along with me. As I enter the new and unknown territory of the trail, I plan to document summit climbs, scenic vista views, beautiful starry nights, day-to-day struggles, and the culture of the Pacific Crest Trail. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t excited about what I am about to experience. Explore your world.

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