What started as an innocent attempt at a road trip zine turned into a year-long time capsule at the helm of Belchertown photographer Cameron Plourde. Plourde has been building a spot in the scene under his Enjoy Media umbrella, and recently took his first step into the physical medium of publishing with his book “A Year in Motion.”
In between collecting scraps for his digital collages and detailing cars, I got Cam on the phone this week to talk about the book and what else he’s been up to this winter.
World of Echo: Cam! Super stoked on you for getting the book out. Congrats on it.
Cameron Plourde: Thanks man! It’s really cool to finally have it out and in people’s hands after months of editing on the computer.
Absolutely. I’d like to get into all that shortly, but first I wanted to ask if you’ve been skating at all lately? I saw you got a new setup recently.
Yeah, I have! I didn’t have a bike all summer so I got back into skating this past year after some time off. I’ve been enjoying it.
You needed a new outlet.
Definitely. Something to get me out of the house instead of just sitting at my desk.
Massachusetts seems just as cold as Indiana right now. You must have some indoor spots then, right?
We just got back into the teens the other day, but yes we do have a few places to hide in the winter. There used to be a park in New Hampshire that I’d visit as a kid, but that closed down awhile ago and a new one opened up in Taunton, Mass. called The Edge. It’s about 2 hours away and I got to check it out for the first time the other day. Good spot.
What deck did you get by the way? I couldn’t quite make out the graphic.
It’s just a shop deck, Theory Skateshop out of Northampton. Stepped off the 7.75” onto an 8.3”
Big moves. Are you trying to get another bike?
Definitely. Once springtime hits I’ll be back out there.
Nice. I’m curious if you could tell me about the motivation behind this book, because this is quite an ambitious project to lead with on your first go. What made you decide that this was what you wanted to do for your first print piece?
At first, I just wanted to do a little zine about my trip out to California last year, but as I started that process I quickly realized that I had more to work with than I thought. There were shots I had taken throughout the year that I felt shouldn’t be left out, even if they happened outside of the trip. My focus soon changed, and I broadened the scope of the book to include most of my work from the past year. It was supposed to be something small, but it snowballed immediately.
I just wanted to do something with the photos I had taken in California, and not have them live and die on Instagram.
So what spawned that trip out to California?
I met up with Hunter Calle and my friend Ryan down in Florida early last year, which is where the photos from the first chapter in the book come from, and as I became closer with those guys over the summer, Hunter made mention about his plan to race the last two outdoor nationals out in California. He invited me out along with Ryan, and what was initially supposed to be a two-week trip ended up being over a month. We enjoyed our time out there.
Where did you guys stay at?
We were hitting up hotels at first, but even on the cheap the expenses started to pile on, so we found some room at the Grindstone Compound and worked out of there for the remainder of the trip. Shout out Cari Schehr and the Grindstone fam, they took really good care of us.
I also met up with CJ [Tucker] who is a privateer out there, Corbin Hayes at SEVEN, and filmmaker Anthony LaMadrid. I’ve been a fan of his for awhile now so it was nice to meetup and put a face to his online handle.
This project was completely on your own volition as well, right? Shot, developed, and edited by you?
Outside of a few rolls in the early stages that I had sent out before getting into home-development, that is correct. I had a hand in the process all the way until the end.
Could you highlight any shortcomings or challenges you faced in producing the book and getting it printed?
Not that this is a shortcoming, but I think working with print in general helped me find what I want to focus on going forward. Printing a book had never even crossed my mind until the month before I started working on this one, so to have now gone through the process start to finish, it’s expanded my horizons and given me new goals to work towards in the future.
I hadn’t been as inspired by video lately either, so taking some time to go through my photos and put out the book has renewed other passions in my life.
I was curious how you came across the “film soup” development technique. It’s not something I see often, but you’ve made it a staple of yours and you do it really well. Where did that come about?
I honestly just came across that one scrolling through the IG explore page. I saw a few photos that utilized the technique and I wanted to try to replicate that in my own work. After some research I found a method that worked for me and I’ve been doing it ever since. The results always catch my eye, because no two photos come out the same.
Did you catch any seasonal depression being inside a lot? I’ve been feeling kind of down lately myself.
I feel you. I used to get it pretty bad, but I’ve found new ways to manage recently. I think I can cope with it a little better now. The book certainly kept my mind busy.
What do you do to pass the time otherwise?
These days I’m only ever skating, playing hockey with my dad, or sitting at my desk and working on collages.
Where do you find the images for your collages?
I usually just drop in a Stop ’N Shop or Barnes & Noble and nab some stuff. Anything I find interestingly, really. There’s this magazine out of Florida called Whalebone that I followed on IG recently, and I like to pull from there because they always have something trippy to look at. Old Racer X and Thrasher magazines also do the trick. Nat Geo.
Is there a place you want to go this year that you’ve never been before?
[pause] Yes! I want to get on the stadium floor of a Supercross race. Hopefully it works out.
How does it feel to have “A Year in Motion” behind you?
It feels like I have nothing to do! [laughs] I am anxious to get back at it soon, though. I’ll be leaving for South of the Border in a few weeks to go hang out for the rest of the winter with Hunter and Ryan. I’ll have my detailing equipment to make some extra cash on the side while I’m down there. I’ve never been before, so I’m excited.
Thanks to Cameron for the time. You can check him out on Instagram at @enjoymedia.live and grab a copy of the book on his website HERE.
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What started as an innocent attempt at a road trip zine turned into a year-long time capsule at the helm of Belchertown photographer Cameron Plourde. Plourde has been building a spot in the scene under his Enjoy Media umbrella, and recently took his first step into the physical medium of publishing with his book “A Year in Motion.”
In between collecting scraps for his digital collages and detailing cars, I got Cam on the phone this week to talk about the book and what else he’s been up to this winter.
World of Echo: Cam! Super stoked on you for getting the book out. Congrats on it.
Cameron Plourde: Thanks man! It’s really cool to finally have it out and in people’s hands after months of editing on the computer.
Absolutely. I’d like to get into all that shortly, but first I wanted to ask if you’ve been skating at all lately? I saw you got a new setup recently.
Yeah, I have! I didn’t have a bike all summer so I got back into skating this past year after some time off. I’ve been enjoying it.
You needed a new outlet.
Definitely. Something to get me out of the house instead of just sitting at my desk.
Massachusetts seems just as cold as Indiana right now. You must have some indoor spots then, right?
We just got back into the teens the other day, but yes we do have a few places to hide in the winter. There used to be a park in New Hampshire that I’d visit as a kid, but that closed down awhile ago and a new one opened up in Taunton, Mass. called The Edge. It’s about 2 hours away and I got to check it out for the first time the other day. Good spot.
What deck did you get by the way? I couldn’t quite make out the graphic.
It’s just a shop deck, Theory Skateshop out of Northampton. Stepped off the 7.75” onto an 8.3”
Big moves. Are you trying to get another bike?
Definitely. Once springtime hits I’ll be back out there.
Nice. I’m curious if you could tell me about the motivation behind this book, because this is quite an ambitious project to lead with on your first go. What made you decide that this was what you wanted to do for your first print piece?
At first, I just wanted to do a little zine about my trip out to California last year, but as I started that process I quickly realized that I had more to work with than I thought. There were shots I had taken throughout the year that I felt shouldn’t be left out, even if they happened outside of the trip. My focus soon changed, and I broadened the scope of the book to include most of my work from the past year. It was supposed to be something small, but it snowballed immediately.
I just wanted to do something with the photos I had taken in California, and not have them live and die on Instagram.
So what spawned that trip out to California?
I met up with Hunter Calle and my friend Ryan down in Florida early last year, which is where the photos from the first chapter in the book come from, and as I became closer with those guys over the summer, Hunter made mention about his plan to race the last two outdoor nationals out in California. He invited me out along with Ryan, and what was initially supposed to be a two-week trip ended up being over a month. We enjoyed our time out there.
Where did you guys stay at?
We were hitting up hotels at first, but even on the cheap the expenses started to pile on, so we found some room at the Grindstone Compound and worked out of there for the remainder of the trip. Shout out Cari Schehr and the Grindstone fam, they took really good care of us.
I also met up with CJ [Tucker] who is a privateer out there, Corbin Hayes at SEVEN, and filmmaker Anthony LaMadrid. I’ve been a fan of his for awhile now so it was nice to meetup and put a face to his online handle.
This project was completely on your own volition as well, right? Shot, developed, and edited by you?
Outside of a few rolls in the early stages that I had sent out before getting into home-development, that is correct. I had a hand in the process all the way until the end.
Could you highlight any shortcomings or challenges you faced in producing the book and getting it printed?
Not that this is a shortcoming, but I think working with print in general helped me find what I want to focus on going forward. Printing a book had never even crossed my mind until the month before I started working on this one, so to have now gone through the process start to finish, it’s expanded my horizons and given me new goals to work towards in the future.
I hadn’t been as inspired by video lately either, so taking some time to go through my photos and put out the book has renewed other passions in my life.
I was curious how you came across the “film soup” development technique. It’s not something I see often, but you’ve made it a staple of yours and you do it really well. Where did that come about?
I honestly just came across that one scrolling through the IG explore page. I saw a few photos that utilized the technique and I wanted to try to replicate that in my own work. After some research I found a method that worked for me and I’ve been doing it ever since. The results always catch my eye, because no two photos come out the same.
Did you catch any seasonal depression being inside a lot? I’ve been feeling kind of down lately myself.
I feel you. I used to get it pretty bad, but I’ve found new ways to manage recently. I think I can cope with it a little better now. The book certainly kept my mind busy.
What do you do to pass the time otherwise?
These days I’m only ever skating, playing hockey with my dad, or sitting at my desk and working on collages.
Where do you find the images for your collages?
I usually just drop in a Stop ’N Shop or Barnes & Noble and nab some stuff. Anything I find interestingly, really. There’s this magazine out of Florida called Whalebone that I followed on IG recently, and I like to pull from there because they always have something trippy to look at. Old Racer X and Thrasher magazines also do the trick. Nat Geo.
Is there a place you want to go this year that you’ve never been before?
[pause] Yes! I want to get on the stadium floor of a Supercross race. Hopefully it works out.
How does it feel to have “A Year in Motion” behind you?
It feels like I have nothing to do! [laughs] I am anxious to get back at it soon, though. I’ll be leaving for South of the Border in a few weeks to go hang out for the rest of the winter with Hunter and Ryan. I’ll have my detailing equipment to make some extra cash on the side while I’m down there. I’ve never been before, so I’m excited.
Thanks to Cameron for the time. You can check him out on Instagram at @enjoymedia.live and grab a copy of the book on his website HERE.
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