Ty Lekki’s journey to photography and El Chaltén is anything but ordinary. In 2018, when Lekki traveled to the small town in Argentina that serves as the gateway to climbing many of Patagonia's most famous spires, he'd never camped a day in his life — let alone climbed.
That sets the scene for Lekki’s piece in the latest issue of Summit Journal, “Screams of Stone” (which for the well-versed in Patagonian lore, is an homage to a description used by Reinhold Messner of the Andes range). The photo essay traces Lekki’s life path (in brief) from working in commercial flooring to picking up photography to, in the biggest twist of all, moving to El Chaltén.
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Ty Lekki is an adventure photographer and filmmaker based in El Chaltén, Argentina. He began his career in Buffalo, NY using an iPhone 4. Today, he is known for his ephemeral landscape photography and VR 360 aerial imagery. You can follow him on Instagram @tylekki.
Lekki's photo essay, Screams of Stone, appears in SJ 324.
Q&A with Ty Lekki, Patagonia Photographer
Summit Journal: You’re originally from Buffalo, NY. Where are the best wings in the city?
Ty Lekki: Those are made in my dad’s garage in his deep fryer, with fresh-cut fries on the side. With a big old side of blue cheese, of course.
SJ: How did you get started in photography? What was your progression from commercial flooring to full-time photographer?
TL: I started using an iPhone 4 at Niagara Falls, close to where I grew up. I remember putting the phone on a tripod to do long exposures. Eventually, I bought a Nikon D750, and I’ve been at it now for ten years. The traveling construction job was key to the transition into photography full-time. It allowed me to save money, buy gear, and not have any pressure to make money from the camera until just a few years ago.
SJ: It sounds like you traveled extensively around the lower 48 for your job. How did travel for work influence your photography, and vice versa?
TL: I lived in 14 different states over the course of 8 years, usually for around 6 months each. Going all over from California, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and Massachusetts. It really shaped what I was shooting during that period. I was always driving 3 to 4 hours every weekend and doing research on the area. I rarely share any of this old work, but it helped shape where I am today.
SJ: When you first visited El Chaltén, did you know you were going to move there?
TL: No way. I had no idea, but I knew I wanted to come back. The first camping trip in 2018 was just a tease. We only had two nights in Chaltén and woke up to peak fall colors. It was April 4th and definitely not planned. That first trip sparked the interest to come back the next year for my first 3-month trip, and then the next, and the next.
"This is one of my favorite shots," Lekki shares. "The lenga trees get amazingly red in autumn, like the East Coast foliage in the States." Framed by the lenga tree is Cerro Torre at sunrise, with Glaciar Grande below. This glacier has retreated about 300m since this shot was taken," Lekki said. April 2022
SJ: In June 2023, you took a leap of faith, quit your job, and moved to El Chaltén to pursue photography. What made you decide to go all in?
TL: It was NFTs that gave me the confidence to go all in on photos. Having a little security blanket before I came down is what made the gamble possible, and it felt like something I had to do.
SJ: Wow, I've never heard of NFTs actually working for someone... How has your photography developed since moving there?
TL: It has changed a lot. When I first arrived, I was strictly focused on landscape images. The perfect shot, highly edited stuff. Now I’ve shifted into more climbing work, people in the mountains, and aerials. The drone has really opened up what is possible here in Patagonia.
SJ: Do you have any advice for others who may be considering big, life-altering moves?
TL: Just find what you love, go after it day after day, and don’t stop until it becomes a reality.
SJ: Anything else you’d like to share?
TL: It’s been an amazing journey getting to this point. I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of what’s possible here in Patagonia. There’s a whole icefield out there and so many peaks still to explore, and I’m excited to get out there more and do some new work.
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