Capt. Kollin Taylor, Photographer
A very cool story about a guy who can shoot more than an M-16.
DVIDS
Photo and story by Pfc. Nathaniel Smith, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division
Combat Camera is a military occupational specialty reserved for members of the U.S. Army Signal Corps who document the history of their service through still and video images.
The commander of the 4th (Infantry) Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division’s Signal Company is not a combat cameraman, but he was recognized for his skills in still photography recently in a service-wide competition.
Capt. Kollin Taylor, commander of Company C “Cobras,” Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 4th BCT, from Miami, received honorable mention in a Department of the Army photography competition.
For a man whose interest in photography was first realized at the age of 10, receiving the distinction was a humbling experience.
“Looking at the awards of other people, it was in good company,” the Jamaica-born Taylor said. “When I say ‘honorable mention,’ I am honored to be mentioned in their company.”
For the annual competition, there are two groups, civilian and military, with five sub-categories: people, places, objects, experimental and military life.
Taylor’s submissions went through contests at Fort Riley, Kan., the U.S, Army Forces Command and at the Department of the Army levels. The photographs had to finish in the top five of each round.
Taylor’s award-winning photos were in the places and people categories in the military group, one of a Soldier at 4-1 BSTB’s force protection lanes at Fort Riley, Kan., and the other during the 4th IBCT’s rotation at the National Training Center of Fort Irwin, Calif.
“The good thing about it is it’s a Soldier from 1st ID,” Taylor said of his photo entitled ‘Big Red One.’ “I’ve been in the unit for the last six years, basically, and everything is in black and white except for the red in the patch. That’s a great source of pride for me.”
While “Captain Snap Shot,” as some call him, is satisfied with the plaudits he has received, he does not plan on relishing in the success he’s had; instead, he’ll be back next year, looking for more.
“I’m a competitor. When I compete, I want to win,” he said. “When I look at it, I submitted 50 photos and only two were selected for honorable mention. The two that were selected weren’t among my favorites to win.”
Taylor has come a long way from when he first picked up a camera as a 10-year-old displaying a knack for getting good pictures. Along the way, he’s learned lessons he doesn’t mind sharing with aspiring photographers.
“Practice makes perfect; the more you shoot, the better you get. Never be afraid to challenge yourself,” Taylor said. “If you look at what other people are doing, don’t necessarily try to copy them, but they may give you good ideas.”
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I’ve witnessed this individual in action. He walks around with a camera attached to his hip practically all the time. So yeah, it’s pretty eventual that a few good photos will come out of all the ones he takes, but look at the ratio. He even said it himself, “The more you shoot, the better you get.” That doesn’t sound like the words of a true photographer. It’s not about quantity but about quality. You need to have an eye for photographing the right subjects and situations. With this approach honorable mention will be all this guy ever sees.
[Editor: He's quoting some of the big names in photography, though. You shoot tons of pics to get a good one.]