Hello From A Stranger: With Adam Schluter | Ep #80

On today’s episode of Resourceful Agent Radio Show We have a returning guest,Adam Schluter.

Adam has been on the show in the past, but today, he’ll share another story from his project “HELLO FROM A STRANGER”.

Adam and Andy will talk about his travels, and what “HELLO FROM A STRANGER” is all about.

Adam is known for his work in NAT GEO and more.

You can find his work on his website (hellofromastranger.com)

Internationally-acclaimed, award-winning photographer and journalist whose career spans assignments in 20+ countries. Published Author.
TED Talk. Published Three Times by National Geographic. All Before 35 Years Old.

“I am truly obsessed with two things: Photography and people. I have always tried to find interesting ways to combine the two, and capture genuine emotions and moments as they naturally happen.” -Adam Schluter.

American photojournalist Adam Schluter travelled to Europe with less than $50 to his name and just one night in an Airbnb and took a huge chance with an idea for a photography project. 

Luckily for him, a travel company liked it and agreed to sponsor him to travel along Europe's railways, taking photos of complete strangers and asking for their stories. 

The project is called ‘Hello from a Stranger’ and it was started by Adam’s craving for real human interaction in a world obsessed with social media. 

Now Adam has collected more than 1000 photos and stories and he continues to find meaningful interactions with people from all walks of life.  

Adam Schluter is a photographer who has dedicated his life to trying to use his art to try and bring the world closer together. 5 years ago, he spent all of his money to buy a plane ticket to Europe with the idea of walking up to strangers in as many countries as he could to say hello, ask for their photograph and then put the camera away to have a genuine conversation with them. The project has now been published three times by National Geographic, was a TED talk, a book and now, they're filming the show for it.

Starting at 12:02, Adam shares with us his story on barely surviving after contracting salmonella in Cuba. Because of the kindness of a stranger, he survived by hours and is here today to tell us how he couldn’t have done it without the love of others.

Live* from the Historic Greenbrier Inn in downtown Coeur d' Alene, Ali & Callie's conversation with world traveler, photo journalist, and just an amazing human!  HBO has called Adam's work "the strongest independent photo journalist we've seen all year" and National Geographic says his compositions are "striking" and will "draw your attention".

Listen to stories from around the world, hear about his book "The World I See" and learn about his Hello from a Stranger series, plus stories of being in the heat of the 2020 pandemic and protest year on the road.  You don't want to miss this episode!!  

* Pre-recorded with a live studio audience, sound is a little off but worth the listen for sure!!  Enjoy!!

In which we discuss guerrilla-style photography in Utah, the value of being uncomfortable and always having a passion project, and whether Mike is a journalist. Check out Adam's website Hello From a Stranger for some amazing photographs.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to travel the world 🛫🌍, meet strangers and take photos? Oh and did I mention, without any money?

For most, what I just mentioned above would seem crazy and impossible at best. For today's guest, doing that exact thing is what forged his path to where he is today.

Adam Schluter and I speak about how he got his start in photography. From being homeless with no money and living in Los Angeles out of his car Adam decided he was going to travel and use his camera to express what he saw.

Adam pushed himself outside of a comfort zone that most wouldn't imagine doing. Fast forward until today, he has recognized by National Geographic, HBO, Nikon and many other major sources for his work.

Following his passion even when he had no clue what the next day held was what helped create Adam's success. Even if you are not a photographer, Adam's story is extremely powerful and has a ton of valuable lessons for anyone wanting to pursue a career, business or passion project.

"Hello from a Stranger" The creative project was the brainchild of photographer Adam Schluter, who came up with the idea to fly from his hometown in Missouri to Copenhagen, Denmark, and ride trains all across the EU while meeting and speaking to almost every person he came in contact with.

The ironic thing about all of this is that Adam is actually a self-proclaimed introvert! Despite this, his passion to tell other stories through photography helped him to overcome his fears.

This project has been brought to light across the world and has been featured on TedTalks, National Geographic, Fox, ABC, and more. It just goes to show that the desire to spread light can help anyone overcome darkness.

Adam Schlüter was in Minnesota to photograph a wedding. When he woke in his hotel on May 29, he opened his window to see plumes of smoke. He rushed to the scene to document the event, and ended up staying almost a week longer than he had planned. On our show, Adam discusses what he encountered. You can see his photographs at his website, Hello From a Stranger.

Adam talks to us about his experience in Minneapolis and his time spent in CHOP in Seattle. You will want to listen to this episode.