We recently connected with Marla Tomorug and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Marla thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear your thoughts about making remote work effective.
I’ve been freelancing as a graphic designer and photographer since 2018, which has been a non-linear path with loads of challenges. Last year, a new challenge presented itself. I took the opportunity to join 2 colleagues on a 2-year, global diving expedition, deemed the Edges of Earth. The goal of our expedition: to visit coastal areas all over the world and help to amplify the stories of people working to create and understand climate solutions, specifically related to the ocean. We document our partners’ stories through photography and writing.
My reasons for choosing to go on the expedition were plenty, but the salient ones were:
1. I knew that this was a once-in a lifetime opportunity and one that would provide immense growth along the way. I’d been craving this type of learning and growth and, if I didn’t act on this opportunity, would continue to crave it until I put myself in a similar position that expanded my capacity to adapt, grow and learn. 2. I am fulfilled by contributing to programs, projects, and organizations focused on planetary health.
3. I am happiest when I’m in the ocean, surfing, diving and swimming.
Our expedition is self-funded. Because of this, we needed to maintain the ability to work remotely while we travel to bring in the capital needed to keep the expedition alive. I sold a lot of my things, ended my rental lease, and cancelled autos-payments for things I would not need for the next two years on the road.
I spoke with my clients about the upcoming expedition, and was clear about what it meant for my workload and schedule. I’m grateful to have incredible clients who were excited about the expedition, were willing to adapt to my new schedule and aligned with a reduction in my hours. I’ve been able to work with my clients throughout the expedition to adjust my workload as needed.
The most crucial elements in being able to make this work have been planning, scheduling and consistent communication. We have an expedition schedule that has been created with our local partners, and we plan the rest of our day around that schedule. Our days typically consist of a mix of traveling, diving, interviews with partners, creating (photography, writing) and client projects. Some days are packed only with expedition partner work. During periods of expedition downtime, we’re able to dedicate ample time to client projects. Sometimes one of us will have a client deadline or urgent client need that falls at the same time as a big expedition day. Because there are three of us, we are able to shift our expedition roles as needed to accommodate if one of us can’t be available. We’ve become quite adaptable as a team.
Having the right tools in place to be able to plan, manage time and communicate effectively is crucial. Notion is the home of our expedition schedule/logistics/details/processes. Google Calendar is critical for scheduling client and expedition partner meetings. I personally use Tiimo as a day planner. I have ADHD and it helps me tremendously with time management. It gives you something to check off (who doesn’t love doing that?!) and it allows you to color code things, which just makes them more fun. It might be over-the-top for most people, but I will put everything in there including coffee breaks. I plan the next day out in Tiimo the night before, so I wake up and automatically know what I need to do for the day.
The biggest challenge of all is definitely finding balance. We’re nowhere near perfecting this yet, but we’ve made significant progress. During the first few locations on our trip, we were working with partners back to back, with no downtime in between. After we work with a single partner, we typically have thousands of photos to process, hours of video to sort through and dozens of stories to write. On top of that, we all had our client projects to work on. We now have scheduled downtime in between each partner to process content, work with clients and just give our bodies a break. Our workdays don’t ever really stop, but we’re also doing something we love and that’s super fulfilling.
Being connected to the “corporate” world, while on expedition gives us insight, creative fuel, tools and inspiration that help us solve problems on our expedition journey and vice versa. On our expedition, we make an effort to immerse ourselves in as many perspectives as possible surrounding the ocean space. It’s important to us that we have a well rounded picture of what is happening in our ocean and what is important to each stakeholder. Well talk with everyone from indigenous communities and fishermen, to scientists and conservationists. It is only from empathy and understanding that we can work together to protect our planet. This full-picture frame of mind translates directly into all other work we do – when we listen to our colleagues and act from empathy, we can build better systems and solutions.
Marla, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I actually went to school for Music Industry & Technology, and realized halfway through college that this wasn’t something I wanted to pursue. Instead of starting over, I decided to finish school with a music degree, but knew I needed a way to pivot my college path to give me an entry into a career I felt was more aligned for me. I chose to add a minor in Communication Design. I was drawn to the field of graphic design because creativity, art and appreciation of aesthetics were things I inherently excelled at from an early age. I was able to land my first job out of college as a graphic designer at a ski resort in Tahoe, CA. That was the beginning of my design career. Because I didn’t have a comprehensive education in graphic design, there was a pretty steep learning curve. I learned a lot of the basics in my first couple jobs and through teaching myself online.
I continued to find positions as the in-house designer at different companies, which was nice in that it provided a lot of autonomy in the design process, but did not give the accelerated learning path that I witnessed the design agency jobs providing. Luckily, there are endless ways to learn online, which is what I did and continue to do every day. With the rapid development of technology related to design programs and tools, the internet has become one of the best ways to absorb this new information. There are so many opportunities to learn and level up. What started as an appreciation of beauty and love of creating evolved into a love of problem solving through visual storytelling and design.
I started my journey into photography shortly after I started my first graphic design position at the ski resort. A colleague sold me his old Canon 60d, which he’d used for snowboarding photography. I still have and use the 60D to this day. (I actually use it on the Edges of Earth expedition as the “dry” camera when the rest of our cameras are in underwater housings.)
I have a passion for food and cooking and, with my new-to-me camera, it developed into a passion for food photography. I started a food blog (www.devourly.life) in college, and was excited to finally have the right camera gear to take photos of my creations. I fell in love with telling a story of the process through capturing the messy details – spilled ingredients, empty garlic skins, discarded vegetable tops.
I picked up a few food-based product photography clients and was also able to use my photo skills at my graphic design jobs. As the in-house designer at small companies, I was often also the only person on the creative team, and product photography became another part of my job description.
In 2020, I had felt I had to act on an ever-growing desire to align my career with my purpose, and an even bigger desire to be by the ocean. I grew up around water (pools as a baby/childhood beach trips/swimming, water polo and lifeguarding throughout high school) and and very much feel in my most authentic state when I am in the ocean. I moved to Maui (where my mom and stepdad live) in 2020, right before the COVID pandemic went full-swing and took my newly-remote design position with me. The move immediately re-ignited my interest in scuba diving (I got certified in college, but never dove again after taking the test) and began diving twice a day. I also began volunteering at a local non-profit helping with sea turtle rehabilitation and coral restoration. I had never felt more fulfilled. I wanted to make this sense of fulfillment a part of my career.
Being underwater every day gave me a new sense of awe for our beautiful planet. This magnificently biodiverse underwater world goes largely unnoticed by the majority of the human population. I wanted to share what I was seeing with my friends and family, and elicit in them the same sense of awe and wonder that I felt when being below the surface. I invested in a Kraken dive case for my iPhone and that began the beginning of my career path as an underwater photographer.
When the world shut down due to COVID, I went online and reached out to dozens of people working in the ocean conservation space. I was determined to somehow apply my creative skills to the world of ocean impact, and achieve the same sense of fulfillment that came from diving and from my time volunteering with the turtles and coral. I ended up connecting with a colleague, with a wildly impressive background in business strategy. We joined forces and began helping ocean impact startups build their brands – she on the business strategy side and myself on visual design and branding. Not only was I able to apply my design skills to these projects, but I was also able to contribute my underwater photography to help bring these ocean-impact brands to life.
Fast-forward three years, and that same colleague, her partner and myself are now on the Edges of Earth expedition. We are traveling the world helping amplify the stories of people with projects centered around the ocean and climate crisis. Through writing and photo essays, we share the experiences, work and messages of our expedition partners across our digital platforms. While traveling, we also work remotely to fund our expedition.
We’ve been on the road for 8 months now and have met with a countless number of incredible people who all play wildly different roles in the quest for climate and ocean solutions. We’ve met with kelp biologists, professional surfers, indigenous leaders, deep sea researchers, fisherfolk, chefs, government officials and so many more dedicated humans. Spending from 1 to 2 weeks with each partner allows us to immerse ourselves in their world and help tell their story from a lens of empathy and compassion.
Photographing these humans and their work is probably the thing I am most proud of to date. We are in such a unique time of living on a rapidly-changing planet. I feel grateful to be able to document how certain ambitious groups and individuals are contributing to the goal of planetary health during this time.
You don’t have to be a scientist to get involved with helping the planet. You can use the skills you have now. You can connect online or locally with people in the climate/ocean/biodiversity/etc. space that would benefit from your skills. From engineers, designers, and teachers to farmers, fisherfolk and restaurant owners there is room for everyone to contribute to climate solutions.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being a creative is different depending on the medium.
For design, I find reward in helping people solve problems and progress to the next stage of their goal. I also find reward from the massive amounts of learning opportunities that come from the freelance design industry. Whether it’s working on projects for new-to-me industries or getting up to speed on the latest design tools, there is always something new to learn and ways to expand your potential.
For photography, the reward comes from:
1. Helping people feel seen. It is beyond rewarding when I am able to capture my photography subject in a way that makes them feel proud of who they are. Strength, beauty, ambition are some of the common themes I’ve captured while photographing people on expedition.
2. Eliciting emotion in my audience. If my audience has a moment of “wow” or awe, I feel like I have done my job communicating the beauty of the world through my photography. This especially applies to my underwater photos. The underwater world is a place not everyone will get to experience. Capturing the awe and wonder of the ocean for those who don’t have access is very rewarding.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
A lesson I had to unlearn was the belief that there was only one specific career path or profession that could help me create the fulfilling lifestyle I desired. Early on, I held the misconception that success and satisfaction were synonymous with following a linear trajectory within one industry. This belief stemmed from societal norms and expectations, as well as my own limited understanding of the multitude of opportunities available.
Upon entering the workforce, I encountered various challenges and opportunities that gradually reshaped my perspective. Initially, I found myself navigating the world of graphic design, leveraging my newfound skills to secure positions in different industries. However, it was during this time that I began to recognize the limitations of a linear career path. Despite the autonomy and creative freedom afforded by in-house design roles, I realized that true fulfillment came from embracing a more flexible and multifaceted approach to my career.
As I dove deeper into the realms of design and photography, I discovered the power of interdisciplinary collaboration and the vast array of opportunities available beyond traditional career boundaries. Through freelancing, online learning, and exploration of new mediums, I began to embrace the idea that my career journey could be dynamic and nonlinear.
The turning point came when I followed my passion for the ocean and environmental conservation, leading me to combine my design skills with underwater photography. This fusion of interests opened doors to a world of possibilities, allowing me to embark on projects and expeditions that transcended conventional career paths.
Ultimately, the lesson I had to unlearn was that success is not confined to a predetermined route, but rather a result of embracing the diversity of experiences and pathways available. By challenging the notion of linear progression and remaining open to new opportunities, I discovered that there are countless avenues to engage with the projects, people, and industries that resonate with my passions and values.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.edgesofearth.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marlatomorug/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marlatomorug/
Image Credits
Alex Uvalle (Personal Photo) Additional Photos: Marla Tomorug