Meet Alexis Doyle, a Storyteller Who Captures the World Through Her Beautiful Lens

Photography began for Alexis Doyle as a way to hold on to her days. She wanted clear memories of the little things that made a moment feel special, like the color of a door, the pattern on a piece of fabric, or the way sunlight fell across a room. Those details are still what she looks for today.

Alexis now works as a travel photographer. She calls Michigan home, but her camera often takes her far away. Because she pays close attention to what makes a place different from anywhere else, her pictures feel personal and full of care. She also hopes they do more than look beautiful. Her goal is to share the wonder she feels about the world, so that anyone who sees her photos can enjoy its beauty the way she does.

Plenty of people already do. More than 30,000 followers visit her Instagram page, where her highlights are organized like a travel diary, with a folder for each trip. Her photos are calm and sunlit, and they often make you smile at something you might have missed.

Alexis Doyle's Photography Work

Her website sorts her work into four collections: hotels, travel, brand work and fashion. The travel collection stretches from California to Italy, Greece, Morocco, Thailand and Cape Town. The hotel collection is just as varied. She has photographed beach resorts in Anguilla, Saint Martin and Koh Samui, a desert lodge in Siwa Oasis, a hotel on the Greek island of Mykonos and the Tree Hotel in northern Sweden. She has also worked in city hotels in New York and Detroit, along with a seaside inn in Carmel and a ranch stay in Mendocino.

Even with so much variety, her photographs share a soft and sunny look. Rooms feel lived in, ocean water sparkles, and swimmers and beachgoers seem happy and relaxed. Her fashion portraits carry the same golden glow, so her different projects feel like they belong together.

Magazines and brands have noticed her talent, too. Her photographs have appeared in Original Traveller, Origin Magazine, Travesias Magazine and SPACED Magazine, and she has created brand work for Lonely Planet and Boutique Homes. She also partnered with MILK Books on a book of photographs from the time she lived in Egypt.

With so much to admire, we wanted to hear more about her story. We asked Alexis about her beginnings, the way she sees the world, and the places she loves. Her answers appear below exactly as she shared them.

The Interview

1. How did photography become such an important part of your life, and when did you realise that travel photography was something you wanted to pursue seriously?

I first got into photography during my final year of college. At the time, I was studying biomedical science with plans to become an emergency medicine doctor, but after a lot of personal reflection, I began to realize that medicine was no longer the path I wanted to pursue. Around the same time, I began to come across lots of beautiful images online, and something about them really stayed with me. I was especially drawn to the work of Pia Riverola, whose use of color, subject matter, and composition showed me how much could be conveyed within a single frame.

Eventually, I decided to try creating imagery of my own. I ordered a cheap film camera off of eBay and started taking it with me everywhere. I photographed anything I could, slowly teaching myself how to shoot on film. It began as really just a hobby, but it quickly became an obsession. I was entirely enamored with the new eyes it taught me to view the world through and the way that it allowed me to capture my memories with a different kind of attention.

The first year I began shooting, I had the opportunity to travel quite a bit, and I still remember the particular moment when I realized that this was something I wanted to pursue as a career. I was on my first solo trip in Malta, and I found myself at Saint Peter's Pool near Marsaxlokk. I was shooting the people strewn about on the rocks and diving into the salty pools when I realized how purely happy I was to be there and to be taking photos of it all. It was a kind of happiness I had really not felt much before, and I realized then that I needed to find a way to make more moments like that one possible in my life.

Image Courtesy: Alexis Doyle

2. When you arrive somewhere new, what do you look for through your lens that an ordinary traveller might overlook?

Light is really my north star when it comes to travel photos. I always notice if the light is hitting a fresco in a beautiful way or if leaves are casting a dappled shadow onto tile or if narrow passages are creating a spotlight beam of sorts. I think I maybe look for good light more than anything else.

3. At Exposha, we believe people often travel because of how they want to feel- inspired, connected, restored, adventurous or simply present. What role does emotion play in the way you photograph?

Emotion plays an enormous role in my work- if I'm not fully present mentally or am not in the best mood, it 100% shows in my photos. I find that all of my best work comes when I am able to be completely attentive to my surroundings and let my gratitude guide me in noticing the beauty in everything around me. That gratitude and close attention is what cultivates that feeling of creative inspiration and ultimately allows me to produce my best work.

4. Your work often feels very graceful and minimalist, with beautiful compositions and perfect colour grading. How do you approach photographing a place in a way that feels authentic and natural, rather than overly staged or tourist-focused?

I really just try to capture moments as they happened- virtually none of my travel work is staged or orchestrated in any way. It really just comes down to paying close attention to my surroundings, and oftentimes, setting up a composition and waiting for the perfect moment to come along. I also try to be quick and covert, especially when it comes to street photography, as people really tend to freeze up and/or act differently if they notice their photo being taken. In general, I just try to capture the world around me as close to its natural state as possible.

5. Is there a particular destination, place or journey that changed the way you see travel or photography? What made that experience stay with you?

Egypt for sure... It's my greatest muse. There really is nowhere I've enjoyed photographing more. It's just such a beautiful country, and genuinely, every moment there feels like a movie scene- the landscapes, the buildings, the way the people are so candid and jovial. It's a place where the past and the present truly coexist.

Image Courtesy: Alexis Doyle

It was also the first place I ever visited that was outside of North America and Europe, and spending so much time immersed in a culture that's so different from my own really taught me not only to pay more attention, but also what to pay more attention to. It was my first time getting a firsthand understanding of how similar we all are as humans, but how differently we all live. What it looked like to eat, sleep, celebrate, commute, etc. there was all new to me, and in turn, it made me pay even more attention to what every detail of those things looked like. I think that experience fundamentally changed the way I photograph, not just because I was fascinated by what was different, but because it made me more curious about the everyday moments that make up people's lives.

6. Luxury travel is often associated with beautiful hotels and extraordinary landscapes, but what does "luxury" mean to you personally when you travel?

Luxury to me is having the time to see things at your own pace and getting to really settle into a place. The experience one has when visiting somewhere for 2-3 days is worlds apart from the experience of having 2-3 weeks, and I think having the time/opportunity to do that is really the ultimate luxury.

7. If you could wake up tomorrow anywhere in the world with your camera and no itinerary, where would you go and what would you hope to photograph?

I would love to wake up in Tunisia and photograph the architecture and life near the sea there. I really love North Africa, particularly the way it looks near the Mediterranean, and it's been a dream of mine to travel to Tunisia specifically and capture it.

8. What would you encourage travellers to do differently if they want to experience and remember a place more deeply?

I would encourage them to slow down a bit and give themselves time to stray off the beaten path. As I mentioned earlier, it's of course a luxury to have the ability to spend more time in a place, but if experiencing and remembering a place more deeply is the goal, that's one of the best ways to do it. It really gives you time to get used to the daily rhythm there and explore a bit beyond the main sites and areas.

With that, I also recommend finding places to eat and shop the good ol' fashioned way- by just wandering around and seeing what pulls you in. I do love getting recommendations from blogs or Instagram and make a point of trying a few of those out, but I also love just seeing where I end up when left to my own devices.

Lastly, and most importantly, I would say to try to talk to locals as much as possible. The people you talk to and meet can tell you so much more about a place than you'd ever discover on your own. Ask them for recommendations, ask about what life is like there, what they like and don't like, etc. It's those conversations and little interactions that can give you a much deeper understanding of a place and, for me, often end up being some of the most memorable parts of a trip.

Until the Next Adventure

Alexis's story is a happy reminder that a love for something can start small and grow into a life full of color and discovery. We hope her words made you smile and left you excited for your own next trip.

Thank you, Alexis, for sharing your story with Exposha. To follow her latest adventures, find her on Instagram at @alexiskdoyle or visit her website at alexiskdoyle.com.