How It Began

[Our Story]

THE WILDIST X Fer Richaud

THE WILDIST began with a simple realization: direct experience requires time. As life accelerates, that time becomes harder to protect. Much of what we know about wildlife now comes through screens, often reduced to artificial and ephemeral content, and sometimes not even real. Being outside offers something steadier. The world feels less distant when you are standing in it.

THE WILDIST was created to protect that kind of time. To bring people into wild places with intention, and to share a sense of teamwork and community where the effort is simple and equal, to witness what may feel lost in time, yet still lives with the same authenticity it always has.

Fer Richaud: Wildlife Photographer: A man with long dark hair, a mustache, wearing a black beanie and black jacket, holding a camera with a large telephoto lens outdoors with snow-covered mountains and trees in the background. 
“For me, at first, I think it was about the photograph, the settings, the light, getting it right, worrying about equipment, editing, and publishing. Then something shifted. Sharing the story, and learning how to do it well, became my primary focus. I wanted to tell these stories and share them with friends, and with anyone who wanted to live these experiences. I started noticing how it feels to be there before anything happens, the quiet, the waiting, the way nature slowly wakes up, and I wanted to share all of that through my work, and build a community around these moments.

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What started as curiosity slowly became something more certain, even without knowing what the day and the outdoors would bring.

That’s where Fer’s work began. Born and raised in Mexico, with a deep love of the outdoors, he didn’t start photography early; in fact, it came quite late. But from the beginning, it was clear what felt right: Wildlife.

Cold environments, open landscapes, and long hours outside with no guarantee of what might happen started to shape and fuel a new project.

A person crouching near the open trunk of a black SUV parked on a grassy area with mountains and trees in the background.
Person sits on rocky ground, preparing to pour coffee from a portable stove using a bag of coffee and a spoon. 
And then there’s everything in between, the random conversations, the bad jokes told to stay warm, the morning coffee on the road, and the shared look when something finally appears. Those parts stick, and somehow it ends up tying the whole experience together.”

— Fer

A man sitting on a small stool beside a parked black SUV in an open mountainous landscape, with mountains and trees in the background.
Fer Richaud , photographer with a gray beanie, black jacket, and a green backpack sitting by a wooden fence, holding a camera with a large lens. Behind him is a large group of penguins standing and walking on a grassy landscape.
Four men standing by a lake with snow-capped mountains in the background, smiling and giving thumbs-up.
A man standing on rocks by a body of water, holding a rope with a loop at the end, with forested hills and an overcast sky in the background.
A person with short dark hair, wearing a beige cap with Swedish flag and earrings, looking away with a green Fjällräven backpack and a white patterned sweater, standing outdoors among trees.
A person in a dark jacket and hood using a white telescope with a black eyepiece to observe icy mountains and glaciers across a body of water, on a cloudy day.
Photograph of camera equipment and accessories, including two large telephoto lenses, a camera with a telephoto lens attached, a smaller lens, a camera body, a remote shutter release, a tripod, batteries, memory cards, a backpack, and some stickers,
A person standing next to a black SUV with its rear hatch open, in a grassy field surrounded by tall trees and a mountainous landscape with snow-capped peaks in the background.
Person in a hat hiking through a forested trail with a dog, carrying a blue backpack.
⤷ Get in touch with Fer