It’s time for another installment of Darby Comm’s Ask the Experts blog series, where we feature interviews with some of the incredibly talented people we get to collaborate with. For this edition, we’re digging in deep with YouTube creators to learn how they got started with video content, how they’ve grown their audiences, the evolution of their content strategies, and advice for anyone just starting out on the world’s second-most visited website.
Meet the Experts:
Elina Osborne | Elina Osborne | New Zealand native, adventurer, storyteller
Devin Ashby | Backcountry Exposure | Camping/backpacking expert, gear reviewer, husband/father
Tim & Kelsey Huber | Salty Sunrise | Married couple, full-time nomads, world travelers
James Harris | Junkyard Fox | Wilderness self-reliance expert, desert dweller, campfire cook
How long have you been running a YouTube channel?
Elina Osborne: I’ve had my personal channel since the end of 2019, but I had done previous work on other channels before, so effectively I’ve been creating on YouTube since 2017.
Devin Ashby: I started making videos on YouTube around October 2014 as a creative outlet after having been a professional freelance portrait photographer for years. I needed something to keep my brain moving and active and I’ve always really enjoyed gear, so it seemed natural to talk about gear, although it was very basic and quite poorly produced. YouTube 10 years ago was a bit more forgiving on production quality compared to the incredible videos you see from so many channels now.
Tim & Kelsey Huber: We started our vlog when we hit the road to travel, so we have been posting weekly videos for about 7 years.
What made you want to start a channel?
EO: I made a short film I wanted to share online. I didn’t have plans to “start a channel” but simply to share one video I had made!
T&K: Our family thought we were insane for quitting our jobs, selling everything, and hitting the road to live out of a 4×4 (originally the idea was to travel for one full year) so we thought we would share our experiences traveling remote places and just our experience in general. I (Kelsey) also had a hobby of editing videos so I was excited because I wanted to do it anyway for our own memories, and the idea of sharing it with family and friends seemed fun.
James Harris: I’ve always been a creative person and have enjoyed telling stories since I was a child. I’ve drawn my own comics, made paintings, written short stories, etc. my whole life. I live in West Texas, and as I got into survival skills and bushcraft around 2013, I realized there wasn’t much [of that] shown on YouTube. I decided to make a channel to shed light on these methods and to share the beauty of the American Southwest to demonstrate the desert isn’t some barren wasteland, but instead, a beautiful landscape full of wild edibles, wildlife, and opportunities.
What kind of content do you focus on?
EO: It’s primarily in the thru-hiking space, though it leans into personal essay at times. It’s all a little bit everywhere for me at the moment, but the outdoors/new adventures will continue to be the backdrop!
DA: I’ve always focused on backpacking and camping content, as that’s been my main passion for how I spend time outside as long as I can remember. Most of my content focuses on backpacking and education around it, as well as all the nitty gritty details of gear to use for backpacking.
T&K: Everyday life while traveling, very approachable, real-life stuff–no crazy dramatics. We thrive on getting off the tourist tracks, we like to be remote, and really enjoy the beauty of nature as well as the genuine interactions we have with locals and we try to capture that.
JH: Our channel focuses on outdoor adventures in the American Southwest, though we do enjoy making a variety of videos. Sometimes, it’s more primitive survival skills like hunting, foraging, and crafting tools like cordage, shelters, making fire. Other times we’ll film a relaxing car camping adventure, cooking up fancy meals like jambalaya, stews or burgers and having some beers. We also occasionally film outdoor gear reviews on knives, flashlights, tents, etc. My best friend is the cameraman and composer of the channel, so we’ve even filmed a few music videos for his songs.
How has your channel and/or content strategy evolved since you started?
EO: I started my channel with the hopes of leveraging it to do more “serious” work in the traditional media industry. My dreams have always been to “transcend” the platform and work in the documentary space, or simply work in a team on dream projects. Truthfully, it hasn’t evolved much beyond that apart from being able to take some sponsorships for videos. YouTube has evolved (and devolved?) a lot since I started consuming and creating on the platform, and there’s a lot of room for creators to change the space, reach niche audiences, and build a business. I think that’s more what it feels like now; a space for entrepreneurs, with a business mindset. Whether that’s good or bad is up to the person.
DA: Since I’ve been making videos on my channel for so long, it’s gone through a pretty substantial change. Initially my goals were to share my trips as a simple vlog and talk about the gear I was using. It was a bit less technical and more informational on the gear. But as YouTube and my career in the outdoor industry have evolved, the potential of what being a creator on YouTube provides and the value content can give to brands and viewers makes it a completely different landscape. For one, real opportunity to support my family financially is huge, but also, I’ve made an effort to create content that helps others have a better experience in the backcountry. That’s my main goal in my content. When I am reviewing a piece of gear, I work really hard to speak to the use cases, why you would choose it, and how it can provide a positive experience on your trips. But also, showing real-world use of the products in the field so people are able to see some perspective on its use and get a better idea if it’s good for them or not.
T&K: First we gained an audience, a really loyal audience at that, of people who love the way we travel, respect our opinions, and view us as friends. From the start we have been militant about only promoting products we like, that we use, and can genuinely get behind. We want to feel good about sharing brands/products and we aren’t actors, so keeping it all real is just better. We will often reach out to brands because we have done our research and have come to the conclusion that this is what we would spend our money on, so if we can work together it’s great. While it may not be the smartest in terms of making a living, it ensures our audience will continue to trust our recommendations and helps us create mutual respect in our relationships with brands.
Does affiliate marketing play a role in your content strategy? If so, how?
T&K: Because of our staunch effort to only promote things we like, product integration is natural and easy for us. We use it, wear it, talk about it in our videos, it’s included in our content authentically. It is a huge bonus for us when we have an affiliate link, which we always list in our video descriptions. As a smaller creator getting a kickback for our recommendation is huge, every little bit helps keep us creating (and traveling). We also really appreciate when a brand gives us a small discount that we can share with our viewers.
JH: Yes, affiliate marketing definitely plays a role in our content strategy. In our modern day, everyone goes on YouTube to look up opinions and reviews on whatever item they are interested in buying, so it makes sense to review quality outdoor gear on the channel after it’s been tested by us, and we provide our honest opinions. Whether it’s a city slicker interested in their first camping trip, or a seasoned outdoorsman looking for a new hunting knife, it’s a great way for folks to find our content, plus we get to work with great brands, have items sent to us, and sometimes even get a small commission via affiliate marketing.
What have you found to be the most effective way(s) to grow your subscriber base?
EO: Creating things you’re genuinely excited to create, where you’re enjoying the process along with the outcome. Creating consistently, owning your voice, and speaking to a specific group of people.
DA: Authenticity, transparency, and being honest. I believe that those attributes being your north star are the basis of trust and growing an audience.
T&K: For us going to the places we are excited about really has translated into our viewers. We try to stay away from creating clickbait thumbnails but by going to beautiful places we can create clickable thumbnails, and once we have a new viewer if we have good engaging content we are able to keep those viewers. We find that if we are passionate and excited about a place or experience, those genuine feelings come across and a viewer who may not have been interested in the featured place or activity originally will comment saying we opened their eyes or they just enjoy watching us enjoy a place. People want a friend to check in with once a week.
Do you have a favorite video that you’ve created? Why is it your favorite?
DA: I’ve become very invested in learning more about the history of the American Southwest, and primarily the people who lived in the area long before European settlers were here. The history of the Ancestral Puebloan people and the tribes who lived in the area, how they lived, and what they left behind has really taken over my free time of learning. In November 2024, I made a [trip] south to the Bears Ears region to spend time in a few of the canyons to observe and learn more about the area. We saw several ruins and art panels that just blew my mind and gave me a huge level of respect for how these people lived. The video report of that trip is one of my favorite videos I’ve made so far.
T&K: We recently switched from “truck life” to “boat life” and this video is from our very first passage aboard, we are so excited to be traveling the world on a sailboat and learning so much as we go.
JH: We are extremely proud of “11 Desert Plants For Survival, Bushcraft, & Primitive Skills.” As mentioned earlier, when I became interested in wilderness survival, there was very little desert survival information on YouTube. After 12 years of research, practice and trial and error, we filmed a video showing the many uses of desert plants, from grinding up mesquite beans to make coffee and into a flour for cakes, to digging up yucca root to make into a soap and shampoo. This video represents how much I’ve grown as an outdoorsman and as a storyteller. I really liked how the editing and music came out in it. That video now has over 700,000 views.
What advice would you give to anyone starting a channel now?
DA: Create content because you love it. It’s so easy to get caught up in views, the algorithm, and number of subscribers, but you really have to set that stuff aside and create content because you’re passionate about it. Everything else will fall into place and you can learn better YouTube strategy over time. But do it because you want to, and just be consistent.
T&K: I would say just start, be consistent, always keep learning, and make sure you are passionate about your content.
JH: The advice I would give anyone starting a channel now is this: a creative job, such as being a content creator, is 50 percent creativity and 50 percent business. That balance is ridiculously important. Focus on the things you love and are passionate about. Share them with others, there will always be a community on the internet that enjoys like-minded things. Find your community, make friendships, connections, share your work and learn from peers. Society greatly neglects the importance of personal fulfillment and how much that is needed for happiness in life. On the other hand, we all still got bills to pay, right? Find ways to monetize and bring in income from your creative work, without compromising your creative integrity. Don’t be lured by money entirely, or your channel will just become a job and you’ll lose love for what you do. Don’t underestimate your audience, they can sense when authenticity is no longer there. Find this balance, there is no greater satisfaction than paying the bills from doing the things you love, and sharing those passions with people.
Is there anything we didn’t ask that you’d like to share?
T&K: The hardest thing to navigate as a new creator is getting through to brands. The industry has been burned by influencers and it is hard to get a foot in the door often, which we understand but I think it hurts the industry as a whole, especially for the smaller, not as sensational creators. Speaking as not only a creator, but a consumer of many YouTube creators myself, their recommendations mean more to me than any TV commercial. I truly believe marketing with creators is the future. Our followers feel as though they know us, (and frankly they do) just as we feel we know many of the people we watch on YouTube. Because of that fact, a product shown/used/recommended by an “online friend” carries much more weight than any other type of advertisement I can think of.
Where can people find you on YouTube?
Elina Osborne: youtube.com/elinaosborne
Devin Ashby: http://www.youtube.com/backcountryexposure
Tim & Kelsey Huber: https://www.youtube.com/@SaltySunriseSailing
James Harris: https://www.youtube.com/@JunkyardFox
Want to learn more from our experts, check out our entire Ask the Experts series where we have interviews with podcasters, gear reviewers, Substackers, and many more. Is there something you’d like to see us highlight on Ask the Experts? Drop us a line!