Nationally published photojournalist Crush Rush has a talent for capturing the finite moments of ever-changing human emotion and the natural world around him. Born and based in Columbia, the self-taught Soda City native frequently engages different types of people from different backgrounds or demographics to find a common denominator in the grand scheme of life.

“I feel like the best display of emotion is one that can be felt or portrayed with no words involved. My camera grants me the ability to take a person back to a moment in time by simply showing them a picture. I almost feel as if I have the power to steal grains from the sands of time. For me, the love of editing is just as exciting as making the photo, and I strive every day to be a better storyteller,” said Rush in an interview with One Columbia.

Recently named a 2024 Experience Columbia SC Ambassador, Rush intends to use this new role as a platform to let people know he is all about fact-driven dialogue.

“Columbia means the world to me. I love it here. It’s a great opportunity to really represent for Columbia, to really show off more of what I am already showcasing with my photography and the connections here in the city. It is just something that’s great. The other ambassadors, I already know them – it’s like yeah, yeah, this is beautiful. This feels right. These are my people, and I’m with my people showing off my city,” Rush said during his interview with ColaDaily.

More comfortable behind the camera than in front of it, Rush is very analytical about his own work but is quick to point out that his favorite photographs include ones taken during Columbia’s thousand-year flood in 2015 while he was on assignment with Jim Cantore as well as the images that he captured during the George Floyd protests.

Now known for his iconic black-and-white photos, in June 2020, his work also took Rush from Martin Luther King Jr. Park on Green St. to the South Carolina State House to photograph the Million Man March, a Black Lives Matter themed procession that echoed the 1995 march through Washington, DC. Moved by the occasion, while speaking with Historic Columbia about the event that year, Rush said, “This is not a sight that has been common for me in my life outside of church and entertainment venues. The organizers are black, the volunteers are black, a lot of the law enforcement members providing security are black, and I’m not the only black photographer in attendance trying to tell the story. I am emotional, but I am at peace.”

Inspired by great photojournalist Cecil J. Williams, Rush says he intentionally photographed the march in black and white. Speaking about the product of his efforts, Rush said, “It pretty much just stopped me in my tracks, and I had goosebumps. Like I was looking at this photo that I had just taken, but it looked and felt like all the photos I had seen before – the civil rights movement, the march on Washington, and I’m like, man, this is real. This is history right now, and I stepped into a time machine.”

Following his great-grandmother’s battles with dementia, Rush also became obsessed with preserving memories of friends and family members. “I didn’t want to forget. I didn’t want me to forget and if I had photos of the family members and friends that can help – like this is what your uncle looked like. You know, a lot of the younger generations they just hear stories about their uncle that are hilarious, they’d never seen him because there were no photos,” Rush commented.

“The families couldn’t afford to get a photographer back then because it was so expensive, so now, I’m kind of like my family’s, you know, I’m like the photo history of my family. I’m not in any of the photos, but when it’s all said and done and when I’m old and gray, I can say look, I took this photo, I was there in spirit,” Rush added with a smile.

Intentional about his growth in 2024, Rush looks forward to using his role as an Experience Columbia SC Ambassador to promote some of his favorite venues like the Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia’s beautiful green spaces, the Richland Library, as well as the area’s history, culture, and food.

Urging folks to visit the Capital City, Rush said, “We are an award-winning city, and just get out there and experience it – seriously experience Columbia, SC.”