Photographer Carl Zoch and His 2014 Toyota Tacoma

Photographer Carl Zoch makes his living shooting climbing, skiing, elopements, landscapes, and most recently, paragliding-of course, if you’re one of his 95,000 Instagram followers, you already know this. He’s based out of Carbondale, Colorado, but spends a lot of time on the road. He used to cram his 6’6″ frame into a Honda Element, but has been adjusting to a new-ish Toyota Tacoma for a little over a year. We chatted with him about it.

Year, Make, Model
2014 Toyota Tacoma

Does the vehicle have a name?
Taco. Or if you’re not living in Colorado I think you’re supposed to make fun of the Tacoma by calling it BroTaco? If you live in Colorado you must be in denial and drop the Bro. So, Taco.

Years Owned
1.5

How did you get it?
The Honda Element I was living out of croaked and I needed something quick and with four wheel drive. A friend of mine used to work at a Toyota dealership and trained me in his Jedi ways on navigating the hell known as buying a car.

What do you do for a living?
I’m a photographer. I’m doing my best to blur the lines between work and passion with my camera and I love it.

How did you modify the vehicle, if at all?
I built a basic platform in the bed of my truck. It’s super simple and functional. I have a topper being built right now that will be a more than welcomed addition.

How many states has the vehicle visited?
15-ish.

Sports (what kind of gear you haul around in it)?
I’m typically carrying a mountain bike, fly rod, climbing gear, and recently a paragliding setup. Basically anything needed to get up high in the mountains and the sky.

Pros?
What do you love about your vehicle? It’s safe, reliable, and the stereo system goes to 11. I had a two-wheel drive Honda Element before this so the four wheel drive is an obvious game changer. Fewer sketchy situations. Or maybe my definition of sketchy keeps changing?

Cons?
What do you not love about your vehicle? My truck bed is 6′ long and I’m 6′ 6″ tall. I feel like a Sasquatch crawling in and out of the back to sleep at night. It’s a compromise, though-I don’t want a truck larger than a Tacoma.

Find Carl at carlzoch.com and on Instagram at @carlzoch.