After getting his first camera at age six (it was supposed to be a present for his cousin but he talked his parents into giving it to him instead), photography became a hobby for Rowan. He trained and worked as an electrical engineer but often supplied employers with pictures for use in their promotional material. He worked as a photographer on the 1986 Australian Antarctic Division, Bunger Hills expedition to Antarctica and as a volunteer official photographer on several other expeditions. Rowan wrote a book called ‘Breaking the Ice,’ containing many of his photographs, about his life and work in Antarctica. It won a highly commended award in the 1989 Australian Christian Literature Society, Christian Book of the Year awards.

In 2006 Rowan worked at the United Mission to Nepal as an Audiovisual Advisor and in 2007 worked for three months as a photographer in the Middle East. He then worked as Publicity Manager with International Nepal Fellowship until 2017, based in Kathmandu, where he was responsible for photographing the health and development work the organisation does and running the photo library.

Rowan is now based in Sydney, Australia, and does short term overseas assignments.