Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Bike Magazine Cover June 2011, Behind the Shot

I was honored and amazed to have one of my images used as the cover of Bike Magazine's June 2011 issue. It has been a long term goal of mine to get an image on the cover of Bike Mag. Here is how it all went down...

As an outdoor photographer, I am constantly making mental notes in my head about locations. Anytime I happen upon a spot that I think may work for a photo, I file it away in my head as a possibility. Many of these spots I make a point to come back to during different times of the day and/or year to see them under different conditions. Morning, evening, summer, winter, fall, etc..

This shot had been filed away on the mental list for 3 years now.



I had ridden through this meadow a fews time before, and had always thought it would be a great spot to photograph. I took this photo with my phone in 2008, as a reference for a spot I wanted to come back to. This was in November, and although the light was flat, I think the meadow itself, the perfect single track, and the snowy peaks provide a great balance. I knew for sure I wanted to come back and capture it with snow on the mountains, clear blue skies, and golden grass in the field. However due to the high elevation there is only a very small window in the fall when that happens. 2 days after I took this shot this meadow was covered in snow, and was done for the year.

I was finally able to get this shot in Nov 2010. I had told Eric Porter about this location, and jokingly described the shot we could get here as "a cover shot". He had never ridden this trail, but was down to come shoot it. I had been watching the weather closely for just the right conditions, and the day finally came. We met up super early, not wanting to miss the morning light, and pedaled our bikes up the trail in the gray haze that is dawn. It was freezing cold, a storm had moved through the day before and gave way to crystal clear skies behind it. In Utah in late November this means cold.. We got to the spot with about 45 minutes to spare, and were riding up and down the meadow just to keep warm. The trail was frozen solid. As soon as the sun came over the hill, we snapped a handful of photos, and were on our way back to the truck. Mission accomplished.



When Dave Reddick, Photo Editor for Bike Magazine called me, he didn't give me the whole story right away. He said "I just wanted to let you know that we are 99% sure we are going to use your photo in the June Issue" I was super pumped just with that, I have had my photographs appear in Bike Magazine before in various advertisements, but never for actual editorial purposes. I told him thanks for considering my images, and that I had been trying to get a shot in Bike Mag for a while. Then he came back with "Well it is technically not going to be IN the magazine.... because we are going to be using it for the cover." I couldn't believe it, from never officially having a shot run to one being used as a cover was HUGE for me. I thanked him again and hung up the phone.

The point of all this is that these photographs don't just happen. Most people think of outdoor photographers as people who just "cruise" around and take photos of "whatever happens". It is true that on a rare occasion it may be a "right place, right time" shot but those are few and very far between. All the photographers I know who are shooting at the pro level work hard for their shots. Getting the shot is all about early mornings, late nights, freezing cold, blistering heat, rain, snow, ice, fog, dust, bad light, missed light, and 40 + pounds of gear to haul everywhere you go... and after all that you get some marketing guy asking you to give them a shot for "photo credit" because "they are a small company and can't afford it"... But I'm not gonna lie, it is a lot of fun, and seeing my photo on the cover of Bike Magazine for the first time is one of the small rewarding moments that make it all worthwhile.

Thanks Bike mag for picking my shot!

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Slideshow Feature on Vital MTB

I recently had a slideshow of images from last years bike season on VitalMTB.com. It is a site devoted to the downhil/freeride side of Mountain Biking, and I was super stoked to be featured. I am a big fan of the site, and view it almost every day. The slideshow I put together was made up of shots that never got picked up last year, so I thought it would be a good way to get them out there. You can view the feature HERE

>

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Oakley Progression Session

I spent the weekend shooting the Oakley Progression Session for Snowboarder magazine at Canyons. It was an all girl park progression event. Grete Eliasson and Marie France Roy were there coaching the riders and helping them push there skills in the park. To be honest I felt a little awkward being one of the only dudes there, but overall it was a really fun to be able to shoot it.

Check the snowboarder magazine post here, and all the photos on the official OPS site here



Friday, March 11, 2011

2011 Snowboard Cross Grand Prix at Canyons

The 2011 SBX Grand Prix came to Canyons Resort this year, and I was able to shoot photo and video of the event for the mountain. I also provided NBC with some B roll footage that was used in the Televison Broadcast. Watching this type of riding on TV does not do it justice at all, being there on the sidelines gives you a whole different perspective of this sport. These riders were charging! You can see my still photos from the event HERE.

This was the web video I did for the resort-


Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Park Videos for Canyons

Haven't posted in a while, but here are a couple of Terrain park edits I did for Canyons. The first one was for the Canyons website, and was meant as more of an informative piece. The second one was a longer video that was posted on third party sites like Transworld Snowboarding and Snowboardmag


Monday, February 14, 2011

Canyons Footage on EXTRA!

Extra! TV was filming at Canyons Resort during the Sundance Film Festival a few weeks ago. I was asked to provide some B roll for the production. I also edited this highlight reel for Canyons website. This is a bit out of the ordinary for this blog, but I have to admit it is really cool to see my footage appearing on National TV, even if it is just B roll. Here is the highlight reel, my footage is the non interview stuff. Establishing/scenic/mountain/hotel/etc...

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Spark R&D splitboard bindings

The splitboard... The hippie shred's answer to a chairlift. For most riders, the splitboard has never really been an attractive alternative to snow shoes. There have always been 2 main problems, and they are pretty big ones... the board and bindings.



The boards have come a long way. Over the last few years many companies have started making twin tip and reverse camber splits (you know, the kind of board you would actually want to ride). Every year more companies are making split boards, and it is looking like in 2011/2012 there are going to be a ton of new options. Splitboarding is coming into it's own.

The binding interface has always been a major downfall. Using the Voile system has always been the most readily available option. The first problem, weight; the second problem, with that system you have a huge gap between the board and binding. This creates flex problems, stance issues, and an overall awkward feeling while riding. It seems this has always just been "accepted" as part of splitboarding... Not anymore.

Enter Spark R and D. This small company out of Montana has changed the game. They have created a binding that solves all the classic problems. When I saw these bindings I had two reactions, first, why didn't I think of that? Second, how can I get a set? When I finally got my hands on a pair I was blown away. They were so much lighter than my old setup! I am not just talking a few grams, holding them hand in hand there was a huge difference. My first time out on them I almost forgot I was on a split. Riding down felt like... actual snowboarding! No weird flex, no huge gap, no "it's part of splitboarding" excuses.



If your into splitboarding you should get a pair of these. If you are not into splitboarding now is a good time to take a serious look at it... then again, what am I saying? There is nothing more fun than paying top dollar to sit in a lift line and fight with a bunch of tourists for a few pow turns...

Monday, January 31, 2011

-Red Bull Rampage 2010- A Look Back

I have been going through some old photos from last season recently, and realized that I have a ton of shots that have not seen the light of day. I was very lucky to cover multiple events last year for Decline Mag, but unfortunately there is never enough room in a magazine to run them all.. So I have decided to take "a look back" at last years events, and post up some photos that haven't been seen yet.

Red Bull Rampage 2010-

I had my first rampage experience as a spectator in 2003. At the time, I was just getting into the whole freeride side of MTB. I had seen clips of Bender hucking cliffs in southern utah, and was amazed at what he was doing. Being from the Salt Lake area, I took full advantage of the chance to witness this go down firsthand... Fast forward to 2010, and I am back at Rampage, only this time I am here to document what is going down..

Being a photographer at Rampage is definitely the easiest job there. Compared to what the athletes are doing, it is a cakewalk. I won't say it is "difficult" but it can be a bit challenging at times... Yeah, your dealing with extreme temps and terrain, dust clouds for days, scrambling up and down cliffs with multiple cameras and bags; all to get the right angle. But so what? The challenge is not the terrain; after all we are MTB photographer, the challenge is to create a unique image with so many other cameras around.

These are not all unique..You have probably seen different angles of most of these images. But there is one shot, one angle, that has not been seen by anyone... yet. Here are a few of my favorite photos from this years event.



^^^ Steve Romaniuk.. Period. Who else would guinea pig this type of setup? This photo does not do this justice. I have not seen an image yet that does. This was flat out insane. This is Rampage. Big props to Romo for taking the risk so that others would realize it was "possible"



^^^ Tyler McCaul was killing it all weekend. For a first time rider at Rampage, he was not hesitating. In my opinion, he has one of the most stylish whips in the game. There are tons of photos from Rampage to prove it. I got this shot almost by accident. I turned around just in time to see this happen. I like it because it really illustrates the conditions these guys are riding in. They wreck, roll, slide and disappear in a cloud of dust.. and when it settles get up and do it all over again.



^^^ Cam Zink. What can I say about this that hasn't been said. Having been at a lot of competitions last season, I was glad to see Zink put it all together and take the win at Rampage. He deserved every second of it. This shot was used as a 2 page spread in Jan/Feb issue of Decline Magazine



^^^ Darren Berrecloth's line was arguably the gnarliest one on course. Watching the footage of him riding it doesn't do it justice at all. I walked his entire line during practice (which is when I snapped this shot) and the technicality of it was next level. Multiple huge drops in a row at the beginning, with super small, tight landings. It was sick to see him dial it in, and ride top to bottom.



^^^ This is the shot that no one has seen. This was Berrecloth's final run, which he dropped into after waiting a couple hrs for weather delays. I was attracted to this angle because of the background, and shot a sequence of it as he dropped in. I was in shock after watching him go over the edge, thinking that he had just face planted a 20ft+ drop.. But somehow he rode away from this, shook it off, and cleaned the rest of the line.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Website Updated!

If you frequent this blog (which I don't think anyone does) you have probably noticed some changes to it's appearance. I have also been working on updating the images and information on my actual website head on over to it and have a look! I also added a "video" button, which is currently pointed at my Vimeo page. I am working on trying to embed video on the site itself... hopefully soon.
Here is a screen shot of it-

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Canyons 2010/2011

I am back at Canyons Ski Resort this winter as the staff photographer/videographer. It has been an epic year so far. We had storm after storm around the holidays, which made for some great pow days, and has now left the mountain with a solid base. Here are some of the videos that I have done for the mountain so far this season..