NUDOWN

While videography is my primary focus, over the past few weeks I've been shooting photos for the Reno-based brand NUDOWN.  The company makes upscale outerwear with an internal air baffle system.  This system allows the wearer to completely control their warmth on the fly by adjusting the amount of air in the insulating baffles.  Here in Utah you can find these jackets for sale at JANS in Park City.

Snowbasin Powder Alert

Here's a short video I created for Snowbasin Resort to announce when powder skiing is in the forecast at the mountain.

Skiing Shots Using Sony FS5 and DJI Ronin Stabilizer

I've been learning how to use my new Sony FS5 camera, and this week I built up the confidence to put it on the Ronin stabilizer.  My goal was to get moving shots of a skier as I skied around them down the same slope.  Some shots worked out perfectly, others not so well. Overall, the combination is a perfect one for what I'm looking for in a camera setup.  I made this edit for Powder Mountain ski area and it consists of just one uncut shot of skier Jim Forster descending off of Lightning Ridge and me traversing, panning, and then skiing after him.  I liked how the shot started looking up hill, then turned to reveal the ski area at the base of the hill.  I look forward to capturing more shots like this in the coming weeks.

The video below is from a test shooting at 240fps with the Sony FS5 camera. 

A Great Wasatch Winter

While I've been focusing on shooting video, it has still been fun to capture some photos of everyone enjoying the wonderful snowstorms we've enjoying along the Wasatch this season.  I have quite a few video projects at various levels of completion, so I thought I'd post some sample photos to prove I've been outside "working" hard the past couple weeks.

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#DeerValleyMoment

I was fortunate enough to again team up with the marketing department at Deer Valley Resort to create a video kicking off their 2015-16 ski season.  Not only did I shoot video on their opening day, I also interviewed the General Manager, Bob Wheaton, who shared his own #DeerValleyMoment.  Thanks to Deer Valley for their support and professionalism.

SKILOGIK 2015 VIDEO

I just completed a compilation video for the SKILOGIK ski company.  Check it out to see some amazing athletes enjoying their SKILOGIK skis around the world.

A JUST FOR FUN VIDEO

There's no better way to express our excitement for the upcoming ski season than with sharing the words of our family's very own snow professional.  Lucy adopted us quite a few years back and our lives have never been the same since.  Her energy and enthusiasm is an inspiration to us all.  Pray for Snow!

photo credit: Richard Tilton (@richardtilton)

And She's Dope Too Kickstarter Campaign

Well, today was the start of the 30 day "And She's Dope Too" Kickstarter campaign.  The company creates fun, athletic clothing for women while supporting great causes to benefit the environment, as well as people in need worldwide.  For their latest project they teamed up with artist Rachel Pohl to design and sell shirts where all the proceeds went to support mothers in post-earthquake Nepal.

Jenn and Taylor Killian are the real deal -- fun, outgoing, socially conscious, and committed to creating a successful brand focused on encouraging women to get together and get outdoors.  Take a look at the video, and if you like what you see think of heading over to their Kickstarter page and donating (http://kck.st/1OGyt1O). 

Full Page Powder mountain photo

A photo I took of Dave Rosen on our first day skiing and shooting photos last season was selected by Powder Mountain for their full page ad in the SkiUtah magazine.  We're excited about the news and are already looking forward to another great season coming up soon.

And She's Dope Too

A great company with a crazy name.  I just spent the weekend shooting footage for a Kickstarter campaign that ASDT is launching next month.  This fledgling, Ogden-based company has rapidly developed a loyal following of women who love to get together and enjoy the outdoors.  Using funds from the sales of their apparel, Jenn and Taylor Killian, the founders of ASDT, hope to continue to fund outings, gatherings, and outdoor sports clinics for women across the country.  In addition, they plan to give back a portion of their proceeds to causes that support the environment, as well fund non-profits that are helping people in need around the globe.  These are lofty goals for a small business, but Jenn and Taylor are enthusiastic and totally committed to make their vision a reality.  I'm glad I can be a part of helping them build their business.

Speed Flying in Chamonix

No...I wasn't speed flying, but my crazy friend Jon Malmberg and his friends were doing so last March in Chamonix, France; the epicenter of big mountain skiing and now "hucking yourself off big mountains in every way imaginable."  He asked me to edit his GoPro footage into something fun, so that's hopefully what I was able to do here.  Nothing fancy...just some good old fashioned editing with all effects done inside of Premiere Pro CC 2015.

Thanks to his sponsors for their support - in particular, KAVU, an outdoor clothing company based out of my old hometown area of Seattle.

KLYMIT

There aren't many things better than venturing out into the vast wilderness areas of the western United States.  On this last trip into the Uinta Mountains of Utah, we took a pair of lightweight backpacks from Klymit - a local Utah company.  Our latest backpacking trip was to the West Fork of the Black Fork River where I was still able to get some imagery of Klymit's superlight packs.  The Motion 35 and 60 packs utilize Klymit's unique Air Beam framesheet to provide the structure and suspension while keeping the overall weight as low as possible.  They performed as advertised, and I look forward to more adventures exploring the mountains while capturing the Klymit Motion packs "in action."

MAGGIE ODETTE

Inspiring.  Humble.  Amazing.  All three of these words come to mind when you meet Maggie Odette and watch her gracefully scale a rock wall.  I first met Maggie this past winter when my family and I were embarrassing ourselves on the bouldering wall at The Front Climbing Gym in Ogden.  

 Over and over again our eyes were drawn to one climber in particular.  Her movements were calculated and smooth as she repeatedly attempted the same complex set of moves involving hanging off a tiny hold, extending her foot above her head to grasp an even smaller hold with her heel,  followed by an explosive surge as she swung her body to a friction hold far to her side.  Even when she missed her hold and fell to the mat below she always stood back up with a huge smile and a self-deprecating laugh.

That same day she gave my daughters tips on how to better balance themselves as they attempted holds they never thought they'd successfully reach.  Within an hour they were attempting routes they never dreamed were possible.  We all chatted, laughed, and had a fun afternoon.   Little by little over the next month I learned more about Maggie--usually from people I talked to outside the climbing gym.  Quickly, I realized I had to make a short video featuring her.  

Due to lots of various reasons it took almost six months to complete the video, and it really only got done because Maggie emailed me telling me she was leaving town and not coming back.  Her and her husband had made a major life decision and were going to "live the dream."  Luckily, I finished up the video before they packed up and headed east, but I felt lucky to have met such a humble, outgoing, and wonderful ambassador for her sport. 

I wish Maggie safe travels in her dangerous flip flops, lots of fun days filled with friends and laughs, and many sunny days climbing with her husband.  You can follow her adventures at gravitychronicles.com

SUNNY SNOWBASIN

This past week I again teamed up with the Fish Marketing team to shoot video for Snowbasin Resort's upcoming TV and online ads promoting their summer activities.  I was fortunate to also meet the husband and wife team behind the local company AndShesDopeToo -- Taylor and Jennifer Killian.  For three days we shot a gamut of activities from stand up paddleboarding on Pineview Reservoir, running along the trails shooting Taylor and Jenn on their mountain bikes, to enjoying the Sunday buffet at the top of the Gondola.  Overall, it was a fun time with a happy, energetic group of people!

#DeerValleySummer

I've been very fortunate in the past couple years to work with a number of stellar organizations, and this summer I've teamed up with Deer Valley Resort to create a series of videos promoting their summer activities with the new hashtag #DeerValleySummer.  It's intimidating to work with a company that was voted as the #1 Ski Resort in North America for 2015, so I knew I had to up my game.  

I'd recently acquired a DJI Ronin Stabilizer.  There's more to it than simply throwing a camera on the rig, but it's a big step up in creating production value for those of us who are trying to create quality videos on a budget.  Hopefully, there's now less need for dollies and cranes that take quite a while to set up for one shot.

I wanted to select the correct camera and lenses for the job, so I practiced with the Ronin and my Canon 70D DSLR one evening above Park City.  In less than ten minutes I'd shot multiple clips that were relatively smooth, mostly in focus, and looked pretty good for a first time operator.  I must admit the footage still has a lot of room for improvement, so I'm still working on finding a consistent setup  with ND filters, focus, aperture, and shutter speed.  Overall, the Ronin may be expensive, but for the type of work I do it seems to be the best choice to bring the most production value to future projects.

Utah Olympic Oval

After creating a series of videos for the Utah Olympic Park, it was an honor to be asked by the the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation to create a series of videos featuring sports and activities available at the Utah Olympic Oval.  The Oval was created for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, and it is a marvelous facility that continues to allow people to learn and participate in a myriad of on-ice activities.  From curling, skating, and hockey, this facility is truly a gem for the entire community along the Wasatch.  I'm still finishing up the last of the videos, and they should be online in the coming weeks.  You can learn more about the Olympic Oval and the Olympic Park at www.utaholympiclegacy.org

TRAINING WITH CAROLINE GLEICH

Last fall, the ever enthusiastic Mike Lewis from ZEAL Optics suggested Caroline and I meet and bounce around ideas of possible video projects for the coming winter.  We met at Mazza's at 9th and 9th in SLC, and over plates of delicious Middle Eastern food we discussed our plans, goals, and thoughts about the ski season.  While we were full of ideas, we were also short on free time and a budget.  I ate some pita bread and thought of what we could do.  Caroline was very busy, but wanted to make a video focusing on her training regime.  I had a lot of commitments over the winter, but I had a kernel of an idea for a video.  A few more servings of muhamara and loobia later and we'd come up with a plan.  We just needed to shoot some video before the snows hit and then meet again a few months later to get some on-snow shots.

The next week, we met again in SLC and over the course of one day we were able to shoot video of Caroline running in the foothills, working out at the gym, and hiking at Snowbird Resort.  It was a long, fun day, and I knew I captured a lot of great shots.  We said goodbye and wished each other all the best during the upcoming ski season.  I threw together a quick assembly edit to make sure I had all the shots I needed, then I moved on to other gigs and didn't think much about our unfinished project.  

Between Caroline's world travels and my own "schedule restrictions" (aka - other obligations that required skiing), we couldn't choose a day to meet until April.  Unfortunately, the weak snow year was also deciding to give up the ghost and leave us even earlier than usual.  As we talked about our plans, the prospect of running out of snow was very real.  Luckily, two late season storms hit and gave us the saving grace of a new layer of snow.  Then, almost immediately after it fell, this white goodness started to melt, too.  

As we drove up the Little Cottonwood canyon I noticed the buds on the maple trees opening up.  The canyon was a sea of glowing green.  Beautiful, but not what I needed to capture some "on snow" shots.  I was worried we'd waited too late in the season.  One mile down the canyon from Snowbird the snow coverage was still sketchy and I was still worried.  A couple more miles up the canyon and we parked at the base of Mt Superior.  Caroline pointed at the approach and the chute she wanted to ski.  It looked great!  The cruel sun didn't have a clear shot it, so nicely nestled at a bit over 8,000 ft we found our perfect location.

It was a short morning skin and boot pack followed by a short ski back down.  The video came together rather quickly at that point.  It attempts to showcase not only the work that goes into training for Caroline's physically demanding adventures into the mountains, but her thoughts about why she is always in pursuit of Type 2+ fun.  Enjoy!

You can follow Caroline's adventures on her webpage: carolinegleich.com

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL SKI TEAM

There are many, many, many superb non-profit foundations across the country.  Each can only thrive with the help of a core staff and countless hours of volunteer work, and in return they help to enrich their communities with unique services and experiences.  One such program in our local area is the Ogden Valley Winter Sports Foundation (aka Ogden Valley Ski Team).  Program Director Gordon Perry and I sat down to record his interview narrative a while back, and now that the snow has officially stopped falling, it was time for me to put the video together.  Great program, great coaching, great athletes -- we're lucky to live so close to the mountains and to have programs like this one to get young athletes out onto the snow.  Where ever you may live, please get out and support your local non-profits, too!

MOAB MUSINGS

April is a tough month for the outdoor enthusiast with Mother Nature caught in her schizophrenic throws of transitioning from winter to summer.  As the powder dumping snowstorms become sporadic, I satisfy my urge to travel and explore with my annual trip to magical, mythical, majestic Moab.  This year was a low key trip with just me and my trusty cattle dog mutt, Lucy.  While I intended to practice with my 4K video camera, I ended up focusing on taking photos with my Canon 70D.  There are better cameras coming out every month, but there's something about shooting with a piece of equipment I feel comfortable using under all conditions.  You can read about my trip and see more photos in my article posted on the ZEAL Optics website HERE.  

BROS NOT PROS

ZEAL Optics recently released the first in a series of videos I'm creating featuring people who aren't athletes.  The majority of us aren't rich and famous, but that's okay.  The series celebrates the people out there who are living life to its fullest without fanfare, spotlights, blogs, photographers, or POV videos.  they do what they love and love what they do.

I shot this video of Rich Tilton in the fall out on Antelope Island.  I chose Rich because he's a super friendly guy who is humble, kind, and just gets out there every day and does something active.  On the day of our shoot, the skies were clear and the colors of the land were a palette of autumn browns as the season was transitioning to winter.  The aerial segments were shot with a GoPro on a drone and I used my Canon DSLR for all the rest.  We only had an afternoon together, so we were quick to capture as many different shots as possible before I had to head home and barbecue dinner.