A select few have pushed the limits of what is possible on skis on very steep terrain, and have perfected techniques and skills that enable them to descent slopes that were previously considered unthinkable. The best extreme skiers now regularly descent 60 degree slopes. Some of the descent routes are so serious that they would involve considerable technical difficulty to climb up, let alone ski down.
Tim Barnett has devoted his life to mountains, reaching a high level of competence in skiing and mountaineering. Living in the french Alps, he is very aware of the risks involved in steep skiing, and takes great care not to place the skiers he works with in unreasonable danger. To ski the steepest terrain requires complete technical mastery and the ability to remain in control, however steep the slope is. even the best skiers can have serious, even fatal, accidents."I have to find athletes willing to be directed and to do as i ask," says Tim. "They have to be very talented as there are high risks in all xtreme sports photography, not just skiing or climbing. Security is the first consideration, and one way to reduce risks is to work with the best athletes. Years ago, we would just go out into the mountains with the models and clients and get the shots with minimum hassle. Now when i'm on a commissioned shoot with a client, i will not ski away from the controlled area, or climb without the presence of a mountain guide. The clients' attitudes toward the dangers can sometimes be like a disaster waiting to happen, but i would ultimately be the one who is responsible. Other photographers continue to take risks. When i look at some ski and snowboard photographers, i think they are just very lucky. Far too many of the skiers and climbers i have worked with have died in the mountains. When i am shooting, safety is paramount. I work with great athletes and we have a mutual respect that allows us to work as a tight team in tricky situations."
The start of Tim's career is a classic example of someone following an instinct and seizing the moment. "I started a course in business studies, but felt very frustrated as i simply wanted to climb, ski, and be in the mountains. At the age of 19, i launched into professional photography, as a means to an end. Looking at the magazines and tour brochures, full of very tame and uninspiring skiing pictures, i just thought ' i can do better than that'. I called up the tour operators and the equipment people and asked if they would buy ski pictures. They all said yes, so i promised to supply them with images. I borrowed money for a car, quit business school, and bought a lightweight camera and zoom lens, because i knew I would ski and climb with it. It was a good early season in Chamonix, and i hooked up with some Swedish skiers. After reading the camera manual, I dressed them in bright clothing and sold pictures from my first film. The money didn't come in until after the winter, so i sublet floor and bunk space to other skiers in a mobile home to keep me in food and film." Since those early days, Tim has created thousands of superb images of many mountain sports, as well as shooting sports clothing catalogs and starting the successful magazine Fall-Line in 1991.
Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the alps, made a profound impression on Tim. This great mountain has shapes the course of Tim's life. "I first saw Mont Blanc from a plane when i was three years old, flying over the summit whilst returning from a holiday in Britain to my home in South Africa. I was so fascinated that i have always just wanted to be in the mountains ever since. I headed for Chamonix as soon as my parents allowed me, and have lived there since the age of 18. My climbing progressed from hiking through to rock climbing and mountaineering. I started skiing at 18 and learnt fast. It soon became my main sport, as i wanted to ski the steepest slopes and deepest snow. It was very obvious from the beginning that i had to become a good skier just to get to the locations i wanted to photograph."
Soon, Tim was building up his client list, and trying to strike the right balance between photography, business, and living in the mountains. "Very soon, i had to work for almost everybody in the British ski industry, as well as clients in France and Sweden. From the beginning, i realized that taking pictures was the easy part. It was the business side that was hard, and it has become harder over the years. I decided that i would play the business as long as it didn't affect my reasons for doing photography in the first place- as a means of being in the mountains." despite his professional success as a photographer, Tim is a ruthless critic of his own work and allows himself no illusions that his photography is anything but a job. "I have never taken myself too seriously as a photographer, have never made a print of any of my pictures to put on the wall, and have never sold prints of my work. When i have a camera, i am working, although i hope i can also have fun in beautiful locations while i am doing it."
Tim's adaptability is reflected in the way he devotes energy to exploring innovative ways of delivering images to clients and distributing stock, by using and developing the new technologies. "Just as i used autofocus as soon it was available, i started shooting digitally with the first SLR digital camera that came out, and continue to upgrade as the equipment improves. Needing to distribute my images on line, i also designed and wrote much of the software behind my website, www.digitalphotosonline.com."
Unfortunately, digital photography has many disadvantages, such as the huge investment in equipment, and an increases workload. Tim is saved from shooting to print, but more of the workflow is put on to the photographer. Sorting digital images on a computer is far slower than sorting slides on a lightbox. Of course, there are also big advantages, such as the reduced costs for shooting stock and the creativity and interaction when working with models. Now that i have my workflow sorted out, from shooting to backing up, viewing and selecting digital images, both on location and in the office, i have become more efficient, and will not be going back to film. I fell more in control of my images and no magazine will lose an original image again!. Tim continues to enjoy his work despite a relentlessly busy schedule. Surprisingly for a highly motivated and talented photographer, he does not anticipate significant steps forward in photographic standards in the future, but gives generous credit to those who perform in the sports he photographs."In terms of new and exciting pictures, it really depends on developments in the sport and equipment rather than the creativity of the photographer. Crazy mountain-bike jumps became possible with the development of motocross suspensions for specialist downhill bikes. The photos might look amazing, but it's the rider and the machine making those shots. The photographer is just recording a stunt. I haven't seen anything new in photography for years. What remains is to be able to keep on doing it over and over again, quicker and cheaper than everyone else, and yet still to be able to make a living. That might require some very creative thinking."
From Xtreme Sports Photography by Simon Fraser. Published by RotoVision. |
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