Making of Antiout 1
Covers
After five years or so that I have been getting my photos published regularly I finally got couple of covers in Finnish magazines. Both of these shots were done very quickly but in totally different settings. Both use available light.
Skier Kalle Leinonen was shot in Ruka half-pipe during a recess in a moguls contest that I was capturing on video, we had maybe 30 minutes to shoot. No problem, Kalle climbed up the pipe, did one test run and after that couple of hits more and it was done in less time we had. I was happy with the results.
Snowboarder Antti Autti was shot in New Zealand. We saw this good looking transition couple of days before on the way up in a helicopter, hit it and I got good landscape photo of it. Came back to the same place and I wanted to shoot this time in portrait orientation. We wanted to do as many runs as possible to get more things done, so no time to waste with heli waiting and superb spots with great snow all around. I rode to the spot where I wanted to shoot, grabbed my camera from backpack, set videocamera on a tripod, made the shot, packed everything up and thats it. Maybe 5 minutes in total. This was our first run of the day and I can`t imagine a better way to start one when you are up there in the mountains.
World Snowboard Day 18-12-2011
New season had great start from Revelstoke, BC, Canada. I arrived in Canada a week ago to film with Antti Autti. Antti joined Protest team riders Miikka Hast and Jonas Hagström who also decided to start their new Snowtour from here due to good early season conditions BC has to offer.
Check out more from:
New project on the way
New season and new project on the way. Last season was all about Antiout the movie. This season I am working with Antti Autti on Relate To It webisodes that will be broadcasted online at Transworld Snowboarding and Onboard magazines and anttisworld.com website.
We started the project from Revelstoke, Canada late last year and currently we are filming in Hokkaido, Japan. With record-breaking snowfalls Japan is the place to be at the moment!
Antti and Miikka Hast at Revelstoke, BC Canada.
Photographer Jani Kärppä from Lappikuva and Antti just before the last run of the day. Me and Jani decided to take a run just for fun after hard day of hiking and filming and Antti had enough energy to tag along. According to Antti the backcountry code goes like: “Never leave your buddies” and thats the way it should be at all times when you are out there with your friends!
New tools for the trade. I wanted to take it easier this year and decided to get a split-board. It saves energy and hikes are way more easier when you don´t have to carry your board and struggle through the deep snow. For steeper and shorter runs I still prefer my regular (goofy) board!
Japan randomness clockwise from top left: #1 Check out this gallon of whisky, Jani is having a laugh and wondering should we take some quality time off from the slopes? #2 Some Japanese guy recognized Antti at local grocery store and wanted to have a photo with him. #3 Our car just before arriving at Niseko, check out that huge pile of snow at the roof! #4 You can get everything from the vending machines, this one had toys, toys, toys and seeds to grow your own radish!
Working on “Relate To It” webisodes
Latest addition to Relate To It webisode-series has been out for over a week now. Check it out if you haven´t seen it!
We were filming new stuff at Canada for couple of weeks. This time with different crew and different views of snowboarding. Three days at Monashee Powder Snowcats showed us the easy way of doing things. No hiking and not much of searching spots. Just let the guides take you to different areas and enjoy the powder and mellow ride up with a snowcat. It was the first time to go catboarding for all of us. Definitely worth a try!
Last part of the trip we stayed at Revelstoke building couple of jumps in the backcountry. Stay tuned for more in anttisworld.com
Filming in New Zealand pt.1
After summer holidays it was time to get back on snow and travel all the way down to New Zealand. Here is quick update on what we have been up to so far.
Filming in New Zealand pt.2
This is rare stuff, real making of photos from the mountains! Our guide Tucker from Triple Point Expeditions was kind enough to give me these photos. Maybe they help out telling a story about how the day goes by when shooting snowboarding in the mountains.
In New Zealand we had the opportunity to fly and shoot from the helicopter. Normally you just dream about it while you hike or splitboard your way uphill, sometimes for hours on end. In NZ most of the terrain is accessible only with heli and the places we were shooting were definitely deep inside mountain ranges of Mt. Aspiring National Park and not easily accessible by hiking.
Usually the day starts at 5.30am with big breakfast to get ready for a long day in the mountains. Pack the bag, make sure you have all the camera gear you need and the most important trio: avalanche beacon, shovel and probe. Then drive out to meet the guides at 7am and grab a cup of fresh coffee from cafeteria downtown. Short drive to heliport and liftoff around 7.30 or 8.00. Short flight to preselected destination and you are at the top 8.15 and ready for work!
Check out Triple Point Expeditions and their facebook
Northlight Pictures facebook
Crew III and behind the scenes of a photograph
Man behind the whole Relate To It -project Antti Autti shares his thoughts about the project.
Relate To It online
Full movie online, finally! It took some sleepless nights and over three weeks of intensive editing to make things happen but I am happy with the results, hope you like it too!
Shooting “In The Trees”
Latest video from our Approach&Attack project focuses on, as the name implies, riding in the trees. This type of snowboarding usually means a lot of snow and since you are riding amidst the trees the visibility and contrast are better than higher altitudes and alpine terrain. We shot many days while it was snowing and actually I like it very much. Snowboarding in deep powder is possibly best thing there is and it looks really nice too, many times you can really see and feel the joy of riding in snowy forests.
In Japan there was too much of snow at times so positioning cameras and keeping them running was harder than usual. Getting from place to place takes time and splitboard or snowshoes are a must! Snow causes all kinds of problems with electronics and optics, it keeps on melting on the warm surfaces and handling with warm hands is melting snow even more. Moisture and condensation might turn out to be a big problem, especially if the sun comes out and starts to warm the lens optics causing condensation to form inside lenses.
Best piece of extra equipment in these kind of conditions is towel. Not just lens wipe but actual hand towel, and many lens wipes, tissue and whatever you can imagine to keep your stuff clean and dry. Plastic bags are great for the worst snowstorms. I´m not a big fan of rain covers that are made for cameras, they are usually too tight and get in the way of basic handling, just an average sized clear plastic bag does the job if needed.
Choosing cameras with proper weather sealing is essential. I am not overprotective when it comes to gear. They are just tools and most of the time goes for planning, thinking and actual shooting, not covering cameras and keeping them sparkling clean all the time. Wipe it with towel and clean lens with cloth as needed. Covering yourself is also important if not even more important than covering your gear. You don´t want to quit your day in short just because you got soaked. Investing in good clothing with Gore-tex fabrics pays back for sure!
We are starting the new season in few days. First off to snowy paradise called Japan, more on that later!
BC in B&W
Last february we went to British Columbia to shoot Approach&Attack project. These photos are snapshots I took with my pocket camera, LOMO LC-A. Excellent little camera that does its own magic with the available light. There is something going on in the exposure meter of this little thing, most of the times it just works in a way that never stops amaze me. Super easy to shoot and I really enjoy it with black&white film, this time it was Fomapan 400asa. British Columbia itself was awesome, despite we had some bad luck with the weather and warm fronts coming in couple of times during the trip. We visited resorts around Nelson, did some hiking and splitboarding in mountain passes and had few days of awesome powder in Valhalla Powdercats. From there we had the opportunity to visit Monashee Powder Snowcats.
Nelson has excellent location and a lot of options to do and you can find much cheaper accommodation than from the resorts or lodges. Highly recommended!
Random photos
Discover Splitboarding
We are currently finishing small doc series about splitboarding. Not only it is a great tool to get out there just for fun but in the recent years split has been tremendous help for my work. I could not imagine myself hiking up in deep snow without some sort of aid on my feet. Snowshoes are great help but it is nothing compared to the help I get from splitboard.
I already carry a heavy back bag full of cameras, lenses, avalanche kit, food and water, why would I want to carry my board while hiking up? It makes no sense. Your board is the device to get up! Split it, make skis, get a little help from poles and up you go. Only thing extra are the skins and those are coming along under your skis, most of the time.
Episode 1
Episode 2
Thank you goes out to:
Protest
Jones snowboards
Karakoram
EpicTV!