How I Got That Shot - Corey Rich

Photographer Corey Rich

Corey Rich is one of the world's most recognized adventure and outdoor lifestyle visual storytellers. He has captured stunning still photos and video on a wide array of assignments, including rock climbing in India, ultra-marathon racing in the Sahara Desert of Morocco, freight train hopping in the American West, and snowboarding in Papua New Guinea. His editorial work includes assignments for National Geographic Adventure, Outside, Sports Illustrated and The New York Times Magazine. Commercial clients include Anheuser-Busch, Apple, Nike and The North Face. Today, much of his time goes into capturing both still images and video for the creation of multimedia projects for commercial and editorial clients.

Corey Rich:  "The Lake Tahoe Basin is home to an impressive concentration of fine ski resorts. High, rugged peaks attract storms that build over the Pacific, treating the area to some of the deepest snowpack in the country. By design, this winter wonderland sits in my backyard. Living here provides me the unique opportunity to watch the clouds roll in while I pack my camera gear and assemble a team of amazing skiers and snowboarders ready to hit the mountain before sunrise the next day.

"Great ski photography is dependent upon a number of factors; a great athlete, fantastic terrain, terrific light, and deep, cold, dry snow which makes for powder "smoke" that blows behind the skier. The challenge with this, especially given the last two components, is that it generally comes together very early on incredibly cold mornings. This usually means starting before sunrise to be in the right position for a photo. This image was a rare exception to the rule.

"Shooting in our backyard of Lake Tahoe, CA at Heavenly Mountain Resort, we had special permission from Mountain Ops to stay late and wait until the last light was hitting the mountain. In this photograph, it was this light that tied together all the other factors. We had Jake Dore, a great athlete who is one of my go-to guys, cold snow, and a great location with steep terrain. I love the way the light gracefully accents the skier and snow. I shot this with a Nikon D3S, chosen for its sophisticated auto focus system and high frame rate, which is necessary for capturing any action."

COREY'S EQUIPMENT

Camera: Nikon D3S
Lens: Nikon 300 mm f/2.8
Settings: ISO 400, f/4, 1/1000th of a second

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