Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Journal Prints, Landscapes, Outdoor Photography, Photo Prints, Salomon, Uncategorized | Tags: camelbak, High action sports, Lighting, magazine, Outdoor Photography, Outdoors, Photographers, Photography, Run, running, Salomon, Scott Markewitz, trail, trailrunner
Here are a few recent advertisements being run by Salomon and CamelBak featuring my work! Look for them in TrailRunner Magazine!
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Journal Prints, Adventure Photography, Alaska, Events, Indoor Photography, Landscapes, Local Scene, Moab, Mountain Bike Photography, Mountain Hardwear, Outdoor Photography, Photography, Powder Magazine, Salomon, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Snowbird, Snowboarding, Southern Utah, Sports Photography, Uncategorized, Western Spirit | Tags: markewitz, Outdoor Photography, Outdoors, Photographers, Photography, Salt Lake City, scott, Scott Markewitz, Ski Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photographer, SMP, Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort, Trail running, travel
After an incredible trip to Alaska, I came home and a few days later was on the move again. Friday I was shooting for Salomon at Snowbird, Saturday and Sunday shooting at Breckenridge, for Vail Resorts, on Monday shooting for Mountain Hardwear in Marin County, and on Tuesday and Wednesday back in Colorado shooting for Powder Magazine in Boulder and Aspen. It was a whirlwind trip with late night flights and a lot of driving, but really productive and a lot of fun.
It was nice to be home, but the action picks up again next week with back to back shoots in Kirkwood, Mammoth and Moab. Always on the move!
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Alaska, Landscapes, Outdoor Photography, Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Uncategorized | Tags: alaska, chugach, Girdwood, guides, heli-ski, helicopter, nex-7, powder, Skiing, Sony
I just came back from an incredible week of heli skiing with Chugach Powder Guides out of Girdwood, Alaska. We had 4 out of 5 days of perfect weather and amazing snow conditions on almost every run, and – bonus – I was there just to ski, not take photos, which was a real treat not having to ski with the angry midget on my back.
But, of course I couldn’t go to Alaska without shooting any photos, so I stashed my Sony NEX-7 camera in my pocket and pulled it out whenever something caught my eye. It’s a great compact camera for shooting on the fly without adding much weight. Here are some of my favorite shots from the trip.
I want to thank Chugach Powder Guides, Chris Owens, our guides Henry Munter and Mark Dalpes, and the great group of skiers I spent the week with. Every time I go to Alaska I’m blown away by the mountains, the snow and the experience, and this time proved once again that skiing in Alaska really is the best in the world.
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Photography, Landscapes, Mountain Bike Photography, Outdoor Photography, Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Snowboarding, Uncategorized, Winter X Games | Tags: action sports, Adventure Journal Prints, camelbak, camera, Courmayeur, High action sports, Italy, Lighting, markewitz, Mountain, nex-7, point-and-shoot, review, Salt Lake City, scott, Ski Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photographer, SMP, Sony, spring, versatile, Winter
I had the opportunity to test out the Sony NEX-7 camera this winter. It’s a small, mirrorless camera with interchangeable lenses that’s only slightly larger than a point and shoot, and it has most of the features and image quality of a full size professional camera. What I’m most excited about is that it shoots 24 MP Raw files at up to 10 frames a second – a big plus for shooting any action sports.
I’ve had it in my pack as a backup camera, or sometimes I’ll ski around with it in my pocket and pull it out for quick shots on the mountain. I’ve put it to use in a variety of situations, from fast action at the X Games, cold deep powder in Utah, to spontaneous travel photos in Europe, and have been really impressed with the results and quality of the images so far. Especially in broad daylight, the image detail and dynamic range are really good.
There’s a lot packed into this camera, so it’s worth taking the time to learn all the functions, but overall the controls are pretty intuitive and the settings are easy to adjust on the fly. The autofocus works well when you need it and it has a cool feature that zooms when you want to focus manually so you can really dial it in. The low light capabilities and the size of the image buffer don’t stand up to a full size DSLR, but overall it’s an amazing little camera that is setting the stage for things to come.
Smaller, lighter, faster – that’s the future for everything electronic. The Sony NEX-7 is a big step in that direction and overall does a great job going head to head with my full size Nikon DSLR. I’ve been looking for a camera like this that I can grab and go, or take with me on long adventures when weight is an issue. Now that spring is here, I’m really looking forward to taking it with me in my Camelbak on long mountain bike rides and coming back with quality images.
Here are a few shots I’ve taken with the NEX-7 this winter. I’m excited to show you more soon….
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Journal Prints, Behind the Scenes, Bron, Bron Imaging, Landscapes, Local Scene, Outdoor Photography, Photography, Pocket Wizard, Uncategorized
Winter took a break in Utah last week. Temperatures climbed into the 70’s and people were out running and biking in shorts and t-shirts. Spring was here, so I thought it would be great to get out and shoot some trail running. It was a perfect afternoon when I called some local runners to shoot the following day. Of course, winter came back the next day with cold rain and dark clouds hanging over the valley.
Cloudy days are a great time to work with strobes. The strong light from the flashes balanced against the dark skies allows you to create really dramatic images. With that in mind I packed up my strobe equipment and met the crew at a local trailhead.
Here are a couple of my favorites from the shoot. For these shots I used two Broncolor Mobil 2 packs, 3 MobiLED heads with standard reflectors and 3 Pocket Wizard Flex TT5 radio transceivers in hypersync mode. I placed the heads far apart to give me space to shoot wide enough to capture the action against the ominous sky. Pocket Wizard’s hypersync mode allows me to sync at 1/800 sec (and faster) with the strobes, which not only freezes the action but also gives me extra f-stops to overpower the background and create a strong, dramatic look.
I’ve always claimed that there’s no such thing as bad light. No matter what the conditions, you can always create something cool, and adding strobes is always a great option. To take a twist on an old saying, “When life gives you clouds, make sunshine”.
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Photography, Italy, Landscapes, Local Scene, Outdoor Photography, Photography, Salomon, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Sports Photography, Uncategorized | Tags: action sports, Adventure Journal Prints, adventure photography, Courmayeur, Europe, gopro, Italy, markewitz, Mountain, mountain bike photography, Outdoor Photography, Outdoors, Photographers, Photography, powder, scott, Scott Markewitz, ski, Ski Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photographer, SMP
Europe has had an incredible winter this year, so when I got the call for a Salomon shoot in Italy, I was more than excited to fly over and see if for myself. The weather was perfect and the mountains were plastered with snow as we drove into Courmayeur, and it looked like we were in for a great week ahead.
But, weather is weather, and after starting out with a perfect blue sky day shooting at nearby La Thuile, we woke the next morning to heavy clouds and thick fog hanging low on the mountains. Shooting was useless, so we did what most Italians do when they go skiing – we took a few runs and spent most of the afternoon having lunch on the mountain, at the incredible Maison Vielle.
The forecast looked nasty the rest of the week, so rather than hoping for blue skies, we went in search of fresh powder. We jumped in the car and drove for 2 ½ hours to a tiny resort with an old, slow double chairlift and a poma where we were treated to 2600 vertical ft of perfectly spaced trees and 6 inches of creamy powder – and only 2 other skiers on the mountain to share it with. Here’s a link to Claire Abbe’s GoPro video from our day at “Il Segreto”:
The weather never cleared, but we made the most of it and came home with some excellent shots and fond memories of a really fun trip with a great group of people, incredible food and an amazing day of Jedi tree slalom that none of us will ever forget. Il Segreto is calling us all back!
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Adventure, Adventure Photography, Feature Article, Landscapes, Mountain Bike Photography, Photography, Professional Skier, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Sports Photography | Tags: article, cover, magazine, Mountain Biking, ski, Skiing Photographer, snowboard, spread
I was excited to see my work featured on the February issue of Ski and Snowboard Magazine, as well as a spread running in this month’s issue of Mountain Magazine!
Mountain Magazine Spread:
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Behind the Scenes, Events, Landscapes, Local Scene, Outdoor Photography, Photo Workshop, Photography, Skiing, Skiing Photography, Snowbird, Snowboarding | Tags: Cliff Lodge, nature, Outdoors, Scott Markewitz Photo Workshop, Ski Photography, Snowbird Ski Resort
I’m excited to announce my 4th annual Scott Markewitz Photo Workshop that’s taking place this coming January 31 – February 3, 2013 at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort.
The 4th annual Scott Markewitz Photography Workshop will be an intensive 4-day program, geared for photographers of all levels who are passionate about skiing, snowboarding and the outdoors. Participants will learn about all aspects of winter outdoor photography with morning and evening classroom sessions and daily on mountain sessions that give participants a chance to practice their skills photographing professional skiers and snowboarders in action.
I’m really stoked to get at this again, it gets better and better every year. And with all the recent snowfall we’ve been having, this should make for some amazing turns and great accessibility of the mountain. This will be an exciting and rewarding experience for everyone, and will challenge students creatively, technically and physically. Snowbird is the perfect venue for this workshop. I’m really looking forward to showing participants the incredible snow, terrain, scenery and photographic opportunities that the resort has to offer.
The Scott Markewitz Photography Workshop includes three days of instruction both on the mountain and in the classroom, as well as three nights at The Cliff Lodge, lift tickets, early trams and breakfast. The cost for the workshop is $1300 (double occupancy, plus taxes & fees). For locals who don’t require lodging and/or lift tickets, please contact Scott Markewitz directly at scott@scottmarkewitz.com.
All participants should have a basic understanding of digital photography and be able to ski or snowboard most areas on the mountain comfortably while carrying their camera gear. Students are required to bring proper ski/snowboard equipment for any conditions, a DSLR camera with assorted lenses, a backpack to carry equipment while riding, a laptop with image processing software installed (Photoshop CS2 or higher, Lightroom, Aperture, or other similar programs), a memory card reader, thumb drive, and at least one external hard drive for storage.
Whether this is your first workshop or you’ve attended a past session, this is a fun and informative program that will improve your skills and expand your vision as a photographer.
Call 1-800-232-9542, email lodging@snowbird.com or Book Online. *Restrictions apply
Filed under: Action Photography, Adventure, Adventure Photography, Behind the Scenes, France, Freeride Entertainment, Landscapes, Mountain Bike Photography, Outdoor Photography | Tags: Col de la Seigne, Courmayeur, Les Chapieux, Matt Hunter, Mt. Blanc
SMP X Mountain Biking Around Mt Blanc with Matt Hunter X An Epic Adventure
I was recently invited to join Matt Hunter and the Freeride Entertainment crew in Chamonix, France for a mountain bike journey around Mt. Blanc. Matt has been on a mission recently to do big adventure rides, and this one is a classic. I had done the same journey more than 10 years ago, and jumped at the chance to ride it again.
We spent the first 2 days riding around the Chamonix valley, getting warmed up and grabbing some establishing shots before starting our trek. The sun was out as we set out on our first day of the Tour du Mt Blanc, but it looked like showers were moving in for the afternoon, and we had a big day ahead of us, with over 5000 ft. of climbing and 2 mountain passes to cross. It was a spectacular day to start the journey, and (luckily) it didn’t start raining until a few minutes before we rolled into our hotel in Les Chapieux.
We woke up the next morning to driving rain pouring off the roof of the hotel. We had another big day ahead of us with at least one big mountain pass to cross, and no one was too excited about spending the day on the bike in the pouring rain. We decided to wait it out and see if it improved. After more than an hour the clouds started lifting and the rain let up, so we set out for a big climb up the Col de la Seigne. The rain came back in again as we reached the top of the pass, so we made our way down as fast as we could and rolled into Courmayeur a couple hours later, completely soaked.
We tried to ride the following day, but within minutes we were chased off the mountain by rain and lightning and ended up staying an extra day in Courmayeur. I don’t think anyone minded having the time off the bike to enjoy a day in a classic Italian mountain town.
The sun was shining and the weather was perfect the following morning, and for the next two days we didn’t see a cloud as we made our way through Italy, Switzerland and back to France around the Eastern side of the mountain. Mt Blanc was glowing in the late afternoon light as we rode back into the Chamonix valley to complete our journey around the highest peak in the Alps.
It was a spectacular ride with a great crew. I don’t think I can wait another 10 years to do it again!
–Scott
Filed under: Action Photography, Action Sports, Behind the Scenes, Events, Landscapes, Mountain Bike Photography, Outdoor Photography, Photo Contest, Sports Photography, Whistler | Tags: Anthony Bonello, Bernie Kerr, Brett Tippie, Cam Zink, Deep Summer Photo Contest, Elliott Jackson, Katie Holden, Kurt Sorge, Michelle Leroux, Mountain Biking, Richie Schley, Scott Markewitz Photography, Whistler
It was great to be back in Whistler for the Deep Summer Photo Challenge last week. With 3 days to shoot and one day to put a complete slideshow together, it was way more intense than I had imagined. But, it was a great time and I was stoked to take 2nd place. I want to give a big thanks to Anthony Bonello for his awesome editing skills and creative input on the show, and to the amazing team of athletes that I was able to shoot with – Cam Zink, Kurt Sorge, Katie Holden, Richie Schley, Brett Tippie, Bernie Kerr and Elliott Jackson. And, thanks to Michelle Leroux and Whistler for inviting me to compete. I hope you enjoy the show:
Scott Markewitz Deep Summer 2012 from Scott Markewitz on Vimeo.
I would love to hear your thoughts – Feel free to leave me your feedback in the comments below.
– Scott
