The Fifty Year Storm, Act II, Storm Shots – dpsskisstore
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The Fifty Year Storm, Act II, Storm Shots

Oskar and Mark showed up in Alaska with more camera gear than a mid-town fashion studio. Huge black cases overflowed from the trailer.

There were enough lenses to shoot the Superbowl. Their accessories are numerous and interesting. Like a club of Dungeon and Dragonistas, these guys trade 'pocket wizards' and 'slaves'.

Leading up to the trip, the two engaged in a virtual arms race- who would show up with biggest damn lens made? Oskar donned a 500mm, but Mark called his bluff with a 400mm that was longer, fatter, and heavier. You make the call: focal length or size, quien es mas macho?

WIth the Fifty Year storm pulsing on and off, and avalanche danger skying in the mountains, it was time to put some of this hardware to use in the backyard for night shots.

For this particular image, Oskar and I went to a spot just in front of the Haines House. Patrik and Oskar had been there a few days earlier (look for Oskar's post on the Patrik sessions), and had it sussed out.

For me, it involved hiking through deep snow with a headlamp. The start point was about seventy-five feet up, and onto a nice series of pillows strewn amongst the pines and Alder branches. While I hiked, Oskar moved around the hill like a monkey as he placed his red flash and took test images. We spent a couple of runs to get this image after trying a few different lines and angles.

It felt great to slide through the deep medium density powder on the Lotus 138's. The quiet of the night, hanging with my buddy Oskar, and the first turns of the Alaskan season all left my soul feeling full- but not my stomach.

Then, just as we were about to hit the last pitch, Carrie from the Funny Farm showed up with Hoss (snowcat driver at the local cat skiing operation) at the bottom of the hill. She was sporting a tray of freshly baked brownies- I kid you not. Oskar was on cloud nine. He just got the money shot, and within a minute, was biting into a fresh, homebaked, fudge wonder.