Reaching immortality

Everybody has heard the old “If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?” thing.

Well, in this age of YouTube and digital photography, if a rider pulls off a huge move with style and a cocky grin without a camera around, did it really happen?

Adrenaline sports athletes will tell you they are in it because of the thrill and personal satisfaction of participating in a sport that’s sort of off the grid. The lifestyle that goes with not being at football games and pep rallies with all the other Team Sports kids and expressing their individuality and style through sport is their No. 1 goal.

But most skaters, BMXers and other Red-Bull-slammin’, rail-slidin’, big-air junkies get a rush from being featured in a video or having a picture published in a magazine. Also, these athletes generally receive recognition from potential sponsors with the exposure they receive from published pictures or video footage.

“Actually, I’ve been right in the middle of the extreme sports scene for quite a while, so I decided to start shooting videos,” said 24-year-old Adam Ingraham of Spokane’s Nxstep Films.

With no formal training or education in video production or videography, Ingraham’s first film, a wakeboarding feature titled “Agency,” won first place in the Extreme Sports category at last year’s Coeur d’Alene Film Festival.

He talked a bit about what led to his success.

“What I tell people when they ask me what they can do to shoot a good video is to just watch the videos that they like and try to learn form them,” Ingraham said. “They usually know what kind of shot is good, but too many beginners get caught up in the stupid inside joke stuff. Leave that stuff out, and keep the stuff that interests you.”

Ben Tobin, a professional freelance photographer in Spokane, has been shooting action sports for six years and has been on staff at some of mountain biking’s biggest publications. He echoes some of Ingraham’s sentiments, but adds one warning.

“You shouldn’t go out and just copy the styles you like, though,” he said. “You should draw inspiration from the photos you like, but don’t copy them exactly. Your number one success will be in getting your own style and building on that.”

Tobin, 31, has a background in industrial design and illustration and learned how to compose a photo from a high art background, but he suggested those without formal art or photography training follow some simple rules to ensure quality action sports photographs.

“You need to learn how to pan with your subject in order to keep them where you want them, and use a fast shutter speed,” he said, adding that even during daylight a flash is a necessary element that brings an additional pop to high-speed photos. “These are the meat and potatoes shots. Once you get good enough, then you can start with the crazy blurs and stuff.”

Both Tobin and Ingraham share one key component: passion for the sports they shoot. Ingraham was an active snowboarder for years before an injury sidelined him. Tobin has been riding, jumping and racing all sorts of bikes since he was a kid. Both say this allows them the ability to understand and appreciate what is going on in front of them when they are shooting and allows them to translate it to an image viewers can relate to.

With this in mind, both accentuated the importance of communication and relating with the subjects they shoot.

“If you’re some preppy guy who shows up at the Hillyard skate park with all your gear and just want to shoot these skaters with no introduction or recognition, you’re likely to get punched in the nose and get all your gear stolen,” Tobin said, laughing.

Ingraham agrees that establishing a rapport with your subjects is important.

“Some of these athletes take their image very seriously,” he said. “They want to know that you are going to present them really well and make their riding look great. They want to be sure you’re not going to make them look like a dork. This kind of reputation only comes with time and experience.”

Ingraham said making a successful video sometimes has more to do with what is left out.

“You need to think of it like a music video. The cuts should be quick. You can have the best shot in the world, but if you leave the cut too long, even by eight or even five seconds, you’ve lost the attention of the viewer. But you can have a mediocre shot and cut it tight and have a much better result.”

Both camera guys said that, with the new digital technology on the market today, a quality camera, either video or still, can cost as little as $1,000 and can produce professional quality images in the right hands; all you need is practice and the right friends.