Skiing, Snowboarding & Lifestyle Stock Shoot – Sun Valley, Idaho

The photographic world presents copious opportunities to shoot stills to pay the bills.  Stock photography is one particular avenue that countless photographers pursue in a quest for their daily bread and butter. Steve Smith Photography, has made stock photography a pivotal piece of the business from day 1. However, lately, we’ve had to put stock production on our back burner due to a plate chalked full of other impending photographic business. But, back in December, Steve received a phone call from his former production partner and co-founder of Rocketclips, Mark Adams, asking if we would be interested in getting together to do a cooperative stock shoot.  Steve had recently been toying with the idea of shooting video again and we jumped at the opportunity.  A few short weeks later, we were set and ready to produce a synergistic photo/video, skiing/snowboarding/winter lifestyle shoot.  

Sun Valley has been a favorite spot for us for over twelve years. It’s 6,000′ elevation and close proximity to the Boulder/White Cloud/Sawtooth mountains makes it an epicenter for mountain recreation activities, perfect for our skiing and snowboarding shoot.

Mark and his wife/assistant, Pam Adams met Steve (Smith), Jeane (Gadd-Smith) and me, (Ray Gadd) there on January 11th. The Adams’ drove up from their home in Long Beach, CA. We only had to make the short trek from Boise.

Thanks to the coordination help of Andy Ware, the head freestyle coach for Sun Valley, we had four days of talent hired and most of our locations determined for the shoot. After a little discussion, and a few phone calls, we decided to extend the shoot to include a fifth day.

Our first day had us starting from Willy and Louise Breen’s residence in Huelen Meadows. Just beyond their backyard was a great little slope for a few action shots. Our athletic models, Willy Breen, Ben Verge and Gabe Shroeder, all ripped up the diverse terrain even with the crusty snow conditions.

Willy Breen

Gabe Shroeder (below)

Ben Verge (below)

  

With a successful morning under our belt and a hearty lunch in our stomachs we jetted out to our second location. North of Ketchum lies a limitless winter wonderland playground. A local favorite nicknamed “Bubble Land” was our second stop. We tore through another set of blue bird action shots just in ahead of the impending clouds. All in all it was a flawless first day back on the horse.

Willy Breen

Gabe Shroeder (left) and Ben Verge (right)

Willy Breen

Our second and final action day came far too quickly as the 5:30 alarm blared on. This day was set to include another series of action shots, this time a bit further up the road towards Galena Summit. Softer snow and sunny skies lit up the stage for these riders to shine. Willy Breen, Ben Verge and Erin Northrop were our talent for the morning.

Willy  Breen

Ben Verge (below)

Erin Northrup (above)

The afternoon had us on Bald Mountain with two talented Sun Valley freestyle team members, Tai Barrymore, and Colter Brehmer, showing off their skills. The never-ending energy and witty personalities made these guys a real treat to shoot. After all was said and done, we walked away with more than a handful of great video clips and still shots.

Colter Brehmer

Tai Barrymore

Assistant Freestyle Coach, Ben Verge

The next few days had us shifting gears from action skiing/snowboarding to winter lifestyle shots. Willy Breen and his wife Louise Van Winkle Breen gave us some great couples shots.

Willy & Louise Breen

Louise had to leave us in the afternoon for prior work engagements, but Willy stayed with us for the remainder of the day. His wide selection of wardrobe and props made for a diverse second half to the day.

 

Day four moved us indoors for a number of different holiday scenes. Christmas part II was in full force thanks to an abundance of Christmasy props and Jeane’s styling skills.  Ben Verge and Erin Northrop were our talent for the morning.

 

Our fifth and final day took us back outdoors in the morning with our lovely model, Jaime Pirzynski. The Boulder Mountains just outside of town provided a great backdrop to for this stunning beauty.

 

The afternoon took us south to the town of Bellevue, to a little homemade neighborhood ice rink. Thanks to the help of Dana Gloor rounding up some kid talent, we had four adorable hockey players to work with. Huck, Jet, Emma and Morgan suited up and provided plenty of action on the ice.

It was an intense week of shooting, but it was a lot of fun. We were blessed with fabulous weather, beautiful locations and great talent who couldn’t have been nicer people to work with. Thanks to everyone who participated in the shoot. We couldn’t have done it without you!