Happy New Year from headquarters here in Squamish!  2009 was an awesome year and we are going into 2010 with lots of momentum.  For the past year I have been working with Fitz Cahall, producer of the Dirtbag Diaries, on a on a project called The Season.  We kept it under the radar most of the summer largely because we were too busy shooting this and several other things to post about it.  Fitz and I poured our sweat and heart into this project.  We hiked the cable cam system, crane arms, tripods, cameras and mics all over the Pacific Northwest.  The goal was to capture the stories of five athletes in five different sports over a single season in the Northwest.  It’s a 22-episode web television series shot in HD. It begins the last week of January.  As Fitz says, “The idea, or maybe the question, behind the series is this:  Could we take compelling stories from our community, combine it with tightly crafted footage and create small installments that reveal a bigger story?”  Check out the trailer.  I’m very stoked about this project and looking forward to sharing all our hard work!

The Season Trailer from Fitz Cahall on Vimeo.

All summer long I have been chasing after a number of athletes across a diverse array of sports.  I’ve shot climbing, bouldering, base jumping, kayaking, mountain biking and trail running to be specific.  Pretty cool, considering my background was making strickly kayaking flicks.  For all the die hard kayaking fans out there, rest assured that I have not lost track of kayaking, but it has been refreshing to see some new faces, tools and terrain.  From a production standpoint, the multi sport summer has taught me tons and most importantly I have had an absurd amount of fun.  The latest shoot was another assignments from National Geographic and allowed me to partner up with Christian Begin and his RED.  Mountain biking was the subject and we had an epic couple days in the field.

Air time is something that there is no shortage of in mountain biking.

photo by Nick Sopczak

In the hundreds of things I have learned in the past few years of filming, organizing good talent still sits high on the list.  It is the difference between a labored day in the filed where you are constantly trying to make things happen and one which seems to just flawlessly fit together.  Christian had lined up three local guys for this shoot.  Chad, James and Paul all ride for Dincus and have skills when it comes to two wheels, dirt trails and air time.  We were excited to be filming them and they were fired up for the camera.  Win win.

The Trio.  Chad, Paul, and James.

photo by Nick Sopczak

The first day we shot almost entirely in a big open clear-cut with tons of wooden features, while the second day we tucked into the woods.  Both locations were stunning and it is impressive what these guys and other trail builders have constructed just minutes from Squamish.  We used a number of different cameras.  Christian was shooting his RED and also gunning with my new Canon 5d Mark II, while I worked the EX-1 and the new HD Sony POV.  We have rented this new POV unit on a couple shoots now.  Pretty cool for what it is.

James and Paul waiting for the word on the cable cam.

photo by Nick Sopczak

One the second day we set up an amazing cable cam which captured riders joining each other from different trails.  This showcased how well the boys were riding together and how precise freeride mountain biking can be.  These guys have their speed and timing so dialed that they can join each other mid air in the middle of a trail.  We worked hard to come up with a way to get the cable cam over this zone and walked away with out best mountain bike shot yet.

Matt and I deep in the rigging of the cable cam.

photo by Nick Sopczak

It’s snowing in the mountain here now, so fall has now turned winter.  Hopefully some of the next blog posts include that beautiful white layer of snow!

As many may know from the 49 Megawatts project, Reel Water has always had a passion for the Ashlu River.  It is arguably one of North America’s most impressive river destinations and we are fortunate to have it right in our back yard.  This river has been the source of so much inspiration, but perhaps most notably it was the original testing grounds of our human cable cam.  Three years ago myself and Matt Maddaloni strung a 3/4" steel cable and hung a portaledge from it.  It had enough gradient to scream down the line and we captured some of the coolest kayaking shots at the time.  It was this successful experiment which lead us to develop our new Sea to Sky Cam.  With just a couple months before the Ashlu would be dammed, this summer came full circle when National Geographic hired us to document the last season of the river.  We set up three different cable cams across some of the most impressive sections of the river and worked hard for many more angles.  It was a weekend I will never forget.  We had an amazing team and the energy allowed us to create an impressive story.

The original spool of cable from the 2006 49 Megawatts project.  It was no small task to string that!

The portaledge suspended on the line.  It took two people.  One person laid down and shot while the other controlled the speed down the line.

There were a lot of things on the table with potential to effect this shoot.  Water levels, extensive rigging in a slimy canyon, securing extra cameras and making sure the crew could make the dates.  It took a significant amount of scheduling tricks to get the team lined out for 3 days of shooting and right up to the first day of the shoot, the river was too high from a heat wave.  The weather window was perfect and we kept our fingers crossed that river levels would drop.  Shane Robinson called it.  He said, "it will be perfect, no need to cancel or reschedule!"  At 75cm on the gauge, the Box Canyon would be juicy.  Perfect to make things look exciting on camera, but high enough to excite some nerve endings in the paddlers.

The team.  Todd Gillman, Eric Shertzel, Chris Tretwold, Shane Robinson and Max Kniewasser.

Shane scouting the 50/50 waterfall.  Steve Rogers photos give me the goose bumps at times.  This is no exception.  Wow!

The view from the lip.  This was one of the angles for the cable cam.  You can see the lines in the top of the frame.

We had pitched this story to National Geographic because we knew that we could pull off some of the most amazing whitewater angles.  Because it is so close to my house, I was able to rally up for several scouting missions to scope angles, make decisions on cable cam locations and get a solid game plan to shoot it over 3 days.  For me the whole concept of filming has really evolved in the past year.  It used to be that we would all go up to the river for the weekend and I would paddle down the river and film what I could.  Fast forward to the present.  For this shoot, I was cordinating 2-3 cameras, helping rig 600 foot spans of cable for the cable cam, communicating with the team of paddlers to assure we had them dialed and millions of other details to ensure success.  Fun but hours and hours of hard work.  While it may seem over the top to some boaters, it is what makes a professional product.  After all we were on the hook for National Geographic so needless to say those two words put a bit of pressure on!

Chris Tretwold getting it all started with a seal launch in Day 1.

 The rivers was juicy for sure.  This is from 500 feet up looking down.  Eric Shertzel coming through triple.

After spending the first day shooting the upper canyon from just about every angle one could imagine, we shifted our focus to the 50/50 waterfall for the start of day 2.  I had half jokingly said to all the guys that part of the deal on this shoot was that they had to run 50/50.  This is a significant waterfall with a fast moving pool below that feeds into some of the hardest drops on the run.  With proper safety set, several people we were willing to try their hand at it.  I proved to be one of the most incredible cable cam shots of the whole weekend.  We followed paddlers right over and off the drop.  Unbelievable.

Todd scouting the line.

Todd launching!

It has been a super busy summer.  While I have been behind on getting blog posts up, rest assured that we have been producing more material than ever before.  Stay tuned.  Lots will be launching this winter.  Hope everyone has had a good season out there.

This summer has been full of transitions.  Some have been gentle, others have been giant kickers.  We have been making an effort this season to get outside of the box of kayaking and shoot a number of sports.  So when I got the call from Boombox Productions to shoot the Crankworks Slopstyle event in Whistler with our cable cam, I prepared for a quick and steep transition.  Matt Maddaloni and I assured the guys that we could rig our system through the lower bone yard, capturing 3 features and using existing structures on course in under 3 hours.  The complication being that with other events running through the day, the window when the course was clear for us to string the system did not have much grace period built in.

Some of the top riders looking on

With a 6 am start we were able to get a several hundred foot line up and the camera rocking!

Filming a live event is not just any ordinary type of shoot.  It is an all or nothing spectacal that comes and goes so fast that you barely have time to blink.  We quickly moved from rigging, to testing, to the pre lim heats of the Slopestyle.  Solving just about every type of last minute problem that arises when you are under the gun along the way.  By the time the finals rolled around, we had it dialed.  The guys were cutting to us live on the Jumbotron with thousands of people looking on.  Stoked!  Here are some of the clips at GO211…  

There are moments in all of our lives where we feel that sense of peaking.  Where we start to tap into our dreams and feel success.  This summer has been full of events that keep building on that sense of stoke here at Reel Water  We have been out in the field shooting a ton this summer and starting to diversify in the sports and athletes we cover.  This weekend was clearly a high point.  Shooting Robin Avery walking a high line between summit 3 and 4 on the Chief in Squamish BC.  While myself, Matt Maddaloni, Tim Loubier, and Steve Rogers were all geeking out as the camera crew on this project, Robin and the crew from Slackers Slackling were equally excited about the possibilities of using a new type of rope for this and future high lines.  100 feet of Amsteel Blue was purchased specifically for this location in order to provide a 12:1 safety ratio in the event of a leash fall while walking the line.  The rope cost over a $1000 dollars, but in my eyes it is a small price to pay when you are talking about this kind of exposure.

Fortunately lots of people were excited to see this happen.  It’s a good thing, as it took a small army just to tension the line.

Matt giving me the low down on the line and how it has finally brought a solid safety factor to a high line attempt of this scale.

The man of the hour…Robin Avery…scoping the line.

Never enough pulleys, rope, caribiners and misc climbing gear for a project like this.

Tim Loubier was running the second cam for me.  In the zone capturing the rigging.

The calm before the storm.  After a long day of filming on Saturday, a freak lightening storm rolled in.  There was no sign of precip in the forecast for 10 days.  The plan was for Tim, Steve, Matt and I to bivy out on location to save hiking all the camera gear down and back for the second day.  Within 20 minutes of this picture, the rain started, then hail, then a headlamp descent of the Chief to make sure all the cameras stayed dry.  Epic for sure and a part of the story that will probably never get told.

For more details on Robin’s experience check out his Extreme Ginger blog.  By the end of the weekend we had captured Robin sending the line, hiked hundreds of gear up and down the Chief, explored new trails and routes up the Chief, watched a freak thunder storm take over Squamish and manged to get the material needed.  We will keep you posted on when the segment airs on TV.  Thanks to everyone who made this happen.

This June I had the opportunity to hit the road in eastern Canada to run some clinics for P&H and Pyranha at the Mountain Equipment Co-Op’s in Montreal, Ottawa, Burlington and Toronto.  While I enjoyed my time with the sparkling MEC staff, a road trip just ain’t complete without going out of the way to include some epic boating mission.  So in between store visits, I made the jaunt to arguably the biggest playboating mecca in the world…the Ottawa River.  Now I am by no stretch of imagination a "playboater" by modern standards.  This in large part stems from the lack of decent playboating in British Columbia and an excess of so many great creeks.  And while you might think the plethora of creeking experience would breed confidence in all waters, the Bus Eater wave on the Ottawa got me pumping.  I was nervous about the whole scene.  The tow in.  The pile on surfers left.  The little tippy boat.  I felt like a novice all over again.

Towing into the "Bussy"

It took me the entire first day to figure out the tow rope.  Like most kayaking things, it just takes a few of the right subtle things and then it all comes together.  I would get rejected, flip and have to come back and try again.  For the regualrs, its no big thing.  For me, I gooned at least the first 15 attempts. 

The wide angle on the whole scene.  Eddy, tow rope handler, Patrick Camblain taking photos, Benny Marr catching huge air.

I really like this photo because it shows that downstream is very forgiving.  If you look closely you can see a green boat coming back into the eddy down low.  While the wave is big, fast and intimidating, there is really nothing to worry about below.  I can see why people claim that the mini-bus is one of the top 5 waves in the world.  I was fortunate to catch the last couple days of the wave in prime shape and also have the chance to watch some of North America’s best playboaters go huge.

Dave Nieuwenhuis going extra large in a carbon Project.  Love this frame.

Benny Marr launching with Patrick Camblain looking on.

Looking forward to getting back up that way next season for sure.  Obviously for people who live back east, playboating on the Ottawa is a big draw.  Great to see the top dogs flying through the air and linking up trips.  The last couple seasons, combonation tricks started to really be a big part of the game.  Now these guys are linking 3-4 moves in a row which is quite impressive.  I am not trading my creeker out for a proper playboat anytime soon, but looking forward to the next Bussy session.

One last frame!

A few months back I contacted Dave Mossop and Malcom Sangster of Rocky Mountain Sherpas about using some avalanche footage from their latest success story The Fine LIne.  These guys are local Squamish filmmakers and I was keen on at least hanging out and hearing what they were up to for the year.  Fitz Cahall and I needed some avalanche footage for the pilot episode of The Season ( a web TV series that we are co-producing due to launch winter 2010) and Dave and Malcom gladly helped.  Three weeks later, I get a call from them while I was on the east coast touring our latest sea kayaking film.  On a tight turn around for a project for Health Match BC, they needed some stock of both sea and whitewater kayaking in British Columbia.  A couple of phone calls with Lise-Anne and we managed to get them a hardrive with a few things on it just in time.  Here is the new piece they have just launched which includes several Reel Water kayaking shots.

Our original goal with this blog was to keep people up to date with some of the production details from various projects.  What we are using for cameras, how we are shooting certain things, who is inspiring us and so on.  Over the course of 2008, the Eastern Horizons blog and The Range Life ate up all of our blogging hours and we neglected to develop this portion of the website.  Hence the last post being from almost a year ago this time!  So…added to the ever growing list of 2009 New Year’s resolutions is pumping time into the development of "production stories" for this page.  We are always trying to find unique ways to capture the kayaking stoke, so here are a couple of things to get this rolling.

Knowing that I would be absent the likes of Phil Tifo, Todd Gillman and Steve Rogers on the Eastern Horizons tour, I invested in a few pieces of Canon L series glass this year.  With the exception of having Phil for the first leg in Newfoundland, Lise-Anne and I had to juggle capturing some still images while shooting the film.  It proved challenging, but towards the end of the trip I really started to enjoy working with the still medium.  No sound to deal with, smaller package of equipment, ect… Here are two of my favorite images and a little info about how I managed to pull them off.

This first shot was by far my favorite from the entire trip.  It was also created by a rare set of circumstances and came together in a matter of seconds when I was least expecting it.  It was shot in the Magdalen Islands early July.

This shot turned out so well for a couple of reasons.  Obviously an amazing spot.  Apparently the hole in the ceiling had just eroded this past winter.  We had no idea that this room existed when we entered the cave and probably would not had even continued had it not been for a small zodiac we saw come out from the entrance.  For the first couple of minutes we both sat under the opening saying "wow" over and over.  While I did not realize it at first, the exhaust from the outboard was what was causing the shaft of light to be so prominent.  I immediately got out of my boat and tucked myself back into the furthest corner of the cave.  With my wide lens all the way wide I could just squeeze the scene into a vertical.  In a matter of minutes the beam of light disappeared.  Still amazing, but it would have never produced a photo like this.

This second photo is not a bing, bang, boom kayak action shot, but it captures for me the mood of being out on the sea.  This was taken off the coast of Maine in June.

Nothing super special to share on this one.  I just had to wait for the fog to clear my foreground so I could get John and Lise-Anne crisp and then work with the fog in the background for the depth of field.  The body language seemed to work as well.  The thermos of tea is out, it has been a long day on the sea and they seem quite content with the porch of this rustic cabin.

Next post will include some beta on the new Sony EX-1 we have started to shoot on…

After a successful 2007 season with Pacific Horizons and 49 Megawatts, the momentum was there for us to keep expanding our boundaries and start planning new film ideas for 2008.  With the purchase on some new equipment this season and lots of time scripting and planning shoots for the summer season, we are excited about the future at Reel Water.

One of the new rigs we are using…the Canon XH-A1

Our plans for 2008 include shooting a new sea kayaking film Eastern Horizons, continuing to work on British Columbia river conservation issues with new documentary media on several river drainages that are threatened and producing another TRL whitewater kayaking film.  Additionally we have started to lay the groundwork for some television shows that we will be producing for the Water Channel to air in 2008 and 2009.

The Reel Water blog will be mostly used for production related news and information.  Stay tuned for more!