Jimmy Chin
Jimmy Chin is an Academy Award winning filmmaker, National Geographic photographer and mountain sports athlete known for his ability to capture extraordinary imagery and stories while climbing and skiing in extremely high-risk environments and expeditions. He began his professional career in 1999, and his talents were quickly recognized by top expedition leaders and outdoor brands. In 2002, he secured a breakthrough assignment to be the cinematographer for a high-profile National Geographic–sponsored trek across Tibet’s Chang Tang Plateau. In 2006, he became one of the only people to ski off the summit of Mount Everest. A longtime member of The North Face Athlete Team, he has led dozens of exploratory expeditions and completed first ascents around the globe, working with the best adventure athletes in the world.
Jimmy has garnered numerous photography awards from Photo District News (PDN), Communication Arts, the American Society of Magazine Editors, and others. As a filmmaker, his years of experience in the adventure and extreme sports world enables him to bring an authentic and unique perspective to his storytelling. His 2015 film Meru won the coveted Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival and was on the 2016 Oscar shortlist for Best Documentary. Jimmy’s latest documentary Free Solo won a BAFTA, 7 Emmy’s and an Academy Award for best Documentary Feature in 2019. Jimmy’s photos have appeared on the cover of National Geographic and The New York Times Magazine, among others, and he has directed commercial film projects for a diverse range of clients that includes Apple, Chase, Pirelli, Red Bull, The North Face, and RSA Films.
Jimmy splits his time between New York City and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, with his wife, filmmaker Chai Vasarhelyi, their daughter, Marina, and son, James
https://jimmychin.com/about/
I first came across Jimmy Chin during my A level study when I was shooting in an expedition style when documenting the journey of my Ten Tors training. I was inspired because Chin is not just a photographer, he is a climber, skier, surfer and adventurer which enables him to capture the space that he explores. By documenting his extreme expeditions, he is able to show the world the supreme beauty of the mountainous areas of Earth.
Chin’s photographic work is most probably lesser known in the art world of photography and more widely known in the outdoor exploration world. Chin’s affiliation with The North Face amplifies the exposure of his work and the audience that follows the expeditions and climbs see it because of the world that he makes. Chin’s work escaped the expedition scene in 2019 when he made “Free Solo” with his Wife Chai Vasarhelyi. “Free Solo” was a documentary movie that followed Alex Honald free climb to the top of El Capitan in Yosemite which was admired by the most of the world.
Chin’s photographs often capture the explorer in a moment of action and often reflection. Taken in some of the most beautiful locations around the world, his photographs invite the viewer to experience a small moment of immersed connection between man and land. Climbing to the top of some of the highest peaks, Chin captures the landscapes that many photographers will not, giving him a superior level of exploration and image making. Perhaps not regarded as highly as Burtysky or Gursky in the art photo world, however, I think Chin’s photographic work captures the relationship that the modern day explorer has with the land. This is a relationship which shows man investigating and tackling the extreme elements of the land which celebrates the capabilities of humans and the technology that we have developed to explore all corners of the Earth.
Savannah Cummins
From first ascents above the most isolated glaciers, to the world’s highest peaks, and rock towers among the most dense jungles. Savannah is an adventure photographer, cinematographer, and director that has cultivated her skills in venues around the world. As an athlete for The North Face, her teammates inspire her to reach for new heights in all aspects of life.
Her company Savy Media has been trusted to produce content for Google, The North Face, Ford, Red Bull, Instagram, The New York Times, La Sportiva, Rock and Ice, Alpinist, Women’s Health and many more.
She is proudly supported by The North Face, Life by Spot and Gnarly Nutrition.
She is proudly supported by The North Face, Life by Spot and Gnarly Nutrition.
Savannah Cummins' approach to expedition photography is slightly different to the one of Jimmy Chin. Cummin’s photograph shows man's relationship with the land in a more intimate way. Chins photographs often are divided by large landscape images with man looking small compared to the space that they are in. Whereas Cummin focuses her camera on the activities that man is doing in the landscape, capturing the smaller details of the adventure. This more documentary style allows the viewer to feel as if they are in the same moment as the subject being photographed.
Cummin’s photographs would be used in climbing magazines, online articles about the expeditions and for her sponsor “The North Face” to use in advertising campaigns. Expedition photography can be used in all manner of ways, to show and share the journeys of modern day explorers, as well as for companies to use to sell their latest outdoor projects.
Like Chin, Cummin is a climber and explorer herself. Having the technical skills to be able to go on these expeditions plays a big part in her photographic practice. She is not just a photographer, her climbing capabilities gives her the knowhow to photograph from the face of cliffs and on polar expeditions to Antarctica.
I feel incredibly inspired by Chin and Cummins as photographers and explorers. My photographic practice is starting to go in a direction which sits alongside my physical explorations. Exploring the land is something that I have been doing for many years and my photography often comes with me on my adventures. However, I have never gone on an exploration specifically to make photographic work before. This is something that I feel inspired to do going forward with my body of work.