Being Photographed in the Whistler Mountain Bike Park

Aug 22, 2014 at 13:37
by Logan Swayze  
Nobody loves to be photographed. Ok, I’ll change that a bit. Most people don’t love to be photographed. It generally isn’t that fun, and most of the time, it’s just downright awkward. Remember back in high school...yearbook photos? Or at a wedding, the wonderful family photos? “Stand here, tilt your head there, smile like you really mean it.” "Like I mean it? Like I want to be doing this right now?” Yeah not really. Nobody really loves to be photographed.

Unless…

It’s doing something you love.

Whip Off World Champ 2014 styling it out on Aline. bikeparkphotos.com


I remember my friends and I growing up on Red Mountain in Rossland, BC, using disposable film Kodak cameras to photograph each other snowboarding. We couldn't wait to get the photos back to see the “sweet method” or “rad backflip” that we would take turns throwing on the jumps (was a 'tindy' ever cool?). The same thing in the summer, when we would be skateboarding in the Safeway parking lot on makeshift ramps and rails that we fashioned from stolen plywood in our neighbors yards. We always got excited about seeing the photos and who got the best shot on that roll. These are still some of my favorite photos I have to this day and the memories they hold for me are priceless.

Like I did growing up skating and snowboarding, people coming to Whistler today love to bike... live to bike. They count the runs they do when they are in the park and count the days and hours until they can ride again. A few years ago, we decided to bring that concept to the Whistler Bike Park.

Riding In Deep in style. bikeparkphotos.com

Our early days of shooting in the park were a bit of trial and error, using natural light and creeping in the bush pretty much scaring people as they rode by. But over the course of the last few seasons we have grown, and are now using signs, speedlights, radio triggers and fast lenses to get the best possible shots of you in this amazing place.

We have gone from one shooter in the park on weekends, to multiple shooters 7 days a week. We have begun working with bike camps, such as SGC, DFX and the Dirt Series, to promo shoots for companies like Zenith bikes and Fly Racing. We have also started offering private shoots for riders that want to go off the general trails that we shoot.

Rob and Jo go for a ride moments after tying the knot on the Peak of Whistler. Best wedding ever bikeparkphotos.com

We have come a long way over the past few years, but ultimately, our ideals haven’t changed at all. We want to capture images of people, regular people like you and me, doing some of the things we love most in the world. Riding bikes.

And the best part? Nobody will ever ask you to ‘smile”. Look for the "Photo Location" signs in the Whistler Bike Park then find your hero shots online at www.bikeparkphotos.com.

Aline Tech section in the spring mud. bikeparkphotos.com


Author Info:
coastphoto avatar

Member since Jul 27, 2010
2 articles

38 Comments
  • 32 6
 if you sold the pictures at 10 bucks a pop i probly would have spent a few hundred dollars but at 25 its hard to fork out that for just one
  • 4 3
 same here.
  • 7 1
 I would go broke buying $10 pictures ..... I've only bought one $25 photo and felt filthy after.
  • 10 21
flag jameshealey (Aug 27, 2014 at 8:57) (Below Threshold)
 25$ per photo is very reasonable, stop being a bunch of cheap f*cks.

You say you would've spent a few hundred bucks? But you didn't? You still could have spent a few hundred bucks at 25$ a photo but instead you chose to blame the price of the photo and that is a B.S excuse.
  • 2 8
flag woodtigerfish (Aug 27, 2014 at 23:48) (Below Threshold)
 I hear yah, 25$ is rich... not terrible but rich for most riders. So in the end, I made a screen grab of the proof files provided online. I then used photoshop to remove the word PROOF. TA DA!

Sure it's (kinda) shitty for prints, but good enough to make me look dope on social media and my flickr account. HAHA.

Hhhmm, wait... maybe I should charge $15 to remove the word proof from other peoples 'proof' pics. HAHAHA.
Hmm (stroking my chin).
  • 5 0
 Pretty lame, dude. You're stealing from people trying to make a living and making it sound like it's totally okay. The time and effort photographers put in to getting high quality shots is way more than most people realize.
  • 14 0
 For the quality of the photos I would say the $25per is a good price. But I would also buy more if you offered a $10 web-resolution option. We don't print out the pictures just use them here on pinkbike and other social media.
  • 14 2
 It's a good service, but they really need to look at their pricing structure. Sure $25 is cheaper than hiring a photographer with full gear to follow you around and stage a shot, but that's nothing near the service they're providing.

The central fact is that sure, it's a nice photo they've taken, but their market to purchase that photo is 1. One person in the whole world gives a crap about it (and maybe that person's Mom, but we won't get into that). Therefore you have to price where the market dictates. Sure, you'll sell a few at $25, hell, you'd probably sell the odd one at $100, but simple economics dictate that you'll sell more the lower your price.

Add that to the fact that once you've taken the shot, your costs are basically $0 with digital delivery. So what you've got is a product that is 100% profit on every sale once you factor out the fixed cost of operation (no printing costs on digital delivery).

Coast Mountain has caught me on film literally hundreds of times, and I've liked most of them, but I've only bought 1 (it was a gift). This is because even though they're nice shots, it's not worth $25 to pet my ego. however, if it was $5 or $10, I imagine I'd have bought 20 or so in that time. So in riding career, Coast Mountain could have made $100 to $200 off of me instead of $25, at absolutely no additional cost to them.

Not to mention the fact that if you get everyone buying shots and talking about them, more people would be looking for them and buying them as well (I'm sure that getting people to remember looking up their shots at the end of the day is a major business issue).

A $5 for low-res (facebook/instagram) and $10-$15 for high res (printable) pricing model would conservatively triple their revenue. Value added of high-quality printing & delivery could also help the bottom line.

Coast Mountain, PM me when you're manager's position is vacant Wink
  • 3 1
 i couldn't have said it better. with that said, i also think they provide a great service for those that are interested, (namely younger people with more money to spend on things like this instead of a mortgage,and my sons university) but at too high a cost "for me" to be interested in purchasing their product. drop your prices down and sell a shit load instead of a few.
  • 3 0
 FIY if you go to their store you can buy your first image for $25 and any additional photos are $15. The quality of the images is outstanding and something I would put on the wall as an piece of art. I don't understand why people assume they are not selling enough images. I used to work there and they sell a lot and that was at the time they were starting the bike park program. People who buy their images appreciate the quality of work and value photography. They are pretty successful in what they do otherwise they would not be in business by now. Everybody can take a picture, however with these guys you get an experience, great service, different products, quality and the fact that they always deliver and that's what you paying for at the end.
  • 2 1
 Yes, there are assumptions that they're not selling enough. I assume that the owner isn't driving a Bugatti, and if he is, he may not own a private island and Jetplane. If they're just looking to break even and nothing more, then kudos, but I'm guessing any business owner is looking for a little more than just getting by.

A lot of people in this thread don't understand the core principle at play here: This has nothing to do with photography, it's a business issue. The fact that sending out the same people, with the same gear, doing the same job could result in significantly higher returns with a different pricing structure.

People can claim the service is worth sooo much and it's soooo hard to take photos and soooo hard to work the gear that's soooo expensive to buy. That may all be true, but In the end, that doesn't matter to anyone but the photographers. What matters is that the finished product has to be priced at a point where the consumer feels like there's value. Reading through this thread (and speaking to many many others), the majority don't. It's awesome that they can make the business work with the minority who are willing to fork out $25 at a time, but why the hell would anyone want to stop there?
  • 1 0
 I'd likely buy a photo or two off them if they shot on trails other than HOD, CIU or Lower A-Line! Best photo I have of myself in the WBP is from a Phat Wednesday race and its shot from behind looking down a trail, and not even a bikeparkphoto one
  • 6 0
 $25 a photo is a reasonable price. Don't buy if you don't think so, but cost out the gear/software, the labour and what they probably have to pay WBP to get access. It's not a cheap proposition.
  • 3 1
 With the cost of gear they can buy(I'm guessing a cannon mark 3, you can pay for it faster (maybe even a day) on a line with five dollar shots. This is what people don't get, yes the one time cost of a camera is sorta expensive, but it doesn't cost shit to take a picture!
  • 6 5
 Bullitproof,

It still costs you time (you need to pay yourself) to take photos, your cameras still get wear and tear and need servicing/calibration, your memory cards wear out and need to be replaced eventually, your lenses get dirty and covered in dust and need servicing/calibration every year, ETC..... You clearly know nothing about taking photos. The cost of film and developing might be gone but all the other costs remain and the gear is more expensive then in the film days.

And selling 5$ photos... Pfffff you guys make me laugh... you're in a sport that costs thousands and thousands of dollars in gear and you complain about a 25$ photo.

It's like saying, Whistler bike park lift tickets shouldn't be as expensive as they are because it only costs them the wages of 3 lifties to operate the lift. Initial cost, maintenance costs, land taxes and so on all cost money and they have to turn a profit on top of paying all the overhead. It is a business after all, not a charity. this might sound harsh but it's the truth.

Bikeparkphotos.com, you guys are doing a great job! I've bought a few photos already from you guys and I think 25$ is a fair price.

Cheers!
  • 3 0
 Well said, James!
  • 1 0
 we get something for that thousands of dollars we spend, something that continuously gives us enjoyment, getting not even a hard copy for 25 bucks is insane!
  • 1 0
 You can get a hard copy for $18 if you want
  • 3 0
 You can make prints at Costco for 1.50 if you want a hard copy. They sell the full resolution image for 25$ by the way so you can print it in whatever size you want.
  • 4 0
 I have to say the cost is slightly up there. But in saying that I have also purchased a few photos from them over the years. The quality and resolution you get is pretty impressive. I would typically always check if I know there was a photo snapped of me during the day. And if its a real good one I have no problems buying it.
I'm sure people visiting Whistler on holiday wouldn't even blink at $25 for the memory.
  • 5 1
 I find it quite funny because if you go to a freelance photographer and ask to buy a print from them there is no way you'll get a price of $25 per photo. James Healey made a lot of good points.

The cost that goes into gear, software, maintenance, bikes to get around, the time that we take out of our day to take photos of people and then just the years of learning to get to where we are.

At $25/picture that's so much more than fair. In my mind it's too low.
  • 4 0
 I think the point is that if 25$ or 10$ is worth it or not is irrelevant. What the first few guys are saying is you will sell 10x more photos at 10$ a piece which will over quadruple the money made... They sell them for 9$ at silverstar (yes I realize with a much cheaper system) but I bought it right away without even thinking. I have yet to buy a 25$ photo because it feels high, whereas I would have bought 3 @ 10$ a piece, hense making more money in the end.
  • 5 0
 the quality is awesome. Made me look pro when I'm really not even close. The price certainly is steep, but the quality and clarity is awesome. Thanks! keep up the great work out there!!
  • 4 0
 I think you guys are really stepping it up this year! For those saying these guys aren't earning their 25 bucks, the photo I got on Dirt Merch, the photographer was literally standing in a bush the entire shoot...
  • 2 0
 I have bought a few photos from these guys. I paid for a private shoot with Logan with a few friends.The price of the shoot is very reasonable. Then if you buy 1 its 25$ but if you buy more there cheaper anyway. We ended up buy 10 or so between us.

I bought an email file on another occasion and got it blown up huge on canvas and it still looks dope.

Although I do agree there should be a cheaper version. For internet quality. People will still buy the higher resolution if they want quality prints.

25$ Dollars is small price to pay.. Especially if your on vacation.

I got snapped randomly in the bike park on closing day last year and is still one of my favorite photos from my years in Whistler so far. Had one of the best days riding goofing around in my monkey onsie, with a huge train of buddie and having some solid runs too. My last run of that season was by far one of the most enjoyable. Every time i look at that photo I remember all this and smile. 25$ is nothing for great memories.

Alternatively you can spend 3000+ dollars on similar camera equipment.Spend the next 2 years learning Digital Photography. Then spend a day in paranoia, carting you equipment around in a dusty/rainy bike park. Watch people hikabike for 8 hours and have pins and needles in you limbs from awkward shooting positions. Only to get shots, not quite as good as these and not any of yourself or one unfocused one that you clueless buddy took too late. Only to get home and realize you lens cap is missing.
  • 2 0
 Not to devalue the amount of skill you guys throw down out there, but I've noticed you guys are mostly shooting right in the smack dab middle of the day. Have you considered shooting later on when the light would look alot nicer/ possibly generate more sales from cleaner looking forest photos, or is the bike park traffic peaked pretty much through those hours that you guys are out there?
  • 1 0
 they are usually from around 11 until 3? i've seen them around 4 before as well.
  • 3 0
 Hey guys
As Justa25 mentioned we do offer deals when you come into our shop in the Carleton Lodge at the base of the mountain ($10off each image after the first one on the high res files). As for shooting times, we have played with them in the past and will continue to do so. We are generally shooting from 10:30am until 4pm daily, and when we have a second photographer in they stay up an extra hour later. We have chosen these times as they tend to be the busiest for us on the mountain. We appreciate the props for the photo quality as it is always something we are trying to improve. Our man James has pushed it in a big way this year! We also try to vary our shooting locations more than last year. We are still shooting the usual CrankitUP and Heart of Darkness of course as they are always busy, but doing more spots like Fade2Black, Dwayne Johnson, Funshine etc as well. This keeps us entertained as we are always looking for a new, cool shot, as well as mixes it up for some of the riders that get to ride this amazing place on a regular basis. Sorry if that flash has messed people up, but we do have a sign before the feature to let you know its coming at least! Cheers everyone and we will see you in the park!
  • 11 10
 The only problem is that the photos price to buy are quite a ridicoulus amount
  • 15 2
 I would argue that you have never actually hired a real photographer
  • 5 2
 They take awesome photo's but at 25 dollars a picture it's pretty steep. I thought about buying a couple but it adds up fast.
  • 5 0
 my guess is that after a day or two at whistler, your bike would need more than $25 dollar repairs and that most people pay over $3k for a bike, and... If you are a tourist from a different city or country, you can afford the $25 for the memory. (it's well worth it and i'm sure you spend more on beer for the week hahaha)
  • 2 2
 pretty cool except that 3/4 of all the photos are screen shot and put on Facebook
  • 1 0
 That last pic is amazing!!! Which trail is that?!
  • 4 0
 Haha thats me. It's A-line tech section
  • 2 0
 Yeah I did know
  • 5 5
 shut up you bunch of pinkbike groms, your parents bought your bike for you. pay the 25$ and support the guys!
  • 2 1
 How many times has your flash f*cked me up... :/







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