Checking In with DC Photographer Colin Adair

Colin Adair has been a fixture on the snowboard photography scene for longer than most of us have been riding. Coming up within the North-Vancouver scene along with greats such as Devun Walsh, Colin eventually became Photo Editor of Snowboard Canada magazine and for years directly shaped what snowboarding could and would look like for a generation of shreds. Eventually unable to resist his true calling any longer, about four years ago Colin left SBC and took a job as staff photographer for the newly formed DC Snowboarding team. Since then he's shot some of the best snowboarders in the world, who just so happen to also be his close friends, while travelling the globe and generally living the dream life of a snowboard photographer – well, that's what it looks like to us not so fortunate shooters anyways! haha.

Two weeks ago, Colin posted up an insanely good "2012 SNOWBOARD Year In The RearView" slideshow of images from his past year of shooting and I thought it was a perfect opportunity to catch up with him and pick his brain on a few topics close to my heart as a photographer. I've always looked up to Colin as a shooter, his work is untouchable and he's one of the kindest people I've met in a not always so friendly hustle. Trying to make a living as a snowboard photographer is a highly competitive game and being a bit cut-throat is to be expected, but not Colin. In fact it was an off-hand compliment of a photo of mine seven or eight years ago that set my whole career on a new path focussed around capturing incredible and unique images. 

33MAG: It's been a few years since you left the "desk job" of being Photo Editor at Snowboard Canada Magazine and made the switch back to shooting full-time. What was the thought process behind that move and how has it worked out for you?

Colin: There wasn't much thought that needed to go into it. DC called me and said they were starting a full snowboard program and needed a photographer. It was a 6 month contract at first but turned into a full time gig the next year. At the time I was planning on moving on from SBC to concentrating on shooting so it all came together nicely.

You pretty much get to shoot the dream team of snowboarding. The best riders in the game who seem to be some close friends of yours in general. What's it like to know you're at the top of the game after years of sweat and hard work?

I shot with Devun, Iikka and Lauri before starting with DC so I've known them for a long time. Especially Devun, we shot quite a lot when I worked for SBC. I've known them all for almost 10 years I think and the last 6 years we've been all over the world as a crew. It's been pretty surreal. The time has just flown by. I'm not sure I'm "at the top of my game". I can definitely improve and advance my photography. I look around at what other photographers are doing and it's pretty impressive. You have to try to keep evovling. I'm never 100% happy with my work and I don't know any professional photographers that are. If you are 100% happy with your photos all the time then you should just stop shooting. What's the point if you aren't improving and looking for ways to get better. There's 50 other photographers out there trying to take your job so being complacent isn't an option. HOWEVER, I'm definitely stoked on where I'm at right now. I love my job and I keep working hard so I can keep it. I've spent over a decade plugging away year after year so it's really satisfying to see it all come together. I'm always looking over my shoulder to see who's coming up and at times I've had to shut people down to protect my interests but that's just business and like it or not, this is a business.

I just like shooting. Rails, big jumps, freeriding, lifestyles and portraits. I've gotten into shooting landscapes lately, mostly just winter scenes and the mountains I travel too. We get a really unique perspective on these areas that most people will never encounter. It's changing every year too so it's important to capture it when the moment is right. I even like shooting still life sometimes. You'll hear a lot of photographers say it's an addiction and you need new images all the time or you get bored. It's true. It's a rush to see your new work come to life on the computer. Sharing it with people is also a big thing. Gauging their reaction, hearing their thoughts and interpretations. You learn about your work from all of it but after that you need to go out there and get more shots and try to do better. I definitely like shooting in the Whistler backcountry most of all. It's the most fun part of my job and where I'm the most comfortable so obviously my best work happens in that situation when the conditions are right. I also love to travel to new places in the world where I haven't been before or maybe I've been there once but didn't even get below the surface of what's possible. We just went to France for a Snowboard Canada article and we only saw one fifth of the terrain at the resort. I can't wait to go back someday.

It's tough and it's not getting any easier to make money. There are more outlets for your photos these days but budgets have shrunk significantly so they kind of cancel each other out. You just really have to shoot as much as you can and hustle as many of your photos wherever you can to make some $. I'd say most snowboard photographers out there have some kind of other job or income source. But if you put in your time, work hard and have talent, then with a bit of luck you will definitely have success. Your attitude and personality plays a big part in getting to that next level I think. If you feel like you are owed things and you should be paid without putting in your time than you won't get too far. It really boils down to the question of if you are doing it because you love it or are you doing it for the money and status?

They go hand in hand. Photography has benefitted so much from technology and you can't have the internet without photos, that would be really boring. Might as well just read a book. Boring! Instagram is a great example of how photography fits into the digital world. It's just too bad that 90% of it is complete shit. But it has made photography super popular and taken the camera phone to a whole other level of importance. It also allows professional photographers and amateurs to get their work out there like never before. Magazines going online and being read on iPads is an interesting showcase. Online magazines become mini websites for each issue. They are really interactive (or should be) and that's really cool. But photography drives both of these examples. Photography draws you in and the rest of it takes over from there. Photos are the gateway to the technology in my opinion. For example, you cruise a website like YouTube or the home page of another site which is full of video windows. The still image in that window determines whether you watch that video or not. If it's an image of a pair of boobs than probably 8 out of 10 guys are gonna watch it. If it's an image of a kitten than a ton of people are gonna watch it. If it's a blank white box with only the little play icon than I think most people are going to skip over that one. Things like this have also devalued photography because everyone views the internet as a free tool and no one wants to be overwhelmed by ads so the economics of it all is tricky. At the same time I think this has created a bit of a niche for specialty print publications. A large portion of the population still values well made magazines. The combination of good photography, good design and convenience make it a good experience for people. That's why we started Later. magazine. We felt there was a need for that kind of content and we wanted to present it in a well made, tangible way. So really, photography is helping drive the digital world but at the same time there is a backwards trend toward traditional uses for photography. It's the same thing I see all around now, as technology allows us to mass produce things and get them at a cheaper price, there's a huge trend toward hand made and custom goods because people see the value in those things vs. the "made in China" model.

Follow Colin at:

blog.colindair.com
instagram: colinadair
colinadair.com.tumblr

Get your fill of epic winter landscapes, portraits and some of the best snowboarding images of the year in Colin's "2012 SNOWBOARD Year In The RearView":