Snow Shooter: Fredrik Marmsater

Photography is not Fredrik Marmsater’s first trade. He started out his professional career as a scientist in the pharmaceutical industry researching cancer drugs, but six years ago he left his well-paid position to become a photographer. The transition has entailed a lot of hard work and dedication for Marmsater, but he embraces the challenge of capturing steep lines and difficult angles, knowing that his efforts will pay in beautiful images.

We caught up with Fredrik at his home in Boulder, Colo. and chatted about his dedication to making photography a career and his love of light.

Backcountry Magazine: What drew you to photography as a profession?

Fredrik Marmsater: I am inspired by big, epic vistas and big, epic photographs. I remember, for example, flipping through the Patagonia catalog as a kid and looking at those big mountain photos and being like, “Wow, that just looks amazing.” I’ve always wanted to go out and create photographs that inspire people to one, get out there, and two, to protect those places. I am completely inspired by the big mountain environments, and that was the original draw in creating those images and chasing the light and the action. A handful of years ago I tried to give photography a go and I quit my career job. I took the plunge and a huge pay cut and went for it. That was almost six years ago.

BCM: What was it about action photography that called to you over other genres?

FM: I think that action photography drew me in later in life. I mean, who doesn’t love an epic shot of somebody getting a full face of snow and shredding an Alaskan spine? I think capturing that moment and conveying the feeling and the people getting after it in the mountains has always been really cool, but for me it was not the initial inspiration. That is certainly part of it now and I shoot a lot of those frames, but I just try to convey the feeling of being there and being in the moment.

BCM: Where is your favorite place to work?

FM: I don’t think I have a single favorite place. I like to work in remote places where there aren’t a lot of people out. I love the remote country in Colorado; the mountains here are huge and unforgiving. There is also a pretty unstable snowpack so you have to be on your toes. That makes it even more interesting. You can’t really beat a powder day on Rogers Pass, though. There are just so many cool places.

BCM: What is the best part of being a photographer?

FM: To be in the mountains with amazing athletes—that to me is easily the best part.

BCM: What is the funniest thing that has happened to you while shooting?

FM: I have athletes come charging at me who forget to lock their boots into ski mode and just do the full, over-the-handlebars double eject. That can be pretty good. I have had people charge in for a shot with their skins still on as well.

BCM: What is a dangerous aspect of being a ski photographer?

FM: Avalanche risk. There are a lot of times when you want to get a specific angle and you have to get into a risky place. You have to post up somewhere and get your camera out and get ready to shoot. At that point in time you are pretty vulnerable and you kinda have your pants down. I’m usually on the ground with my skins like everybody else and you have to take risks to get the shot and get the angle that you want. You can expose yourself, and you have to try and mitigate that by using features just like you would if you were skiing.

BCM: Do you have any trips planned that you can tell me about?

FM: We are going to see how this El Niño shakes out again. Hopefully California will get some snow, then maybe I will get to stay a little closer to home and not travel as much. I love the travel part but after a few years of being on the road eight months a year it would be pretty nice to be a little closer to home.

BCM: What techniques and tools of the trade define your style?

FM: My favorite lens is the Nikon 70-200 F4 because it’s lighter, smaller and as sharp or sharper than the really big 2.8 lens. It’s a really good piece of glass to be carrying around all day long.

My style usually is a wide-angle, epic landscape shot with a skier shredding in the distance—a more pulled-back image. I really like to use light and shoot at sunrise and sunset, to be high on the ridges and summits when that happens. Photography to me is half light and half the rest, so if you have really good light it is up to you to get a really good frame. Photography is just as much about light as it is about action so if you don’t have the light you really have to work it.

Another thing that defines my style is being fit and being able to ski around and keep up with people even though I am wearing a big camera bag. I want to be on the same lines as the athletes for the most part. I’m not going to huck an 80 footer with a camera bag, but I don’t want to be a pain in the ass.

Finding the Line filmed and edited by Fredrik Marmsater on youtube.com

BCM: What is the most spectacular thing you didn’t catch on camera?

FM: You have a moment like that every day. This last winter I went up to ski one of my favorite places on the planet, Valhalla Mountain Touring up in B.C., and we went out for a really quick evening lap right when I got in. We cruised up this peak and I felt for sure that the light wasn’t going to happen—it was all socked in, and we thought we weren’t going to be up there by sunset anyway. Of course I didn’t have my camera, which I almost always do. But I left it and said, “I’m just going to go shred one for the soul,” you know? And of course we get up there and there was a little crack in the clouds and the light came through. It was totally freaking epic, and it was the only part of the trip that I didn’t have my camera. I was happy I got to shred but at the same time I was like, “I can’t believe it!” It was easily the best light of the entire trip.

BCM: Is photography a dream job?

FM: I think a lot of people think photography is a dream job and certain aspects of the job are totally a dream, but it is a brutally difficult way to make a living. I think everybody who is trying to get into the space should be aware of that. It’s definitely not impossible, it is totally doable, but it’s brutal. It takes a lot of self-motivation. I am always working. I can’t remember the last time I had a real vacation, but I do get to run around the mountains all the time.

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To check out Fredrik Marmsater’s work, head to fredrikmarmsater.com.