Extreme Photography Is Not For The Faint Of Heart

A few weeks ago Reese Moore interviewed Jimmy Chin for her column the Fstoppers Spotlight. Her Fstoppers interview revealed a lot about what makes Mr. Chin put himself in harms way as he climbs, rappels, and base jumps from assignment to assignment. In this behind the scenes video, Jimmy talks about the changing culture taking place within the sport of extreme rock climbing. He and his fellow climbers explore Yosemite National Park as he captures images for National Geographic. I dabble in climbing and think base jumping would be a huge thrill but I'm not sure I would ever have the guts to even hang with Jimmy for one day if this is his typical photoshoot. Check out 2:40 for some interesting off camera lighting while climbing!

On Assignment from Camp 4 Collective on Vimeo.

Patrick Hall's picture

Patrick Hall is a founder of Fstoppers.com and a photographer based out of Charleston, South Carolina.

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18 Comments

wow those images are freaking insane... I've shot climbing before and its a freaking pain to go to a place like that and get those photos and the video work in the vid is sick too! Thanks for sharing. 

 Pretty cool, I climbed for about 10 years, that stuff is hardcore. I actually taught a friend how to climb in High school and he now lives out west and has climbed several routes on El Cap. There is some pretty killer climbing up in West Virginia if you ever want to shoot climbers Patrick, though you'll be able to stay fairly close to the ground there. :-D

Videos like this one is the reason I have a fstoppers rss feed on my homepage. this is probably the coolest BTS video you guys have ever posted; incredible photography, high production value and a compelling narrative.

The shot that blew me away had to be what I think was a jib shot of some kind that followed the wall around to the climber, absolutely nuts.

I don't think there are more than a handful of people in this world that could pull this shoot off. Must be in peak physical condition, and have amazing photography and cinematography skills. Extremely impressive. 

F* Patrick! You probably are rich ... very rich!
If not about money, about friends to give you this hints.
The web is full of SH******T and you still bring us this type of pearls!
DUDE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAZING!
Thanks!
(Kudos to Zack W. comment as well!) 

LOL, what Carlos said...

Just a sick, sick video.  Great find!

This might be the best BTS video I've watched on F-Stoppers...

Def one of the best BTS videos ive seen. Not many final images, not much on how he did what. But a beautiful glimpse on how much was done to get the shots and what it took to make the assignment worth while. 

Dope.

Pretty well done. Loved the vid from start to finish. It really tells the story behind the camera and all the hard work that goes into getting that one shot. 

Wow this blew my mind! These climbers are to the fullest experiencing our amazing nature. And to capture that takes both skills and a big heart for nature, both which Mr.Chin in this video proves he possesses.  

Incredible video indeed, we at North Face just love Jimmy Chin! This guy rocks :) We have his pictures all over our offices in MTL :) Best BTS since a long time!

really cool!

wow! a profound respect for people who does this for a living and enjoy nature as well!

Jimmy has always been a hero of mine.  He's right...in order to get the shots, you have to immerse yourself in the culture.  I love the vibe at Camp 4, and Yosemite has always been one of my fave places to climb and shoot.  If anyone's interested in seeing more climbing/mountaineering images, check out my site at http://marcpagani.com/galleries/mtnsport/default.html

Wow, this is a super inspiring and well made video. Really puts you there in the moment. One of my favorite behind the scenes to date. 

The best BTS I've ever seen. I want to see the full release. Amazing shots, narrative, video production, all just incredible. But it takes great passion to be able to pull this off. Jimmy Chin, congratulations!!

I admire all these guys so much, I have terrible fears of heights... Just being up a step ladder makes me dizzy, if I was up on those mountain I would be physically sick everywhere.  This is awe inspiring, just wish I had the stomach for it.