Adventurer created job as athlete, photographer
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Chinese-American athlete, photographer and filmmaker Jimmy Chin has placed his footprint at some of the most challenging expedition destinations in the world.
Born and raised in Mankato, Minnesota, Chin, 39, has skied down Mount Everest and climbed into the forbidding Karakoram mountain range spanning the borders of China, Pakistan and India. In 2001 he joined The North Face Global Athlete Team, and he has had works published by National Geographic, People and Outside magazines.
Chin has been shooting and directing commercials and feature documentaries since 2003, when he was the videographer of National Geographic’s hour-long TV special “Deadly Fashion,” about endangered species on the northern Tibetan Plateau.
He is finishing a feature documentary, “Meru,” for release in 2014 about a challenging mountain peak in India, a project he has worked on for three years, and he’s about to start a new, two-year expedition and film project.
From November 16 to 29, Chin is hosting a photography exhibition on Level B1 at Shanghai K11 Art Mall featuring some of his best works over the years.
Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how photography became a part of your life?
A: I have three jobs. I’m an athlete for The North Face, and I’ve been on the team for 12 years, and then I’m a photographer and filmmaker. I have a production company (Camp 4 Collective). That’s how my life and career is divided up. I never really planned to be a photographer, or a filmmaker, or a professional athlete — I studied international relations in college.
I was always drawn to the outdoors. I didn’t really see a normal career in an office as something that I would be passionate about. I didn’t know you could make it a career — it’s not like I planned it. I’m really lucky that I had to invent my own career, and that’s how it started.
Q: What are the best things you like about being an explorer and photographer?
A: I think the main thing I loved about climbing and skiing and photography is that they are all very creative endeavors. They all require a lot of skills and training and practice. So I always try to get better as a climber and have goals as a photographer, too. They just require a lot patience.
Q: What was the best memory when climbing the Mount Everest?
A: I climbed (Mount) Everest twice. The second time my goal was not just to climb it, but to ski from the summit. That was very memorable, because it took many years of dreaming and trying and training to realize that dream, and when I finally was able to ski from the summit, ski down to the bottom, it was a great moment.
Q: How do you describe your style in photography?
A: I shoot both editorial and commercial work. I’ve been shooting commercial photography since I started, and that’s what really made it possible because commercial work is paid. I’m influenced by a lot of journalists and National Geographic photographers. My goal was to shoot for the National Geographic. It’s more focused on storytelling and moments and ideas. I love photography that’s spontaneous, that’s always the hardest to get. Really good journalistic photography is tough.
Q: What was the first photo you took that really struck you?
A: Probably one of the most striking photos I took was a photo of a Pakistani boy. I saw that photo and it struck me as more powerful than any other shots I’d taken in the mountain. It was a boy’s face, and it got me thinking just how powerful a portrait can be, how much story can be told with just the face.
It shifted my shooting. I started to focus more on people and culture.
Q: Do you have some favorite destinations?
A: I love where I live, and I feel most of life is spent back at my home outside Jackson Hole (Wyoming). I also love the ocean, and I love surfing, because it’s not my job. Climbing and skiing is a lot of pressure all the time.
Q: Are you ever afraid when you are out on expeditions?
A: All the time.
Q: How did you deal with the fear?
A: Fear can be a very powerful thing in a positive way. It can also be negative. Fear can save your life or it can kill you. Managing fear is a big part of my job, how to use it to your advantage, how not to let it take control, and how you make decisions. That’s something important in all aspects of your life.
My job is managing risks, always pushing the limits within the realm of acceptable risks. People always ask if it’s worth it, and how do you know? For me the risks are worth it.
Q: Do you have any words of wisdom for people wanting to become an explorer and/or photographer?
A: For photographers, it’s shoot what you love, shoot what you are passionate about. Because you have to bring a unique perspective. As an outdoor adventurer and climber, you don’t have to go to the most extreme places. The wildness of nature will draw you out, but you have to make the first step.
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