Image Quest Camps can jumpstart a career that doesn’t feel like work
WORDS • Tom Winter | PHOTOS • Jeff Cricco
So you want to make a living skiing, but not just any living. Bumping chairs won’t cut it and teaching pizza pies and French fries to the under 12 crowd for eight bucks an hour isn’t your dream job either. Slinging $20 burgers at some on mountain restaurant also isn’t at the top of your list, despite the free pass and employee discounts on said burgers. Getting paid to heli ski? Sure, now you’re talking!
FREESKIER photographers get paid to heli-ski. They get paid to go to the Alps. They get paid to eat sushi in Japan and ski the deepest powder on the planet.
That sounds like fun, right?
You can learn how to become a photographer for FREESKIER, how to get a job with the Freeride World Tour or how to become a sponsored skier this January at a unique on-snow learning experience called Image Quest. Developed by former FREESKIER editor-at-large Tom Winter, Image Quest Camps started as photography and action sports journalism boot camps featuring top talent in the field at primo locations in Chile and Italy. The camps have since expanded to include insights and marketing strategies for budding semi-pro athletes and photo hobbyists looking to take their skills to the next level, seminars on how to break into the ski industry as brand managers and all sorts of other things that, as the saying goes, “they don’t teach you in school.”
This year, Image Quest travels to Hokkaido, Japan, for ten days of skiing. Instruction and cultural immersion begins with on-hill photo classes with FREESKIER contributor Jeff Cricco; Tom Winter oversees each day’s educational seminars; and on-snow logistics are handled by former pro skier Jeff Robertson and his guides at Le Grand Adventure Tours.
Past students have gone on to work with brands like Victoria’s Secret, Vail Resorts and Aspen. “We want to give participants the keys to the castle when it comes to a career in action sports,” says Cricco, who oversees photography instruction at the camp. “Not everyone will end up shooting photos for FREESKIER, but if they love skiing and want to create a career and lifestyle that revolves around the mountains, we show participants how to make their dream job become a reality.”
2019 Image Quest Camp Details:
The 2019 Image Quest Photo Camp runs from January 3 through 12 in the Furano and Otaru zones of Hokkaido, Japan. Media & Marketing track participants focus on content creation and photography, while participants in the Athlete Experience component will work on ski techniques and overall mountain & backcountry skills. All participants will leave the camp with a portfolio of images and other content that will help jumpstart a career in action sports. Learn more and sign up by clicking right here.
