This might sound funny coming from someone who makes a living taking pictures, but I have a soft spot for chairlift selfies and what’s more, I think they’re important! I learned a long time ago that the best camera is the one that you have with you.
Not too long ago it meant you had to remember to pack a small camera but now, it’s in your phone. Being a photographer I’m immersed in the world of documenting life both for my clients as well as my own. Skiing and snowboarding in our little corner of the world where the runs are a little shorter, we spend a lot of time on the chairlift. That sounds like a negative, but it’s not really! Our community thrives on the social aspect of the sport and a lot of those 5-minute conversations on the lift keep us coming back for more. We maintain friendships on the chair, make new ones and spend time with our families. Just like pictures of your child’s birthday, a weekend at the cottage or a good night out at the bar, these are the moments of our lives and they deserve to be part of the archives, so pull out your phone and snap a selfie with your crew on the chairlift!
The quality of the pictures is admittedly not very good, they are sometimes blurry, on weird angles with parts of faces cropped off unintentionally, but the point is that it doesn’t matter! Eeek, that is hard for me to admit, but it’s a fact, fuzzy pictures are better than fuzzy memories. I have an iPhone full of spur of the moment pictures of my family and random things that happen in front of me and I’m so thankful for the technology that allows me/us to do this, but it’ll never replace a real camera. Like the phone full of pictures, I also have hard drives and photo albums full of good quality pictures! The important thing here is balance. Photograph your lives, you’ll be happy you did! Long Live The Chairlift Selfie!
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Rob Whelan grew up in the Hockley Valley, about an hour north of Toronto and spent every spare minute of his youth skiing and snowboarding down 300 feet of vertical. “The ski/snowboard community is one of my favourite things in the world and I’ve dedicated myself and my work to keeping it strong. Now living in Kingston, Calabogie Peaks is my home hill. I make my living behind a camera, spending my summers photographing weddings and my winters photographing families that ski/snowboard together.” Life is good, #goplayoutside!
