Smile today. Celebrating active fitness and active lifestyles. Photography and Film

There's something contagious about smiles.  Even when your day is on the fritz and life's overwhelming, a smile can change the way we feel in an instant.  The beauty of the still photograph over any other medium, including film, is the ability to capture an authentic moment and lock it away in time.  Genuine smiles are fantastic moments in life.  We need more of them!  I mean, who can honestly look at someone full of smiles and not break out into a smile themselves? C'mon at least a smirk!?  Smiley people rock!

- Kevin Winzeler

Photographer | Filmaker 

Active lifestyles. Sports. Outdoors

Get OUTside of your comfort zone and try something new. Photographing in Zion National Park, Utah

When's the last time you stepped out of your comfort zone?  The feeling of fear that grips all of us the first time we step into unfamiliar territory is both terrifying and exhilarating, but the rewards are well worth it and it's amazing how much fun trying something new can be!

Last Fall, I photographed a group of business executives during an epic canyoneering trip in Zion National park, Utah.  In a short seven mile span, these corporate folks experienced (for the first time) the vacuum packed feeling of putting on a dry suit followed by a neck deep plunge into frigid 48 degree water.  Next came a series of seven rappels and slot canyon maneuvering (squeezing some not-so-slender bodies through some rather slender spaces).  

At the end of the day, these folks were all smiles and ready for more; having left the world and comfort of iphone checking and business transacting and into activity, the outdoors and the rush of a life changing experience.  Excellent stuff!

So, what are you going to do this week OUTside of your comfort zone? 

-Kevin Winzeler

Active. Lifestyle. Outdoors. Photography.

Tell good stories. Forget the gear.

At times we forget that it's the stories (not the gear) that inspire thought, provoke action and rekindle love.  Well told stories through both photograph and film open our eyes and hearts to the possibilities around.  New gear inspires us to spend money. :)

Thanks to DP and film maker Shane Hurlbut for this reminder - "Story is what matters most, not the tools.  When I read a script for the first, second and third time I do not think about my responsibilities as a filmmaker, they are always at the back of my mind but not the go to reflex. I love experimenting with new technology. It’s like being a pioneer such as Lewis and Clarke, navigating the uncharted waters, or being the first man on the moon. But this is only a means to an end. You are trying to tell a story with images that enable people from around the world to share in that experience."  More of Shane's post here

-Kevin Winzeler
Commercial Photographer and Film maker