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YES, THAT’S A REAL QUESTION WE RECIEVED, THE ONLY EDIT WAS REMOVING THE “BRO” FROM THE START. THIS WAS AN ENQUIRY AS TO WHY WE DON’T SHOW LOTS OF IMAGES OF BRIGHTLY COLOURED CLIMBERS HAMMING IT UP FOR THE CAMERA IN AMAZING LOCATIONS IN ORDER TO SELL OUR SERVICES, AND IS A FAIR QUESTION WE THINK.

SCANNING THE ENDLESS ROLE OF STUFF FROM THE HIGH ALTITUDE INDUSTRY THAT WE SEE, IT IS TRUE – FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS IS OUT OF PLACE AMONGST ALL THE DISPLAYS OF BRIGHT DOWN SUITS, BIG BOOTS, EXCITED LOOKING PUNTERS HANGING OFF ICE TOOLS, POSTURING IN FRONT OF GLACIERS AND HOLDING BANNERS ON SUMMITS. WHERE CELEBRITY AND THE RIGHT FILTERS SEEM TO ATTRACT PEOPLE WITH DISPOSABLE INCOMES, FROM US YOU GET CHEAP LURID GRAPHICS, OLD MAPS, BLURRY PICTURES OF STUFF WITH NO NAMES, AND THE OCCASIONAL SHOT OF EXHAUSTED CLIMBERS IN STRANGE GEAR OBVIOUSLY UNINTERESTED IN HAVING THEIR PHOTOS TAKEN.

BUT THE THING IS, IT WORKS.

WE ARE NOT SOCIAL MEDIA ANIMALS, MAINTAINING A FOOTPRINT IN THAT SPACE ONLY AS AN OCCASIONAL FLARE SO THE FEW WHO FOLLOW US KNOW WE ARE NOT MISSING OR SHUT DOWN. THE TRAFFIC WE GET ACCOUNTS FOR ONLY ONLY A SINGLE-DIGIT PERCENTILE OF WHAT WE ENGAGE, AND THE FORMAT ITSELF DOESN’T PORTRAY THE PROCESS OF WHAT WE DO WELL. STILL, IT IS FUN, AND AN OUTLET FOR SOME SORT OF CREATIVITY, AND FENDING THE HATE MAIL, ACCUSATIONS OF SATANISM AND COMMUNISM, QUESTIONS ABOUT STOVES, EMPTY APPROVAL AND EXPECTATIONS OF FREE EQUIPMENT IS AS MUCH A PART OF THE LEARNING CURVE AS THE RICHNESS OF REAL ENGAGEMENT FROM ACTUAL ENQUIRING MINDS. IT IS WORTH IT. JUST.

MORE COOL PICTURES OF COOL PEOPLE DOING COOL STUFF IN COOL PLACES WE FIND DOESN’T EQUATE TO MORE OR BETTER EXPEDITIONS, BUT BEYOND THAT, THERE’S OTHER REASONS WE INTENTIONALLY DON’T PLAY THE GAME.

+ WE ARE SURPRISINGLY LO FI WHEN IT COMES TO IMAGES, RARELY CARRYING HEAVY CAMERAS AND WHEN WE DO, RARELY USING THEM, ACCEPTING WE DON’T HAVE THE TIME OR PLACE TO LINE UP GOOD SHOTS. DUST, ICE, COLD, GLOVES, DANGER AND FOCUS ALL CONSPIRE TO MAKE THE HANDLING OF CAMERAS HAPHAZARD AT BEST, AND LIST OF INSURANCE CLAIMS FOR VERY EXPENSIVE HARDWARE FROM THE LIKES OF LEICA MEANS DON’T MAKE IT MUCH OF A PRIORITY.

+ WE DON’T NEED MORE WE NEED BETTER, AND THE IMAGES WE PRESENT WORK AS A FILTER. IF YOU EXPECT OUR TRIPS IN THE FLESH TO LOOK LIKE WHAT YOU SEE ON EVEREST OR DENALI, THEN YOU HAVE A SHOCK COMING. WITHOUT THE BACKEND THAT GOES WITH PLACES LIKE THAT THINGS DON’T LOOK THE SAME, AND IT’S BETTER PEOPLE GET THIS FROM THE START BEFORE THEY GET 100 EMAILS IN OR 100kms OUT. BLURRINESS, OBSCURITY, GRITTINESS AND JUXTAPOSITION ARE WHAT OUR TRIPS REALLY LOOK LIKE, AND THE CULT OF PEOPLE WHO WANT THAT, FRANKLY, DOESN’T WANT PEOPLE WHO DON’T.

+ WE HAVE ALWAYS HAD STRICT DISCRETION WITH OUR TRIPS AND TEAMS, GOING TO PLACES THAT DON’T NEED ATTENTION WITH CLIMBERS WHO DON’T WANT TO BE SEEN DOING IT. OCCASIONALLY THIS HAS SECURITY IMPLICATIONS BUT MOSTLY IT’S JUST PERSONAL – IT’S NOBODY’S BUSINESS BUT THE INDIVIDUAL WHAT THEY DO WITH THEIR TIME. AWAY FROM A FEW PEAKS, NO ONE OUTSIDE A TINY COMMUNITY CARES WHAT YOU CLIMB, AND WHEN THEY DO IT’S OFTEN OVER DETAILS THAT ARE WELL BESIDE THE POINT. THOSE THAT KNOW, KNOW, AND THOSE THAT DON’T CAN’T BE TOLD, AND NOTHING USEFUL IS CONVEYED IN A 30/70 CROPPED LANDSCAPE OF YOU GIVING THE HANG LOOSE IN EXPENSIVE SUNGLASSES.

+ THE SECRET HERE IS THAT ONLY SUPERFICIALLY ARE OUR IMAGES HOKEY, DISPOSABLE AND OBTUSE, AND UPON DISCERNING EXAMINATION THEY REVEAL MUCH MORE TO THE EYE THAT WANTS TO SEE. 99% OF OUR IMAGES ARE OURS, ARE REAL, ARE UNADULTERATED AND ARE NOT STAGED, AND ARE CAREFULLY PICKED FROM BANKS OF THOUSANDS TO SHOW WHAT WE WANT SEEN. REAL CLIMBERS HAVE STOOD IN PLACES VERY, VERY FEW WILL KNOW, AND TAKEN SNAPS IN THE BRIEF MOMENTS AS THE PACK STRAPS CUT IN, THEIR FINGERS FREEZE IN THE WIND AND AT THE LIMITS OF THEIR ZOOM. THESE ARE NOT IMAGES OF EXPEDITIONS THEY ARE IMAGES WITHIN THEM, AND CONTAIN ALL THE DETAILS AND EXCITEMENT OF WHAT BEING ON OUR TRIPS FEEL LIKE. WHEN CLIMBING WE HAVE TWO HANDS ON THE ROPE ON OR THE TOOLS, AND ON APPROACHES WE ARE NAVIGATING AND TAKING NOTES, SO ANY TIME DEVOTED TO PHOTOS NEEDS TO SERVE MUCH MORE THAN THE EGO OF WHOEVER IS THERE. EVEN THE PRO PHOTOGRAPHERS AND FILM MAKERS ON OUR TRIPS ARE THERE AS CLIMBERS FIRST, ARTISTS SECOND, AND KNOW THAT NOTHING WILL BE POSED, SET UP OR CONTRIVED. 

+ WE SPEND VASTLY MORE TIME LOOKING THROUGH BINOCULARS THAN CAMERAS, AND MOST OF OUR TRIPS ARE VERY HARD TO PORTRAY. THE IMAGES WE SHOW ARE THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE TO A PUBLIC THINKING OF GOING ON EXPEDITIONS, AND THE BULK OF THE IMAGES WE COME AWAY WITH OF OF STUFF TOO, STRANGE, TOO CONTEXTUAL, TOO CONTENTIOUS OR TOO PERSONAL TO HAVE COMMERCIAL VALUE. OUR TRIPS CONTAIN SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST THE CLIMBING ELEMENT BUT MEDIA ATTENTION IS LIMITED AND THE WHITENOISE IS HUGE, SO WE STICK TO STUFF THAT WILL ENGAGE RATHER THAN BAFFLE OR CONFUSE.

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WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET WITH FEEDING THE RAT EXPEDITIONS, AND WE HAVE LOOKED HARD INTO PORTRAYING THE ACTUALITY OF OUR TRIPS IN THE VISUALS WE DISPLAY. THERE WAS A TIME WHEN WE ALIGNED WITH THE STYLE AND LOOK OF THE COMMERCIAL INDUSTRY BUT IT LEAD US SOMEWHERE WE DIDN’T WANT TO GO, AND CONFLICTS WITHIN OUR TEAMS DIVIDED BETWEEN THOSE WHO EXPECTED INDUSTRIAL SIMILARITIES AND THOSE WHO WANTED NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.

WE EXIST FOR THE CULT WITHIN THE CULT OF MOUNTAINEERING THAT PICKS IT’S WAY FORWARD VIA IDEAS AND INFORMATION THAT THE MAIN INDUSTRY EITHER IGNORES OR DESPISES. OUR EXPEDITIONS ARE STRATEGIC AND ATHLETIC WORKS OF ART, NOT REPRODUCTIONS, AND THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ON THEM KNOW FROM THE FIRST TIME THEY LAID EYES ON US THAT THIS IS WHAT THEY WANTED.

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FOR WHAT IT’S WORTH THE SPLASH IMAGE IS AN UNCLIMBED PEAK IN NORTH EASTERN TIBET. THERE ARE THOSE WHO ZOOM IN AND SCAN FOR LINES AND FEATURES, AND EVERYBODY ELSE.

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