Takahiro Nakanishi

His pictures appear black and white, but after taking a closer look, you realize it’s snow. Masses of snow – on the ground, in the air, on trees and rocks. That’s Takahiro Nakanishi’s preferred way of taking pictures. “I like taking photos with cloudy skies, when there’s no shadows, and it’s best when it’s dumping snow.” The winters in Japan are ideal for these conditions and the kind of pictures that he is known for. And for Takahiro, the self-made photographer from Tokoname in Japan, photography is not just a job. It’s a true passion. The backcountry is his playground – not only in his home country.

Accordingly, Takahiro’s pictures are taken all around the world and published in several Japanese magazines as well as in New Zealand, Australia and the USA, including Powder magazine. Takahiro Nakanishi loves snow. First a snowboarder with serious ambitions to join the pro snowboard circuit, Takahiro switched to Telemark skis when he was in his early thirties, realizing that he was probably not crazy enough to become a successful pro in the big mountain scene. Still hanging out in the backcountry with his old snowboard buddies, he refused to settle down to a normal life and career and became a ski bum. Along he took his first camera, a Fuji Cardia Travel Mini Dual-P, which he got as a prize when he played soccer at school.

The adventurous lifestyle was exactly what he had dreamed of. Takahiro played around with the camera, learned everything he needed to know by himself. A single-lens reflex replaced the old pocket camera and his photos were soon appreciated by both, riders and later also by magazines. Today he uses digital equipment, but he still keeps some film for portrait and lifestyle shootings: “I like the soft outline of analog black & white.” What started as a temporary solution turned into a job, a career after all. In 2006, his very first photo was published in the Japanese “Fall Line” magazine, an image he took at Treble Cone in New Zealand. One of Takahiro’s idols in photography is Steve Ogle from Canada. “He’s one of my favorites and a friend of mine.

His photos always look gorgeous and peaceful.” Something people also say about Takahiro’s images. In the scene, he is known for solid angles, natural colors, and for having a very pleasant, calm and balanced character. The right guy to hang out with, and the right photographer if you want exceptional shots. His pictures are different, because he always tries to include the atmosphere beyond the action. Striving through the backcountry, Takahiro is constantly looking for interesting settings. Once he finds a spot that meets his expectations, his search continues – for the best angle. “Sometimes it doesn’t come out the way I want, but it’s always fun and challenging”, he says.

One definite challenge in backcountry action photography is also what nobody sees in a picture: the preparation and the waiting time, the number of takes until a picture turns out the way it was intended. It involves effort, endurance, and many times a lot of patience. Like that time in the Asahidake backcountry in Hokkaido a few years ago, when Takahiro scouted the spot a day before the shooting. The next day, he came back with three skiers and a cinematographer. “It was freezing cold and there were clouds. I had chosen a cliff, so the filmer and I did not have to move around too much and stayed down below the drop.” In spite of the cold, everyone had to wait for the light to get better.

It took the sun three and a half hours to fight the clouds send five minutes worth of the right lighting conditions for the shot, which turned out perfectly. “The skiers must have been so cold”, he remembers that very day, one of his most memorable experiences on the job, because he realized what photography in nature is all about: “Just stay relaxed and don’t be in a rush to catch the moment.” Staying calm is also crucial when it comes to the dangers that both photographer and skiers are exposed to in the mountains. Takahiro describes himself as a cautious person: “I’m rather afraid of scary stuff. Many times I catch myself being quite a pessimist.”

Checking the weather and avalanche reports is mandatory, but in the end Takahiro prefers to trust people he knows and his own gut feeling. “Before a shoot, I talk to many friends who are guides and gather all the information available. I inspect the exposure of the terrain, the amount of snowfall, and the wind. Then I check the chosen line for rocks and obstacles.” His own experience from the time when he was an ambitious snowboarder helps him a lot with assessing the terrain. Yet, his ideas are sometimes not all that welcome with the skiers: “My imagination sometimes runs really wild and I don’t seem to have limits when it comes to photo ideas. Many times, the riders refuse them when I tell them about it.”

To Takahiro, being an outdoor photographer is a blessing. The best part about it is going on ski trips, being in the outdoors for work, and portraying places that people may never be able to go to themselves. Besides the Japanese mountains, his work has taken him to New Zealand, Canada, France, Argentina, and Norway. His favorite place so far was La Grave for its big mountain terrain and unique skiing community. “I love the Alps. They are challenging and have so much to offer,” he says, but not without adding: “If you want to enjoy a more relaxed way of skiing, you should come to Japan and experience our softer and deeper snow! And please enjoy our culture as well.” This winter, he wants to go back to La Grave and shoot the Derby de la Meije.

And some time in the future, he would also love to go to Russia. Takahiro is also open to take his photography into different areas. “From time to time I also shoot architecture. And I could very well imagine traveling to Africa to capture wild animals”, he says. Nevertheless, winter sport remains his greatest passion, professionally as well as personally: “I love to go skiing without shooting, but it’s kind of an occupational disease that I always take my camera along when I head out with my friends. By now, I feel naked without my backpack.” So no matter what the future brings, one thing will never change: Takahiro Nakanishi’s love for snow and exceptional backcountry images. “I hope my pictures tell nice stories that people enjoy and appreciate.” We would never doubt it.