Bikes

BMX, Mountain Bikes, Dirt Jumping

29
Feb
2024
Mt Buller

Mt Buller

I seem to be running around a lot at the moment. A couple of weeks ago I was in Thredbo for Cannonball then back in Sydney for a Bikes Online shoot, then back south to Mt Buller for the Rocky Trail Superflow. Now I’m back in Sydney for a couple of quick shoots but will be on the road again soon. Not that I am complaining, I love getting away from Sydney. Maybe though, I should just plan things a bit better and stay away rather than bouncing up and down the East Coast.

Mt Buller is always a favourite. Well, anywhere in the mountains is always a favourite for me. The Australian Alps have a unique and distinct flavour, a remoteness, an easy place to get lost. Even standing in the village of Mt Buller (which isn’t very remote) and looking out across the surrounding hills you know there are a lot of areas where you could get lost and not be seen again.

I even managed to get up one morning and go out to take a few sunrise shots. Not something I do too often these days. While not the most colourful of sunrises smoke from bushfires filled all the valleys around Mt Buller and gave it a beautiful softness and an eerie charm.

Posted by Richard in Bikes, Events, What's going on
20
Feb
2024
A decade of Cannonball

A decade of Cannonball

This year was the 10th anniversary of the Thredbo Cannonball. For us, I think it was year 7 shooting the event as Outer Image. It’s been great to see this event go from strength to strength and has become the premier MTB event in Australia attracting athletes from all across the continent and even from abroad.

It is always a hectic week of work for Gil and I with 5 solid days shooting and doing our best to get the images tagged, edited and uploaded each night after the day’s activities. If we don’t, the stockpile of images tends to grow larger and larger as the week goes on. This year we delivered around 7500 images to the competitors on behalf of Thredbo Mountain Bike.

Below is a selection of images that I took over the week.

Posted by Richard in Bikes, Events
20
Feb
2020
Shimano GP Orange

Shimano GP Orange

Back out on track again with Outer Image and kicked the season off with a trip out west to Orange for Rocky Trail Entertainment‘s first round of the Shimano GP

I made a quick stop in the Blue Mountains World Heritage area to see some of the devastation brought on by the recent fires. It was a complete burn-through leaving only tree stumps everywhere. Seeing houses in still standing in amongst all this carnage is a testament to the amazing work of the volunteer bush firefighters. I hope to get back up there shortly for a better look around.

Two locations I like shooting mountain biking are amongst green ferns and in pine forests (sometimes I think I am in the wrong country) When the light is right in the pines then it can be beautiful. Plus as an added bonus pine needles are a lot more comfortable to lay around on than the native scrub usually. Kinross forest is a nice forest and there is a lot more there for me to explore. It’s a shame it’s all due to be lopped this year but that’s what the plantation is for. And I would much rather they chop that than some of the old-growth they talk about chopping.

Swing over to the Outer Image website to see the full gallery. Next up, Thredbo Super Enduro. See you there!!!

Posted by Richard in Bikes, Events
17
Dec
2019
Cannonball ’19

Cannonball ’19

Another year almost over and once again rounding out the events for us over at Outer Image was the huge Cannonball MTB Festival held at Thredbo each year. I think this is the 3rd year that we have now shot Cannonball for Thredbo MTB and Red Bull Australia. Each year we see the event just keep growing. This year there were around 1000 riders competing in the 5 events over the 4 days, All Mountain, the Flow, Pumptrack Challenge, Whip Wars and the Australian Open Downhill

BTS

For us, this is a big event. It’s not just the 5 days shooting trackside where everyone sees us but it is also the hours of work that goes on behind the scenes in order to get the images out each day to the competitors. We routinely went to bed no earlier than 1am each day (if we were lucky) and arose at 6.30am ready for a quick breakfast and to head back out on the track to do it all again. It’s a long weekend but it’s so much fun.

Below are a few of my favourite images from my weekend rolling in the dust. You can find the full gallery over on the Outer Image website

  • Osprey All Mountain Assault
  • Osprey All Mountain Assault
  • Osprey All Mountain Assault
  • Osprey All Mountain Assault
  • Osprey All Mountain Assault
  • Thredbo Cannonball, Osprey All Mountain Assault 2019
  • SRAM Downhill Australian Open
  • The King and Queen of Cannonball, 2019
  • SRAM Downhill Australian Open
  • SRAM Downhill Australian Open
  • SRAM Downhill Australian Open
  • Maxxis Flow Motion
  • Thredbo Cannonball, Maxxis Flow Motion, 2019
  • Maxxis Flow Motion
  • Night riding,Rockshox Pump Track Challenge
  • Finals, Rockshox Pump Track Challenge, 2019
  • Downhill seeding
  • Whip Wars briefing
  • Let’s do thisDiety Whip Wars, 2019
  • Thredbo Cannonball, Diety Whip Wars, 2019
  • Thredbo Cannonball, Diety Whip Wars, 2019
  • Thredbo Cannonball, Diety Whip Wars, 2019
Posted by Richard in Bikes, Events, What's going on
05
Mar
2019
Super Enduro 2019

Super Enduro 2019

I always enjoy a trip to the mountains. I can’t really say what it is that appeals to me so much but I always feel much more relaxed after a trip to the mountains. Yes there are those of you who may say Australia doesn’t have real mountains but its what we have and they are still very special. There’s a lot of terrain down there that will make you feel really small.

I am up and down these next few weeks as we have a few races on shooting for both Thredbo MTB and Rocky Trail Entertainment with Outer Image Collective. I spent a weekend down there shooting the Super Enduro. Not as big as Cannonball at this stage but it is growing quickly each year. Riders get 2 days on the tracks. 1 day for practice and then the Sunday for racing. They have to hit 3 tracks and get the cumulative best time on all 3. They can do as many laps as possible but only their best will count. It makes for a busy day shooting when you have nearly 500 riders going past with 20-second intervals. It’s good to stay busy though.

  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Thredbo Super Enduro 2019
  • Mike Ross, Thredbo Super Enduro, 2019
Posted by Richard in Bikes, Events, Sports
08
Jun
2018
Scott Graham: Mountain Biker

Scott Graham: Mountain Biker

I was at the new Trailshare MTB trails on the weekend to shoot some product and some portfolio shots with Scott Graham. Scott is currently leading the competition in State Downhill series and needed a few shots to pump up his portfolio for his sponsors. We thought we should also tie in a product shoot for Tyres and Soles shooting the new AMS bike strap, a silicon strap designed to hold your tyre repair kit and spare tube on your bike.


  • Front on angle of the new drop

  • Testing the new drop on the Black run

  • Steep rocky section on the black run

  • Despite the drizzle there was still a bit of dust around

  • Through the beautiful greenery of the Trailshare MTB tracks

  • Putting the pace on through the ferns

  • Putting the pace on
  • Mountain biker Scott Graham at Trailshare MTB trails on the New South Wales Central Coast

  • Scooting down the Goat track

  • Leaning into it at Trailshare MTB trails on the New South Wales Central Coast

Trailshare and its cabins

We also had an exclusive tour around the new bike park on the NSW Central Coast called Trailshare. Chief trail-builder Josh Paul Smith pointed out a few of the features on the black trail for us to session. It’s still a work in progress though it already boasts 27kms of trails of varying degrees of difficulty. We spent the day on the Black run but I am looking forward to seeing the Red trail, very picturesque from all I hear. to top it off it has its own set of cabins tucked away in the bush. The trails start right at the doorstep making it the perfect little weekend getaway for riding.

It’s a great area and I look forward to getting back up there soon and checking out some of the other trails.

  • Scott on one of Trailshare's raised sections of trail
    Scott on one of Trailshare’s raised sections of trail
  • Trailshare's chief trail builder Josh Paul Smith testing his berms
    Trailshare’s chief trail builder Josh Paul Smith testing his berms
  • Through some of Trailshare's lush landscape
    Through some of Trailshare’s lush landscape
  • The trailshare experience is all about time with friends
    The trailshare experience is all about time with friends

If you need some images for a portfolio or some new images to upgrade your profile send me a message and let’s see what we can make happen.

Posted by Richard in Bikes, Portraits, Sports, 0 comments