Mountain Biking Photos and Videos in Colorado
A video and photography project that was several months in the making, in early summer plans were finally set (Covid restrictions made us reschedule a few times!) and I made my way out to Southwest Colorado with good friend and professional bike rider Josh Patton.
We had a tight production schedule and lots of media to capture, so we didn’t waste any time once we got into town. Our goal was to capture both still photos and tourism video content at three separate bike trail systems: Phil’s World, Boggy Draw, and Canyon of the Ancients. The concept was relatively simple but the execution is what would be tricky. We relied heavily on friends and volunteers in the local community to be our talent, and Josh would supplement as both talent and second shooter when needed.
We built our filming schedules around sunset and sunrise, for the most interesting light and to avoid the heat of midday, which would be getting into the 90s by noon. Our first day we spent doing a location scout of Canyon of the Ancients, a rocky, Moab-like trail system for hiking and biking that takes visitors past some pueblo ruins and stunning canyons. I snapped a few still photos and we rode the trails to get a better idea of the layout of the area, the direction of light, and to find opportunities for interesting compositions.
The following day was our shoot for this location. We focused mostly on video in the morning and stills in the evening to be most efficient with time, gear, and setups. The most visually interesting locations were several miles from the car, so we had to be very strategic on what equipment we brought. A DJI gimbal was very helpful for getting smooth video clips on the rough, winding trails. Here are some shots from that day.
The next location was Boggy Draw. It’s a complex system that’s expanded into new trails since I lived in this area some time ago, so in addition to the trails that I already knew I wanted to film, we added another location on an extension trail because the views of the reservoir were simply too good to pass up. With our limited schedule, we were only able to shoot the overlook during a midday break, so we carried out a strobe kit. We used the strobe to overpower the sun, using the sun as an edge light. This really made the photos pop and made it possible to get compelling outdoor images, even during the harsh light of midday.
The next morning we filmed a family on the main Boggy Draw trail, where the feel and style were a bit different than the other locations; it’s more of a forest-like setting with more beginner-friendly trail options.
Last up would be Phil’s World, one of most renowned single track bike trails in Colorado, maybe even the country. I’d rode in this area a few times before and was excited to come back. We again split our sunrise/sunset sessions to focus mostly on stills at sunset and video at sunrise. For sunset, we went to a newer section of trail that had some more technical spots, with a trail developer as our guide. His suggestions led us to a few surprising locations, so I’m glad we were able to collaborate a bit to make this a successful outing.
The next morning we started early for sunrise and went directly to the Ribcage, the most awesome single track section of the entire trail. From there we did aerials, GoPro POVs, and plenty of fast-action video clips from the ground.
Here is one of the video edits that was created from the video content we filmed over the course of the trip: