Corey Rich Productions

National Geographic Adventure / Microsoft - Photosynth

After several months of working under the condition of secrecy, I can announce to the world a recent project - a collaboration with National Geographic ADVENTURE and Microsoft.

Behold – Photosynth, the newest bit of technology to come from Microsoft Live Labs. This software allows a user to upload a number of photographs from the same location, then view them in a reconstructed 3-dimensional space.

The National Geographic Society has teamed with Microsoft on their worldwide launch of the software. National Geographic magazine sent photographers around the globe to capture the 7 man-made wonders of the world.

For our part, National Geographic ADVENUTURE called on me to choose a landmark of the adventure world and present it in a way that it had never been seen before. This needed to be an area steeped in history and aesthetic, yet small enough that I could easily walk around it to capture the images. So, like I have so many times before, I headed to Yosemite. Located in Camp 4, the birthplace of rock climbing as we know, it sits the Midnight Lightning (V8), the world’s most famous bouldering problem.

Tommy Caldwell, one of the world’s most accomplished rock climbers, played a big part in making this project a reality. He is among a handful of people that have the ability (and patience) to climb Midnight Lightning over and over, just to be sure I was able to capture the action.

The product of this collaboration can be seen on the National Geographic ADVENTURE website. There, you can:
    • View a gallery of my still photos from the project
    • Watch a behind the scenes video produced by
       Dane Henry of Deep Roots Media
    • View the Photosynth

Hachette Book Group - New book by Dean Karnazes

One of the true rewards of my job as a photographer is crossing paths and working with fantastic people. Over the years I have had the privilege of working with and becoming friends with Dean Karnazes and his family. In 2006, I was commissioned by The North Face to join Dean on The Endurance 50 and document his quest to run a marathon in each of the 50 states in 50 consecutive days. A great part about this project was the opportunity to choose the three blocks I wished to shoot. I opted for the Midwest, Northeast and a Western block (which included Alaska, Hawaii, California and Arizona).

The travel schedule for this project was grueling, as we found ourselves in a different state every day. Simply traveling from one location to the next and documenting the efforts of Dean and the crew was taxing. I couldn’t imagine mustering the energy to run a marathon each day. Yet, Dean never skipped a beat (despite the fact that he only sleeps 4 hours each night). Along the way I learned that, not only is he an incredible athlete, but also a dedicated father and husband, an intelligent and motivated businessman and all-around extraordinary human being. I can only hope that some of those qualities rubbed off on me.

Following the success of his New York Times Best Seller, Ultramarathon Man, Dean has compiled his thoughts and lessons learned during the fall of 2006 into his new book, 50/50. Also featured in the book (as well as on the cover) are images I captured while traveling with Dean on his quest for 50.

To see more images from my time spent with Dean and his crew, please visit my website and click on ESSAYS.

Nike ACG - China

Recently, I had the pleasure of once again teaming up with Brett Lowell and Cooper Roberts from Big Up Productions. We met in Yangshuo, China to document the efforts of Axel Ballay and Mickey Fuselier, two of France's top rock climbers. Brett and Cooper captured the action on video while I provided all the still images for the campaign. The video can now be seen on the Nike AGC website. In addition to the amazing sights and sounds of China, the footage includes the first ascent of American Gangster (8c/5.14b), the hardest climbing route in China.

I had worked on assignment for Nike ACG several times in the past when their distribution included the U.S. This is my first project with them since they have transitioned to a solely European entity.

I always look forward to my next collaboration with Big Up. Not only are Josh Lowell, Brett Lowell and Cooper Roberts gifted filmmakers, they are also great friends. In fact, we just returned from our latest project together in Rocklands, South Africa. More details on this to come.