North of Nowhere

Martin: You’ve photographed skiing all over the world. What finally brought you to Skeena?

Mattias: Leslie Anthony (writer) and I have contributed to SNOW Magazine for nearly 20 years, producing stories from the Alps, Scandinavia, Japan and North America.

You and I had talked about visiting Skeena for years, but the timing never quite worked out. When Leslie and I developed the idea of exploring skiing around Smithers, the magazine loved it.

I was pleasantly surprised that one of my best lodge visits happened so close to home.

Martin: What stood out most about the mountains?

Mattias: How vast they are. The Skeena Mountains have so many peaks and incredibly long, uninterrupted runs. It’s perfect heli-skiing terrain because you can ski pretty much any mountain.

We also had this beautiful, low early-season light that reminded me of Swedish Lapland, where I’ve spent a lot of my career skiing and photographing.

Martin: You must have loved to shoot from the heli, the aerial shots are incredible.

Mattias: I sure did. It was great to have that option to get these special shots done.

It was almost like having a huge drone at my disposal. The perspective was incredible, especially with the Seven Sisters mountain range in the distance.

We got some pretty unique shots that day.

Martin: After photographing so many ski destinations, what made Skeena different?

Mattias: For me, the skiing is often the easiest part to photograph. You’re in the mountains, people are skiing, and naturally you come home with ski photos. Sascha Schmid made this part especially easy with laying down his turns perfectly.

But a great story needs more than that.

I love places with authentic character and interesting people. At Bear Claw Lodge, I immediately started photographing the staff, Trigger the lodge dog, the kitchen, the artwork and all the little details.

There were so many photo opportunities everywhere, and that’s when I get really inspired and do my best work.

Martin: What impressed you most about the overall experience?

Mattias: The personal service at the lodge probably impressed me most.

Some luxury lodges can feel a little sterile or overly formal. Bear Claw strikes the perfect balance between excellent service and being super laid-back.

It feels like you are visiting a friend’s cozy mountain home, but you’re in this dreamy world where friendly staff serve you amazing food all the time, even deliver your morning coffee of choice to your room, and there happen to be a few helicopters around for skiing adventures.

Mattias Fredriksson

I mean, how can you not like that?

Martin: Was there anything particularly difficult to capture?

Mattias: The vibe. That’s always difficult to capture in photographs because it’s something you feel rather than simply see.

For me, that comes down to the people and their interactions. I made an effort to photograph as many staff members as possible, and I was really happy to see SNOW Magazine include so many of those photos in the story.

Even Trigger made the cut!

Martin: Thank you, Mattias, it was such a pleasure having you with us. Let’s do it again!