POV: Promoting Your Skiing?

While on a cat skiing trip last season I made note that over half the 12 people in the cab had a helmet-cam and were actively shooting POV. Have you noticed the obsession these people have with their devices and the how they’re always trying to show you their footage! I have.

I have yet to succumb to the latest new fad however I do enjoy the humour and reality of editorials and footage as follows:

There’s something amazing about skiing—let’s face it, your skiing—that just makes you want to share it with the entire world. Well, our advice is… don’t. But if you must, do it properly. Which is to say as obnoxiously as possible. That’s why we’ve put together this guide on how to make the most of POV. And you know what? We actually filmed ourselves doing it so you can also watch it on YouTube.

• Never turn your camera off. Ever. Think of filming as a stream of consciousness pursuit. Post everything you film online immediately— and unfiltered (screening it first will eliminate vital immediacy). James Joyce would be proud. Mom not so much.

• The new smaller, unobtrusive cameras can barely be noticed. Make sure to look like a Telletubby by attaching yours with an extra thick, extra high stock to your helmet.

• Alternative camera angles rule! Experiment with attaching yours to bindings, boot buckles, ski tips, zippers, or any facial piercings. It’s called avant-garde.

• Always ride as closely behind your buddies as possible, so the rooster tails from their skis add a cloud—er, air—of reality to your footage. High-five for the face shot!

• Use sound to your advantage. Keep the microphone on at all times to add aural depth to the visual landscape. People never tire of hearing “sick!”, “rad!”, “dude—did ya see that?” or Darth Vader breathing.

• To ensure that your POV is the one everyone sees at the end of your rad day, smear a thick layer of peanut butter on your friend’s lens. Not only will his footage suck, but those cute little mountain jays will land on it and shit all over his helmet.

• On powder days, use lift rides to tell anyone who’ll listen how rad your last shot was. Then ask your buddies if they’ll help you make changes to your camera settings after getting off the chair. Shielding your screen with their freezing bare hands as you flick through setting options and let the powder lines get poached is what friends are for.

• Incorporate POV into a game of G.N.A.R.. Walk up to anyone who has the same camera, poke them in the eye with your finger and say, “I can’t believe you’re a GoPro pro—my POVs are so much better than yours.”

Your POV contributions will make you part of the social media community, so remind everyone you meet that they should watch your footage on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Blogspot, MySpace and Vimeo. Continuously solicit reviews whenever you see the opportunity. Yet this doesn’t mean you should waste valuable time watching anyone else’s posts. If someone asks you what you think of their latest upload/ edit, “Yeah—that was sick” should suffice.