There and Back: Photographs from the Edge

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And the best souvenir I’ve brought home is a photo that I took of friends skiing near the top of Everest. This was a shot that I don’t think anyone had ever snapped before and it represents the intersection of my life as a documentarian and also a climber. It’s a reminder of a very special expedition moment and one that I couldn’t have set up. They're full-grown, like, athletic mountaineer climbers up there saying, 'This is the hardest thing I've ever done, and I'm 38. And you're seven years old!' you know?" Chin laughed. "I told Conrad, 'That was the most meaningful climb I think I've ever done with you, after almost 20 years of expeditions together.' I feel like that was one of the best days I've ever had in the mountains." Yeah, for sure," he said. "It's like, when you grow up in it, sometimes you don't even realize it's happening. You experience it all the time and you kind of internalize it." Having lived a life on the line, Chin was asked for his best piece of advice. His reply: Commit, and then figure it out.

In fact, when I left college and moved into my car and started climbing full time, you know, they were extremely distraught. My mom would say, 'The Chinese language is 5,000 years old, and we don't even have a word for what you do.'" Jimmy Chin is one of the most widely traveled and experienced adventure photographers on Earth, and this collection is an absolute tour de force. I read this book in a single sitting and finished feeling inspired to take on the world.” —Alex Honnold I was told you had to sweep the front door of the Shaolin temple for years before the masters would even look at you,” says Chin. “You had to prove yourself.” Chin is 49 years old born on October 12, 1973, in Mankato, Minnesota, in the United States. Who Is Jimmy Chin

The Academy Award–winning director of Free Solo and National Geographic photographer presents the first collection of his iconic adventure photography, featuring some of the greatest moments of the most accomplished climbers and outdoor athletes in the world, and including more than 200 extraordinary photographs.

I often get asked, like, 'What's the greatest risk you've ever taken in your life?' And I assume people think it's on a mountain somewhere deciding to continue on," Chin said. "It's clear to me in my life that the biggest risk I ever took was deciding to commit to the dream I had." I thought of him every day in Antarctica,” Chin says. “My mind would drift to moments I shared with him from childhood on the approaches to the climb, while we climbed. Moments I hadn’t thought about in decades.” An explorer’s best friends are patience and cautious optimism. Also a trustworthy partner, a belief in oneself and the ability to assess risk accurately. I’m an optimistic person. I’m someone who likes to call out other people’s strengths. I think there are a lot of meaningful stories that come out of expeditions because they represent the positive sides of humanity. Perseverance. Overcoming challenges. Teamwork. Trust. These are the things I feel and appreciate. How does your heritage influence you? Along the way, Chin shares behind-the-scenes details about how he captured such astounding images in impossible conditions, and tells the stories of the legendary adventurers and remarkable athletes he has photographed, including Alex Honnold, the star of his Academy Award-winning documentary film Free Solo; ski mountaineer Kit DesLauriers; snowboarder Travis Rice; and mountaineers Conrad Anker and Yvon Chouinard.

Jimmy Chin Age

If I weren’t doing what I do, I would be a woodworker or a creative craftsperson of some kind. I love working with my hands and the satisfaction of having a finished product at the end of the day. Chin is a well-known American professional mountain athlete, photographer, film director, and author. He has been a professional climber and skier on The North Face Athlete team for over 20 years. He has traveled to seven continents and participated in expeditions around the world. Chin is also an artist and his work documents expeditions and climbs from the Sahara to the Himalayas. Is Jimmy Chin Married His parents, both librarians, escaped China's Cultural Revolution. They had extremely high expectations for their kids: "I started playing the violin when I was three, and I swam competitively. Life was really about academics and competing every weekend. And if I got an A-minus, honestly, it would be like, 'Why wasn't that an A?'

Jimmy Chin is one of the most widely traveled and experienced adventure photographers on Earth, and this collection isan absolute tour de force. I read this book in a single sitting and finished feeling inspired to take on the world.” —Alex Honnold Jimmy Chin is one of the most widely traveled and experienced adventure photographers on Earth, and this collection is an absolute tour de force. I read this book in a single sitting and finished feeling inspired to take on the world." --Alex HonnoldYou’ll be glued to the screen. The camera work in Free Solo will blow your mind. Pumped by Marco Beltrami’s score and your own adrenaline, you feel every spectacular moment." PETER TRAVERS, ROLLING STONE Evan Hayes is the Head of Production & Development at the Emmy award-wining production company ACE Content, where he is also a Partner. Hayes developed and produced FREE SOLO alongside co-directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. During the production of FREE SOLO, he served as President of Production at Parkes+MacDonald/Image Nation where he supervised all aspects of production, finance and creative development in both film & television. Hayes also oversaw Parkes+MacDonald's discretionary development fund as well as strategic partnerships with Image Nation Abu Dhabi, Universal Television and Studio Canal, among others. During his tenure at Parkes+MacDonald the company produced and/or financed such films as James Ponsoldt's "The Circle" starring Tom Hanks, Emma Watson, and John Boyega; Davis Guggenheim's "He Named Me Malala" for Fox Searchlight; and "Rings" for Paramount Pictures. Yet, a few weeks ago Chin and his climbing partner, Conrad Anker, welcomed a new teammate for an ascent of the Grand Teton. "Because we're in the climbing world, people obviously recognize Conrad and I. And they'd say, 'Oh, wow … You're Conrad Anker!' Or, 'You're Jimmy Chin." ' And then Marina would come up and they'd be like, 'How old is she?' And then she would steal the show! The precocious Chin, fluent in Chinese and English, started playing violin at age four. He got straight A’s through school, swam competitively, and competed in martial arts. The merits of hard work and humility were recurrent themes in the kung fu stories his father often told him. Jimmy Chin is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Extreme Sports, Adventure, Mountain Climbing, Asian Heritage, Athlete, Art, Television & Film, Commencement, Authors, Social Activism, Sports, Motivational, Outdoor Sports & Recreation and Travel.