The following appeared as a physical exhibition featuring large-scale prints at the Arc’teryx Backcountry Academy in Mammoth, CA, February 20-22, 2026.
In May 2025, Lucy Sackbauer, Tonje Kvivik, Julia Niles, Angela Percival, Megan Bell and I flew into British Columbia’s Waddington Range with the goal of skiing the Whitemantle Traverse. Our plan was to ski from the base of Mount Waddington (the highest peak in the Coast Range at 13,186 feet) over 50 miles down to the ocean, finishing off our trip with a jetboat pickup from Butte Inlet.
Volatile Coast Range weather had other plans for us. We caught a narrow sliver of clearing skies to fly into the range before a persistent spring storm clouded our path through the vast glacial valleys. While we didn’t make it to the ocean, what we learned from each other on the glacier was more powerful than the feeling of accomplishing a route or making a summit. We found joy as we huddled together inside a 20-foot deep crevasse while 40 mph winds swirled around our cook tent, discussing everything under the sun—from Julia’s work as a counselor and mountain guide to Tonje’s master’s program in cyber security. We puzzled our way through complex ascents, walked across massive glacial plateaus, and savored each turn we got to make, tethered together physically, but also connected by a common goal—to be strong for each other.
“While brief, this trip was so rich in experience and meaningful beyond measure,” says Ange. “We went, we tried and we got swallowed by the landscape. But it was all time well spent. Did it matter
that we didn’t get to ski to the ocean? Not to me. I will remember the wonderful conversation, laughter, learning and sleeping inside a crevasse long after I have forgotten about the conditions, the route and how we barely did any ‘actual’ skiing.”
As a team, we lifted each other out of our individual low points. We carried each other forward and celebrated each other’s successes, because success for one of us meant success for all of us.
“This showcase of photography from women behind the lens was inspired by our trip along the Whitemantle—it was a great reminder of how strong of a force women coming together can be,”
says Ange, “how our weaknesses can be bolstered by the strength of others and how story is best shared in as many forms as possible.”
This gallery features ten women from across the globe who are dedicated to capturing backcountry adventures and the in-between moments. It is intended to celebrate the diversity of women who photograph snowsports and inspire more women to pick up a camera and document magic in
the mountains.
—Lily Krass Ritter, Editor, The Ski Journal
“Michelle Parker skis the iconic Velvet Curtain in Girdwood, AK, navigating corduroy spines and snow runnels while filming for Nexus, an all-women’s ski film released in 2022. The crown jewel of this trip was unlocking this zone, which Michelle, a seasoned Alaska veteran, rode with style and power.”
Katie Lozancich has spent the past decade working in action sports, beginning her career at Teton Gravity Research before launching her own freelance photography business. Through photography, painting, and film, Katie blurs the lines between documentary and fine art to create compelling visual narratives. In 2023, Katie was recognized as a Red Bull Illume semi-finalist and has produced feature stories for Freehub Magazine, as well as campaigns for Arc’teryx, Red Bull, Pivot Cycles, Destination Queenstown and more. Katie currently works as the Photo Editor at The Ski Journal, where she combines her love of print and visual storytelling to help craft the quarterly coffee table journal. She calls western Massachusetts home, where she also teaches skiing and mountain biking, sharing her passion for the outdoors with others.
“In 2016, Tessa Treadway only had one son, Kasper. And her husband Dave was still alive. I never would have imagined that just three years later she would be completely on her own with three boys to raise. I can clearly see her strength here, but I had no idea how much she would need it in the years to come. She is the strongest person I’ve ever met.” Location: Whistler, BC.
As both an athlete and an artist, Zoya Lynch’s camera has led her on expeditions to mountain ranges across several continents. With forests, streams and peaks as her preferred subjects, her appreciation for the natural world continues to deepen through her photography practice. Zoya is a former member of the Canadian Ski Jumping Team and was an active lobbyist in the fight to include women’s ski jumping into the 2014 Olympic Games. Zoya continues to work collaboratively with women in the outdoors and she is dedicated to carving out a space within the industry to share their stories, perspectives and achievements. Zoya lives in Revelstoke, BC, with her husband Isaac and 2-year-old daughter Ruby. Together they own and operate Hemlock Hut, a backcountry hut located in the Selkirk Mountains just outside of Revelstoke.
“During the winter of 2021, Bruno Compagnet and I dodged lockdowns and border controls to hole up in the Italian Dolomites. We were rewarded with dream-like conditions and private ski hills—all it required was a daily commute of 1,000 vertical meters of ski touring. Postcard perfect turns in front of the Pale di San Martino became our norm, far from the negative noise of the outside world. This month is treasured in my mind as a highlight in the life of a skier.”
Layla Kerley spends her winters “standing in awkward places to take pictures of humans defying gravity.” Born in the UK but raised in Chamonix, France, from the age of 5, Layla is known for her huge backpack, messy ginger hair and dad jokes (the French just think she’s rude). Despite degrees in contemporary art and graphic design, she never dreamed of becoming a photographer—but it’s hard to leave Chamonix when you’ve grown up in its ski bum heyday. So today, she chases snowstorms and documents the colorful fauna of ski culture through her lens. If she’s not skiing, she’s probably riding fast horses in a far-flung corner of the earth.
Alexi Godbout, Jordy Kidner, Mike Henitiuk, Stan Rey and I set out for a week of winter camping in interior BC. We set up a canvas wall tent as our home base, sledding into zones everyday to shoot. We got completely skunked with flat light all week, and we started unraveling—the jokes became unhinged in the best way possible. Early on the last morning, the light was forecasted to show up for a few hours. At 5 a.m. we ripped over to this line and Stan Rey flew. Sometimes a sliver of light is all you need.”
Jessy Braidwood was raised in a cabin her grandparents built in Whistler, BC. Life there meant ski boots in winter, living on a boat during summer, and mountain biking in fall. Not much has changed, except now she does those things with a camera in hand. As a professional photographer, she captures quirky humans on windy peaks or rugged coastlines. Mostly, she loves her pup, Levi.
“Kyle Toohey floats through an aspen grove in Utah’s Big Cottonwood Canyon. I knew that I wanted to use the aspens in their totality to frame the skier—adding a small skier, big world effect to a traditional powder shot. Two feet of weightless Wasatch snow fell the night before and dancing through that just never gets old.”
Iz La Motte is an adventure photographer and award-winning filmmaker who splits her time between Utah’s Wasatch Range and her off-grid cabin in the woods of Vermont. She has developed her craft into one that focuses on the human story and its relation to the world. Iz believes that everyone has a story to tell, and her passion lies in working with individuals and brands to tell their own impactful stories in a way that feels true to them. Her work can be seen in print publications, throughout the film festival circuit, and in marketing campaigns across the outdoor industry.
“Robin Van Gyn crosses a bergschrund on her way up a prize line in Kluane National Park in the Canadian Yukon. Van Gyn, Jeremy Jones and Griffin Post would summit and ski it as part of a film project also dedicated to finding an old camera cached on a nearby glacier by the famed photographer Bradford Washburn.”
Leslie Hittmeier specializes in docu-style commercial photography set in the outdoors. She was born in Billings, MT, and found her love of mountain adventure while studying photojournalism at the University of Montana. Over the last decade, she has worked with both stills and motion alongside some of the world’s best adventure sports athletes. She’s documented skiers and snowboarders on consequential lines in the Tetons, powder pillows in Japan, steep couloirs in Chamonix and most notably a first descent in Alaska’s Fairweather Range. Leslie is inspired by beautiful landscapes and the people who have mastered moving through them. She is based in Montana where she lives with her partner, Ben, their daughter, Marlo, and dog, Cash.
“We had a two-week storm cycle last season in Alaska and I learned the hard way that bad light means no definition there. Without trees, the landscape can feel faceless, and the risk goes way up when you can’t define the cracks on glaciated terrain. This was one of those days. I almost went crazy waiting for the blue, and was grateful to find solace among the ice caves instead.” Rider: Tanner Crow. Location: Thompson Pass.
Lauren Powers is an interior British Columbia–based photographer whose work centers on snowboarding and mountain culture. She captures everything from self-propelled big-mountain riding around the world to heli and catskiing, as well as female-focused street sessions. Shaped by years spent in snowboard shops, ski resorts and backcountry operations, Lauren brings an insider’s perspective to her imagery. Her work has appeared in The Snowboarder’s Journal and with brands like Spark R&D and Airblaster. Through her photography, she aims to honor movement, community and life lived close to nature.
“Spencer O’Brien doesn’t pick small features. We showed up to this zone in the Whistler, BC, backcountry and there were good pillows to hit everywhere. However, Spencer noticed this stack out the back. It was bigger, steeper and clearly the most consequential feature there. Immediately, she decided that was the one.”
When secretly borrowing her dad’s analog camera as a kid, Erin Hogue had no idea where it would lead her. She started out shooting medium format film in Toronto, ON, far from big mountains. Now based in Whistler, BC, Hogue is an outdoor photographer with extensive accolades—she’s a Sony Alpha leader, an X-Games gold medalist and works with clients like National Geographic and Arc’teryx, as well as offering courses and mentorship to aspiring photographers through Hogue Education.
“Tomoki Fuse has returned to and ridden this line in the Hakuba, Japan backcountry for nearly two decades. On this day, the approach required crossing an exposed ridge in strong winds. Years of experience met the specific conditions of the moment, shaping a single, committed descent.”
Originally from Hyogo Prefecture in southern Japan, Niki Ayako now lives and works between Yoichi, Hokkaido and Hakuba, Nagano—two regions deeply connected to outdoor culture and mountain environments. After graduating from Osaka University of Arts, she worked at a design studio before gaining experience at an outdoor brand. She later established her own design studio and now works across design and photography. Her photographic practice focuses on the relationship between people and place, capturing how individuals engage with natural environments and outdoor fields through experience, movement and time.
“Joe Lax drops into a serious line on Mount Meager, BC, for Arc’teryx’s 2022 film, Shaped by Wild. Joe and his friends have pioneered numerous lines on Mount Meager and elsewhere in BC’s Coast Range over the past two decades, often leaving the trailhead before dawn and returning home well after dark when conditions align. On the last day of his 2022 season, Joe put all that experience to good use, racing incoming weather to close the season out on a high note.”
Adventure and justice are the threads that make up Angela Percival’s creative DNA. Evident in her photography is a love for wild places and a genuine concern for people. Curious, with stamina to match, she doesn’t shrink from storms or suffering—in fact, that’s what pulls her closer. She’s drawn to rugged environments and the human quest to sidle up the insurmountable and tap the joy that can be ridden there. National Geographic recognized her as one of the planet’s female adventure photographers who are pushing the limits. As the senior outdoor photographer for Arc’teryx for well over a decade, spearheading mind-bending expeditions in remote locations, Angela has been documenting Arc’teryx athletes in landscapes that dwarf them since 2009. She lives in Squamish, BC with partner, Justin, and 3-year-old, Millie.