Since coming to America at age 9, speaking only Dutch, Hank de Vré rose to the top of his profession as one of history’s premier ski photographers. When he talks about his career that started in the early 1980s at Palisades Tahoe, his great humility only allows him to speak of others, continually thanking those who have mentored him, those whom he respects as artists and those whom he has photographed, monuments of moments frozen in time that we can enjoy forever.
His No. 1 priority is safety and not doing more than his subjects can handle with the philosophy that “no pic is worth getting hurt for.” While looking out for each other, he has filmed the biggest names in skiing all around the world; there’s a funny story with Brad Holmes in Chile, another with Shane McConkey here at Hater’s Huck BASE jump and then in Switzerland with John Tremann. Hank’s stories and experiences are endless as he talks about Scot Schmidt, Jonny Moseley, ad campaigns for United Airlines, all these jobs stemming from a reputation he built from published photos in POWDER Magazine (back when it was cool) to dropping in to shoot stills during the filming of the iconic ski movie, “Blizzard of AAHH’S.”
Ironically, Hank came to Tahoe from New Jersey and took a job as T-Bar operator at Tahoe Ski Bowl (now part of Homewood) without knowing how to ski. Local legend Tom Lippert mentored him, telling Hank to be persistent and to keep submitting his photos to publications in spite of numerous rejections.
Hank’s persistence led to success. In addition to being published in just about every ski publication on the planet, his success has been cemented in ski lore as the featured photographer for two books; Robb Gaffney’s “Squallywood” and Eric and Rob DesLauriers’ “Ski the Whole Mountain.”
Hank has become an expert skier by necessity – in order to follow the above-mentioned skiers along with many others such as Aaron McGovern, Chuck Patterson, Daron Rahlves and Jeff Engerbretson, to name a few. And then again, Hank is thankful to his wife Meg for her years of support and help in his photo business and, of course, in raising their two great boys.
He also voiced his appreciation for the support of Scott Gaffney and Matchstick Productions, for without them he wouldn’t have been flown by helicopter to remote Alaskan mountain faces to get pictures of the people he loves being around. Like all ski photographers, he earns what little pay he gets and ultimately is here for the camaraderie among skiers and the shared experiences that he feels have enriched his life so fully.
Hank says, “The lifestyle is the payoff.” The energy and stoke that he brings to skiing is palpable. He has inspired local filmmaker and legend Tom Day in many ways. He describes Hank as persistent, always looking for the shot and the light and “one of the hardest working and most passionate photographers I know.”
Years ago, Hank started a photo show for locals along with the late writer Robert Frohlich. They called it “In the Mood” and would prepare the show by taking submissions from local photographers to create a slideshow that would get people excited for the upcoming ski season.
Hank wants to see that kind of energy live on here at Tahoe and other ski towns and remain an important part of ski culture. And guess what? He would be thankful if that happens.
Thank you, Hank, for stoking us up with your great pics.
In the next edition, I’ll talk with Hank’s brother Raymond de Vré, a Tahoe coaching legend.
