Los Angeles

A day in the canyons

By VITTI Cycling

July 16^th, 2021

We recently had the tremendous pleasure of working with and getting to know photographer Rennie Solis. Rennie is one the most honest and open people we have ever had the chance to meet. Being a ridiculously talented photographer is just the icing on the cake. Rennie has the unique ability to document people and experiences in a way that is without artifice, open and honest, much like the man himself. Rennie is able to bring a real humanness to cycling photography. He is able to convey the joy of the ride, the camaraderie between friends and the amazing landscapes of the hills of Los Angeles in his own unique style. Rennie got together with riders Michael Cedeño and Ben Foster for a day of riding and shooting some of their favorite local roads.

We recently had the opportunity to interview Rennie to talk about his life and work and his day in the canyons with Michael and Ben. We hope you enjoy it and this selection of his images as much as we have bringing it to you.

Tell us a bit about yourself.Where are you from? How long have you been shooting for? Why photography? What is it about the medium that speaks to you?

I grew up in Northern California, Yountville specifically. It was pretty rural back then and there was tourism for the wine industry but this is well before Thomas Keller’s French Laundry and the first dot com boom. We had lots of open space and of course zero technology. We learned to be pretty creative in entertaining ourselves but there was a lot of boredom which mostly turned into wreaking havoc on any land we could sneak on. I started skateboarding and playing music which introduced me to more like minded kids like myself and eventually picked up a camera. Like most stories go I started taking pictures not having any idea how to properly work a camera and began my journey by failing miserably. It was a Nikon FM handed down from my uncle and at the time I couldn’t tell you a thing about what I was holding in my hand other than it captured a photograph. Influenced by skateboarding and the magazines I was reading I began documenting our skateboarding and my friends hanging out. I started playing music as a drummer and touring in hardcore bands which in the 90’s was a great scene in the bay area. Lots of great bands and a good community supporting it. I enjoyed what I was capturing, mostly portraits of friends but images just weren’t coming out so I started going to Longs drugs buying disposal point and shoots which yielded much better results (laugh). I was really into film making and knew there was work in the film industry, I really had no idea being a photographer was a real job. I found myself at the academy of art college in the film program right out of high school and that’s where I learned how to operate a still camera properly. I fell in love, ditched the film department at the AAC and ended up studying photography at Brooks.

Do you prefer BW over color? Why?

I’ve always been drawn to color. Eggleston and Parr were books I’d obsess over in school, Capa in color was another. I loved the feeling of Robert Frank and Cartier-Bresson but I wasn’t super inspired to shoot B&W. I love the feeling and emotion but color was just how I visualized imagery in my head. B&W was required in school, so of course I shot a lot of it, starting working as a TA in the lab so I ended up spending a lot of time in there. Between required assignments and working I was always in the lab. I still have phantom smells of the chemicals which is a lovely nostalgic feeling. I think I’m going to load a roll of B&W after this.

What about shooting cycling interests you? How does it relate to your other work?

Thanks to you this was my first cycling assignment. I’ve photographed lots of running and various other sports but never cycling. My approach was just to shoot interesting imagery, not trying to focus on anything too technical but rather create imagery with emotion and energy and that’s where it relates to my other work. I just strive to capture honest moments. I guess you can categorize my work as lifestyle but it certainly has a documentary approach to it.

What were you hoping to achieve in the series?

Creating honest moments. To find something that feels a little different from what typical cycling photography looks like and has my own little stamp on it.

Do you ride? If so, what bike do you ride? How often do you get out?

I do! I haven't been riding long, I rode a lot about 15 years ago but recently got back into it about a year and a half ago. I ride a Super Six Evo and an OPEN U.P. for gravel rides. I try to get out 2-3 times per week when I’m not working.

Do you have a favorite shoot or race you shot?

To be honest, I don’t shoot action cycling and have never photographed a race. I think it’d be cool and a fun challenge. I actually started my professional career in action sports (skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding) and funny enough I never got into photographing the action. I primarily shot lifestyle, the athletes wearing the apparel and shoes for the companies I was working for. If I had to pick one memorable shoot it would be a project that took me around the world through eight countries in 30 days on one of the most creatively liberating projects. It was for Vans, we found kids in cities throughout Europe, Asia and North America and just shot them in their element.

What’s your favorite picture from the series?

I think it’d have to be Ben’s sunburnt leg. There is a lot of story in that image.

What do you do when you're not shooting pictures?

Spend as much time as I can with my wife and two children. We’re a pretty active family and travel quite a bit so they’ll travel with me on jobs and we stay pretty busy when I’m not working. I try to ride a lot, I live at the base of the Santa Monica mountains so there is great riding around here. I also surf so when the waves are good the bikes are hung up. I still play music, mostly drums and guitar. During the lockdown friends and old bandmates were recording material individually then sending each other files. Drink lots of coffee and prepare for the next project.

What is your favorite thing about the part of the country you live in?

The ocean. 100%. It was always a dream to live on the coast and I worked my butt off to get there. And it comes with a lot of perks. I live right between the Santa Monica mountains and the sea, so it's just a giant playground for surfing, cycling, hiking and more.

What was the thing you were surprised by when shooting this series?

How much I need to improve as a rider. Haha. Those guys were charging hills faster than my quickest flat ground pace. It’s fun to be around high caliber athletes and see how they operate.

Did you plan some of the images or let them unfold naturally?

Nothing was really planned out other than our start time and the route. I really wanted to let things naturally unfold telling a story through moments I saw and was able to capture. That's my approach to all of my work. Even my commercial work ends up very spontaneous.

When shooting the series how did the guys influence the choices you made behind the camera? Those purley photographic unplanned moments really stand out for me in this series. Which of those moments were you the most excited by and did you recognize it when it was happening or afterwards in the edit? … sometimes those things need a bit of space and time to see properly, did you find this true for this series, or did you know it when you hit the shutter.

My plan from the start was to capture the unplanned. We had our time and location to meet plus a route planned but that was it. The itinerary consisted of meet up, hang out, go for a ride, hang out and I would capture everything along the way and in between. Some moments you feel once you’ve captured it, I think for me I rely heavily on that feeling, and it typically yields great images. But a lot of the time I’m surprised by images that don't give me an instant feeling and I find gems when editing. For me that’s more satisfying than the feeling of knowing I got something great.

What’s your favorite camera?

I have a camera problem (laugh). I collect them. I love playing with them and there is no way you’ll be able to get me to choose one. I can say - I always keep a Contax T2 on me.

Do you prefer film over digital? If so, do you find yourself shooting film for yourself often?

I used to only shoot film for my personal work until recently. I love film, but like I said before I love playing with cameras and there is a lot of really cool technology coming at us at a crazy speed. So aside from a roll through the T2 here and there I’m primarily digital now.

Who are your photographic Icons?

I’ve always loved Bruce Davidson's work. Of course Eggleston, Bresson and Frank are a few of my faves.

Who are your cycling heroes?

Ben & Michael? Hah. I don't think I’m qualified to choose a cycling hero. I do love what the Legion team is doing. I think those guys are bringing a fresh and exciting energy to cycling.

Did you study photography formally? If so, where? What was useful about your studies and what wasn’t? It seems that structured photo education only goes so far and that you need to discover the world anew afterwards. Was it that way for you or was there a different path your work undertook? If so, can you talk about that?

Brooks and yeah it was super useful. But I agree with you and I think most people who went through a photo program will have different paths to telling you the same thing - that school can only put you so far as an artist. An artist must constantly push themselves and evolve, school will not do that for you. I did the art school thing, then worked as an assistant and eventually put my own portfolio together and started working. I think it's great that kids out there can get a nice camera for a reasonable price, watch a few YouTube tutorials and go create cool imagery. But I would never want to skip the steps I took in my path to becoming a working photographer.

What are you working on now? Any personal projects in the works that you are excited about?

I have a couple long term projects I’m slowly working on. I shoot a lot of oceanscape work, primarily on 4x5 and make large prints out of them. But the pandemic slowed down my personal work. Aside from the occasional oceanscape adventure I primarily photograph people so it was tough when things were locked down. I’ll get back into it soon but my day job is shooting commercial advertising and now that things have opened up I’ve been going non stop from one project to the next.