BEYOND F/STOP #01 - The stories found in the tracks of a dog sled
- Andreas Kokkvoll
- Mar 10
- 3 min read
It often starts with silence. A dog team in good spirits over the mountain, people who are present in the "now", hidden treasures that lie there, right in front of us. For me, that's where stories begin.
I've always been fascinated by the moments between what happens.
Not just the start. Not just the finish. But the pauses before everything is set in motion. The looks between the dogs. The atmosphere at a checkpoint in the middle of the night. The sound of paws hitting snow in the dark.
That's often where the stories lie.
Through my camera I try to capture more than just speed and action. I try to capture moods, people and moments that otherwise disappear as quickly as a team across the plateau. Sometimes it's about the dog sledding. Other times it's about the people around – the handlers, the families, volunteers and all those who make a race actually possible. Other times it's just about nature.
About the silence in the forest. About the cold that bites your cheeks. About snow that crunches under your boots as a sled disappears further and further into the night.
For me, photography is not just a picture. It is a way of understanding moments.
A way to be present. Through Beyond F/Stop I want to share some of these stories. Stories from nature, from the people I meet and from the moments behind the images. Sometimes dramatic. Other times completely silent.
But always real.
The best stories often lie in the pauses between what is happening.
It is also an attempt to get a little closer to what is actually happening out there.
Because behind every picture there is always more than what is shown in the frame. An encounter. A story. A moment that only lasts a few seconds before it is gone again. The camera gives me a reason to stop. To look a little longer. To notice details that would otherwise disappear in the rush - a dog turning its head as the team stops, a handler standing still in the dark and following the dog driver out of the checkpoint, or the light from a headlamp slowly disappearing into the trees. Many of these moments are small. Almost insignificant. But it is often in the small moments that the strongest stories are found.
Through Beyond F/Stop I want to explore just this. Not just the dogsledding and the races here in Norway, but also the people who live close to nature. The landscapes that shape us. And the moments that remind us why we are drawn back to the forest, the mountains and the silence again and again. Some stories will be about speed and adventure.
Others about peace, reflection and long winter days. Sometimes you will get to go behind the scenes during a dog race. Other times the story will start by a still water, along a river or on a path that is barely visible on the map. Common to them all is curiosity.
Curiosity about people. About nature. And about everything that happens beyond the picture .
If you also feel the same curiosity, I hope you will join us.
Because this is just the beginning.
Would you like to experience dog sledding in Norway behind the scenes?
From 2027 I will be organizing small and personal photo adventures where you can go behind the scenes during some of the world's largest dog races in Norway. Here you will experience the environment from the inside - meet the people, feel the atmosphere at the checkpoints and photograph dog teams in real Arctic surroundings. Whether you are a photographer, an adventurer or just curious about the life around sled dogs, you are welcome to contact me .
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