Oscar Manguy - Adventure Photographer Goes Where 'Even Sleeping is Hard'

Today’s guest, adventurer and photographer Oscar Manguy of Finland, epitomizes the philosophy of ‘fast and light’, he’s as comfortable sleeping in a hammock under a tarp as he is in a King sized bed…in fact probably more so.

He’s been running expeditions into the wilderness, from the Arctic to Baja, since he was 16 years old….and lives with his wife in in eastern Finland, 

In a Cabin on a lake, off the grid, no electricity or running water, compost toilets, their drinking water comes from springs or from the lake….

As a professional wildlife and wilderness photographer and cameraman, his Cadillac is his kayak…. 

A casual gander at Oscar’s Instagram will reveal photos of terrifyingly massive bears fighting, a transcendent moonrise over serene waters….towering glaciers, adorable penguin chicks, smiling faces, lots of smiling faces, & kayaks and mesmerizing images of figures standing before the Aurora Borealis

I  wondered, how a professional photographer can capture such perfection when working out of a skinny kayak….well, he’s fast and light….

HERE’S MY CONVERSATION WITH OSCAR MANGUY OF FINLAND FROM HIS CABIN ON A LAKE….AND, YOU MIGHT wonder how he gets a telephone or wifi signal out there? The entire country of Finland has 4G….it’s everywhere, even out in the wilderness….

Oscar, despite all the comforts of being able to do an Instagram post from a remote island in the middle of nowhere,  KNOWS how to get things done under THE MOST austere conditions….

You’ll want to take note about how he lightens the load, especially his toothpaste trick for long journeys….

Transcript

Thom Pollard: 0:00

This is tools for nomads brought to you by top drawer. As creative professionals we know the nomadic lifestyle is as much a mindset as it is a way of being. Visit top drawer shop.com or visit one of their dozen plus meticulously outfitted shops in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Berkeley, Chicago, and Tokyo. Top door shop.com. I'm Thom Pollard. Today's guest adventurer and photographer Oscar mengwi of Finland epitomizes the philosophy of fast and light. He's as comfortable sleeping in a hammock under a tarp as he is in a king sized bed. In fact, probably more so. He's been running expeditions into the wilderness from the Arctic to baja since he was 16 years old, and lives with his wife in eastern Finland. In a cabin on a lake off the grid, no electricity or running water, compost toilets. Their drinking water comes from springs or from the lake. As a professional wildlife and wilderness photographer and camera man, his Cadillac is his kayak. A casual gander at Oscars Instagram will reveal photos of terrifyingly massive bears fighting a transcendent moonrise over serene waters, towering glaciers, adorable penguin chicks, smiling faces lots of smiling faces, and kayaks and mesmerizing images of figures standing before the aurora borealis. I wondered how a professional photographer can capture such perfection when working out of a skinny kayak. Well, he did say he's fast in light. Here's my conversation with Oscar mengwi from his cabin on a lake. And you might wonder how he gets a telephone or Wi Fi signal out there to do this interview. The entire country of Finland has 4g, it's everywhere, even out in the wilderness. Oscar despite all the comforts of being able to do an Instagram post from a remote island in the middle of nowhere, knows how to get things done. Under the most austere of conditions, you'll want to take note about how he lightens the load, especially his toothpaste trick for long journeys. Here's my conversation with Oscar mengwi. You know, before we met, and I was looking at your Instagram profile, which I have up on the screen kind of through our our little video portal here. I remember being just fascinated with your lifestyle and how you were living. And at the time I was living in a cabin or be it though, right, you know, two miles or a mile and a half drive to the post office and a coffee shop and everything and and you you live in a cabin but you're a two mile what what what would you say is within a two mile radius of where you live?

Oscar Manguy: 3:23

My in laws. Yes. My in laws? Because

Thom Pollard: 3:30

your in laws, right? Yes. my in laws. Yes. My closest neighbors are my in laws, who go to go to the grocery store is maybe about 10 miles 12 miles about Hmm, I'm excited just to kind of have you tell me a little bit about your life. And if if someone had never heard your name before and knew nothing about you, and you had a couple of paragraphs to say, Hi, I'm Oscar. And let me tell you about where I live and what I do. Like, what Lay it on me.

Oscar Manguy: 4:06

I have been that running exhibitions professionally, since 2000. Seems like late 99. And then my life pretty much has been like moving and living in remote locations since my early 20s. And yes, so in some ways living here in the Caribbean that is remote feels quite comfortable, especially when you normally are always in a band or in the hammock is sleeping in the same sleeping bag for 60 days. So then this feels good. Yes, I have been probably, especially people from United States. I work for an organization nonprofit Knowles at the National Outdoor Leadership School. And then my wife also works for them. And I'd been more During this pandemic, my wife is working here in Finland at the elder Academy, which is like the guiding main guiding school for the Nordics. If for people either to climb, to go to mountaineering or to go to sea kayaking programs, and during the pandemic, I also started my own company 360 north, and then we create adventure media.

Thom Pollard: 5:25

Amazing, amazing, Oscar. So tell me a little bit about these expeditions. And what are you teaching people? Is it is it photography based purely adventure? And and where do you go and I'm, in my mind, I have an image of, of a, of a gigantic bear with the sun setting, kind of on the opposite side, the bear is slightly silhouetted so I this is I draw when I see stuff like that. So what can if I were going to go on one of your expeditions, what might I be able to expect?

Oscar Manguy: 6:01

Yes, so then I started expeditions, I when I started getting into photography, it was when I was 19 years old. And I did my first photography expedition that was about 461 days long. And we like document the full cost of Baja. So everybody that is familiar with that will be billed as youth for bears and in the Pacific side, but they we did a walk in and so then that connect connected me to do nose because we walk straight in front of their nose base. And then pretty much I got a job offer right there is like a Oscar if you're doing this, you're like great, you're gonna do I'm gonna be a great instructor Come and join us. And then I did that after a year finishing the expedition. And then I started like leading these expeditions that go between two weeks to like three months long. So then what to expect a there is a few things that you can expect on an explanation. Like you can make an explanation as easy or as hard as you want no. So then it's like Carlos Castaneda says like I think they are the amount is the same, but you're the one that decides how you want to do it. So then because everything is all perspective, now there is nothing that is easy in this world, everything is hard. There's nothing like I always tell my participants is like we are probably one of the only animals in this planet that we get a sleeping injuries just from sleeping, you like wake up and you're like oh, it can have more you know your neck so then it's like even sleeping is hard. So there's nothing that is easy. So so then when we're going through the expedition where we go with minimum things is like we need to get creative we need to innovate we need to stay positive, we need to have fun we need to learn we need to observe the weather and one of the best ways to observe what is out there is with your camera because then once you grab the camera and you're trying to document you're trying to capture the moment then there is something that opens up and then you're sharper outseam you can start seeing different colors different patterns animals moving in in some ways you become this do you become like your sense of curiosity gets sharper and then you become this person that is like an almost like a nature journalist not like out in that so something that you can expect is some excitement belong base and working hard but laughing hard in in in in being comfortable with them comfortable

Thom Pollard: 9:03

right so you in in eastern Finland on this lake where you live are is there wildlife like the photographs of the bear? And is this would you maybe see one walk by your cabin or do you need to go a distance to see that

Oscar Manguy: 9:19

there's a lot of wildlife in here like we have right in the property behind me there is about right now there's about three moves it like that you can hear them walking around, but then the animals here they have learned how to be very steel and this guy themselves very good. Like I have been almost like in a staring contest with a moose for almost like 20 minutes. Does nobody moving? Yes, like looking at each other. And you can see like the most just like slightly moving the ears trying to figure out like what exactly I'm doing. Yeah. And then because then people have been living in this place for many years, you know, like 3000 years to then moles, animals and people, they have this relationship, which in order aside, especially as a, you know, we have in our countries being four or 500 years, you know, in, in, in, in, in theory, like native people have been there for longer. But then as or colder, they we have been in pretty much on the newer side, and we have more animals. And in some ways like more while especially being united states in Alaska and Canada, and Mexico, there's a lot of wildlife, very easy to see. But here you can see them, you just need to be very sharp, you can see well brain that we have also a brown bear here. And by the road, maybe like, I want to say 300 yards away from here, about maybe a month and a half ago.

Thom Pollard: 11:04

Ask her So tell me about Finland. And what's the what is the light there? So do you have I know you're much farther north, on the globe? And so, you know, we're in the middle of August now. So I'd imagine your days are fairly long, but do they shorten considerably during fall and winter?

Oscar Manguy: 11:23

Yes, they're getting shorter and shorter. And I think maybe for if people picture Alaska, and if you see like anchorage? Ah, I'm almost at the same latitude that Denali amazing.

Thom Pollard: 11:37

So workwise now you, you have to be really resourceful to get your work done. And, and so you're in a small room now that you call the shed or something that you turn into your workspace? Is that where you do your work? Because you've you come home with hundreds if not 1000s of photographs to edit. And so you know, how does that work? Are you fully reliant on battery power and Wi Fi? And just get you know, what, what is it that you do to get work done? I just can't even imagine it.

Oscar Manguy: 12:17

Okay, well, that's what the digital era, the right now is fantastic. Now, with the digital era, you can process things so good. So, so fast. No, you need to pay attention, especially if you're making me you need to pay attention to you know, like frame rates and codecs and all these things. But then, like the process of, of making media now is so good, in comparison to just like, even 15 years ago, you know, like 15 years ago, we had this deal, like, either we were using DVDs, or mini DVDs, or even like their, their micro tapes, and, and you know, like just the drive to be ready to those times was a little bit harder there. And, or if you still have field, because I think my last film camera that I had was he even in 2004 2003 is as when everything started moving into digital, and then just to process all the roles and trying to keep all the roles safe and moist or free. And that was like a very, very, in some ways. It will take more time. But now we that computer with a phone card reader a with the cloud, in these amazing editing programs that you can have is you can work from anywhere.

Thom Pollard: 13:44

Yeah, so um, you had said that there is basically is it five g everywhere in Finland? Is it 4g 4g in certain cities have 5g? Amazing. So even when you're out in the fields, or is there signals reaching you?

Oscar Manguy: 14:04

Yes, most of the times.

Thom Pollard: 14:07

How did that happen? Did the government facilitate that?

Oscar Manguy: 14:12

If subsidize Yes, subsidize and then is there? Yeah, so the communication here is fantastic. Maybe some places you don't get fi 4g, but then you still get cell phone signal, like traditional cell phone signal. But it's very, it's just within it's more patches, most of the places is very well connected. The same thing with Sweden and Norway, so you can be in beautiful locations, and you can get your work done.

Thom Pollard: 14:46

I just it's just fascinating to me to think that because sometimes I drive, you know, 10 miles, I'd like literally three miles north of me. There's no signal, nothing. It's dead. It's this. It's you You drive through this wall of mountains and it's pretty understandable The mountains are big comparatively speaking to where the road is, but you go 20 to 25 minutes with nothing literally dead like so if you've got a flat tire in the middle of the night, you walk home, right? But so that explains a little bit how you get work done at home and in the field. But when you are in the field, I would imagine especially working out of a kayak what what things do you have to go through to protect all your equipment because you've got I see in the video behind you, you've got this beautiful camera and a massive lens. So are is half the weight of your kayak like things to you know, boxes and cases that are watertight. And

Oscar Manguy: 15:52

well, I try to go in the same way or I try to go fast and light. Well, if I'm doing a commercial production, I try to have everything in one backpack, or one backpack, we like a couple of Lance's two cameras, drone, good condensers my everything so because the idea is to move faster light. So then we can because once you start adding all these boxes, then you can go to certain just to just one, one place. And then this is hard to then I use the same principles of backpacking. I use the same thing. So it's like, you know, like, if you have like, less gear you can advance more. So then I always especially with my camera gear, you know, like the heated digital cameras now they came down to this big Yeah. And so lightweight and so good. And then this camera also is like a bound each. And you know what this kind of camera with a 20 this is like a 28 lens. And these are full camera is weatherseal it so then I can I can pretty much have it right here on my jacket right here on my chest. I put the camera right here on the chest. So then I always have it ready and I can just pull it out. And then all these cameras, especially like the Sony cameras, they have image stabilization inside. So then if you are doing just like handheld with some technique, you can get very good shot that's Yeah, that'd be for you could not get you know, before I will take my like I remember when I took my first like DSLR to but that one yeah, it was so wet that all my lenses were completely, like full of humidity, like all foggy. And I was like, okay, that's day one. And I still have 60 days, I'm not gonna take any photos, everything is Ryan.

Thom Pollard: 18:06

So when you tell me a little bit about when you pack and get ready for an expedition, you I would imagine you have to be what you already said that for camera gear you like to have everything fit in a backpack. So that takes a fair amount of creativity and trial and error. I would imagine you know how to completely overdo it or under do it. But what about the other stuff? Like what, you know, how do you what goes in your bag and asset in essence because I can't there's not that much room and in the you know, the the nose of a kayak you know, so are there things that you have to have with you? Is it whether it you know, I mean obviously, you know, I don't know what it what goes with you and what helps you do your work to on the feet in the field. So you're comfortable.

Oscar Manguy: 18:55

Yeah, so then I think it depends where I'm gonna go if you how many people I go to, but I try to keep everything quite minimalistic. I try to have depending the length of the expedition, but I like to my clothes is pretty much like one change of clothes for the entire thread. No, maybe like some like underpants and more socks. But then everything else is the same. We always laugh that when I go back home, and people ask me like, Wait, how long did you say that was your expedition? And I was like, like 50 days? And it's like, well, but in all your photos you look exactly you have the same clothes every day. It looks like it was one day long.

Thom Pollard: 19:39

Yeah, but your clothes must be trashed when you get home now,

Oscar Manguy: 19:43

I always tell people in whatever you're gonna use or whatever you're gonna bring has natural uses, then don't bring it Yeah, so then if you cannot if you have a spoon and a fork, yes, choose one. That's what you're gonna take. Yeah, so spoon being if you You know, like, it's like all these other things like people, sometimes they want to bring to the expedition, that book that they always want to read and happen that is ham Hamiltonian or like this like massive book, they think that they're gonna have the time to read. And I was like, Well, if you do not have time at home to read, you're not going to have done now. Because then people don't realize that everything takes time to or more, you know, just to boil water to go to the bathroom to set up that thing that it's that takes more time. So then people bring a lot of weight, especially in toiletries, and the already like the largest toothpaste that you can imagine.

Thom Pollard: 20:50

So, why toothpaste is overrated man, you know, you can just get by with water, right?

Oscar Manguy: 20:58

Well, we do we do pays the basic the conditions the place, but I like to MIT to dry it. So what you do is you put in like a in a tin foil, you put drops of toothpaste, for every day that you're gonna be out in there. And then you sprinkle baking soda on top of them. And then yes, either put it on the freezer or put it on top of your fridge, and then they're gonna dry and then you have these tiny little pills of toothpaste. And then you can't you're Of course, you're going to cut your two toothbrush in half, because you don't need the other half. Yeah. So then you just have like half a toothbrush. And then you have these little pills that they always leave in your pocket of your jacket and your inner jacket. You always have them there. You always have the toothpaste there. So you don't need to have another special bag that is inside your backpack that is inside another bag. No. So you you use your layers in your backpack as a one single package. And you don't you don't need all this extra stuff. Yeah. Yeah. Because then that extra weight, you can bring food instead. Because then also like, you know, sometimes like people when they go out, they just eat tuna and oatmeal. And I'm like, wait, there's so many other things to eat over there. So then it's like, let's bring more food. And then the weight on your food every day is gonna be lower. So then at some point, you know, like, depends how heavy you are on food is like maybe the first three days you guys need to slow. But then the next day you can move faster. All right?

Thom Pollard: 22:43

Yeah, you're you're the the food you eat. Yeah, by the end of the expedition, your boat is floating right on the tippity top of the water and you've got almost nothing left. It's perfect.

Oscar Manguy: 22:55

Well, I think it's important to think a little bit minimalistic. Because right now, like, if you go to any of those commercial outdoor stores, they want to sell you the little carabiner to hold the carabiner that holds into the carabiner. You know, and and a bag is specific for that carabiner. And you're like, wait, no, you only need one copy in there. That's it.

Thom Pollard: 23:18

What about in terms of of notes and reading? Or, like what are your little ways of staying inspired and creative and productive that are just kind of more for your your soul than in terms of like the technical aspects of getting your work done.

Oscar Manguy: 23:38

Okay, if I have a book that I'm reading, like a paper book, I don't have one in here. But then I know how much I'm going to read. And I cut the book. I cut the book and I send to me the other path, you know, or something. And then at the end, when you have them all the pieces that you can't you put them together to duct tape them, and then you put the title on top again, and you put on your bookshelf. Everybody's gonna ask you about that book. Like, what book is that one, and then you have a good story to tell writing. They're

Thom Pollard: 24:14

amazing. So I have a you know, it's funny. I'm so happy you told that story because I have a friend who does that on our mountain climbing trips. I used to guide with him. And I remember going to Denali with him once this is back in the 90s. And, and he and we were in the hotel room before we actually flew onto the glacier and he's ripping this paperback book into five or six pieces. I'm like, I just looked at my God, I don't even want to know and then sure as hell we'd be up at high camp and he'd reach in his backpack, pull out like a 30 page segment of his book and I was like brilliant. Brilliant. Now with with the Kindles Kindles are awesome yeah And they keep their charge forever. So and the Kindles you can make the get the tiny ones too.

Oscar Manguy: 25:07

If especially they're all ones, they're awesome. You can buy them for us one for super cheap. And you can put like, I don't even know how many books 3000 books, if so many. Yes, then it's very easy. They actually lead super well. And in minus environments. I give you heavy on your pocket, you can be like minus 20 Celsius and it's fine. It's good.

Thom Pollard: 25:32

Hey, Oscar. So do you have any cool projects coming up? Or any any commercial shoots that you're doing of note? Are you gearing up for a big expedition trip right now?

Oscar Manguy: 25:45

I have two coming up. So then next week, we're actually going back to the Arctic, and we are mapping. If there is a municipality at Nord, that they do a lot of canoeing. whitewater rafting is like a small village with like, maybe about 2000 people. And we are gonna go in work with Mikael and Alexi, which both of them are these expert can overs from this village. And we're gonna map the river system and the lake systems. So today, we had a meeting about that. So we're gonna take the drones and take like, your photos and video from kayaks, canoes, and, and graphs and and that's what is coming out for the next week. That's what we're doing. Reducing, reducing dad. And yes, this is good. It's fun. And we're going to go to this library called sacred places like there's one place that you will love. The home is called a parka soluble is amazing, is this canyon. That is almost perfectly round, but you're seeing it from the top and it's this beautiful circle art, dark water that goes maybe the walls of the canyon, or maybe I want to say like 30 to 50 a jars up so you're on the top. So then for the there's tiny people, the native people from up north, they say that that's the way that you go into the underworld. Is is fantastic, is beautiful. There is a is something special. So we're going to go into those best sceneries and it's just quite a special. Very good in and then in October, I have a expedition in Baja, where we have a sea kayaking expedition. Maybe from people that have been imbeciles, we're gonna paddle from like the midriff islands or like la Bay, in this year of Cortez, all the way down towards Moeller here close to like, going through these like volcanoes and, and good places, beautiful places.

Thom Pollard: 28:09

I love the idea of a kind of intermingling. And it sounds like you do this at home as well with with a culture that has been there. Well before us, you know, we 1000 you said where you live now, people have been living there for 3000 years and where you're going up into the Arctic. So these people can probably teach you so much of the earth. Amazing. So hammocks and a good Sony camera with a 28 millimeter lens and kayak and you're good to go.

Oscar Manguy: 28:45

Good to go. Yes, and if so then if I shave, if I if I drive to paste, then I take my 2470

Thom Pollard: 28:54

so you can take a bigger a bigger lens right so that's that's it, it's it's all a balance like you don't want the scale that tip too far in one way. You're You're amazing man. I'm so happy that I had the chance to talk to you I love seeing your Instagram and your work it's fascinating and and I always love to get a message from you and to send you messages and I love when I see that you've clicked a heart or a like on anything that I've posted. it's it's a it's a sign that I done good when Oscar gives it the thumbs up. So

Oscar Manguy: 29:34

same same here. I appreciate your time and your energy use and also your kind words and everything that you're doing to promote outdoors equality. And just like in some ways, just putting in the outdoors to people through these channels. I think is fantastic but

Thom Pollard: 29:52

you're also doing Have a blessed day and best of luck on your expedition to this room. For in the Arctic, I'm I can't wait to see the beautiful pictures and video that you bring home from that. You will be the first one to know I will argue for sure. I cannot wait. Oscar recently started his own company called 360 north where he produces visual content for online advertising. You can find him at Oscar mengwi.com. that's spelled man guy and his Instagram account at Oscar dot mengwi. Thanks for visiting tools for nomads and upclose. an insightful look into the lives and habits of passionate and creatively prolific people like Oscar mengwi tools for nomads is brought to you by top drawer. at top drawer nomadism isn't simply about being on the move. It's about loving and living life where the things we carry directly impact our productivity, our well being and even our identity. top drawer combines the quality and craftsmanship of our grandparents generation with the drive for independence, function and stylish sustainability. It all results in a collection of tools curated from around the world that help you do your best work. wherever you are. Visit top draw shop.com or visit one of their dozen plus meticulously outfitted shops in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Berkeley, Chicago, and Tokyo. top drawer shop.com Thanks for visiting. I'm Thom Pollard. I'll see you next time on tools for nomads.