Swim with tuna – your not so average adventure

September 10, 2017

The Adventure Have you ever experienced an adventure that gave you goosebumps thinking about? Once in a while, some of us are lucky and witness something truly unique. Something that will stick with you forever. Together with my family and our awesome friends from Portland, we did something that none of us had ever done before. There are only two places on this planet where you can do what we did. I am talking about swimming with tuna. Not just any kind of tuna but really big 400lb+ fish. The Malta Tuna Experience Malta is currently one of the two …

A beautiful morning at the Gozo Salt Pans

August 26, 2017

Roaming around the Mediterranean island of Gozo is a constant adventure. Despite the recent collapse of the ubiquitous Azure Window, there is still a plethora of treasures to be discovered. As a rule of thumb, unexpected beauty is always around the corner. If you travel to the town of Marsalforn in the North of the island, and head west along the coastal road you will suddenly find yourself in a surreal world of limestone waves on the left and a giant spiderweb of glistening salt pans cut into the stone on the right. It’s a stunning view especially with the …

The Lightroom Mobile RAW workflow

August 20, 2017

Lightroom Mobile Galore! Traveling light as a passionate photographer is a constant challenge. There is the nagging balance between bringing our beloved gear and keeping the overall weight of the luggage at an acceptable level. That is one of the reasons why I ditched my huge and heavy Nikon equipment and went with the versatile and lightweight Fuji X system. But regardless of the camera equipment, a key weight contributor is typically the computer. I personally really enjoy editing photos on vacations as this is the occasion where I can actually spend quality time on it. But I have always …

Adventures in Camogli

July 19, 2017

Camogli, June 2017 The problem with traveling to Italy is that you need to choose a place. There are just so many awesome and gorgeous options on the table. High on anybody’s wish list should be the region of Liguria. While it’s best known for the UNESCO world heritage site Cinque Terre, there are a lot of other jewels that one should not miss. One example is the area around the town of Camogli just outside of Genoa. Together with my family, we decided to head down that way at the beginning of June to explore the terrain before the …

A postcard from a bike ride

July 8, 2017

GoPro Summer time is biking time. Just this morning, I had the opportunity to go on a relaxing ride towards the Alps. Shortly before the mid-point, I decided to stop at a path that had caught my attention on other rides. The dark colors of the tarmac provide a nice contrast to the green meadows. The lighting conditions were ok and I developed an idea for a photo. Quick stop, GoPro Hero 5 out of the jersey pocket, three different angles and that was it.

An unexpected evening in Vienna

June 28, 2017

Photo challenge in Vienna Business does take me to Vienna quite frequently. But when I go, I usually stay right in the beautiful city centre. As luck had it, this time I ended up in a hotel right next to the famous Schönbrunn Castle which is a little bit outside of the city. Work was done earlier than expected and there was enough time to go for a walk through the gorgeous gardens. Equipped with my trusted travel companion – the Fuji X70 and a small Manfrotto Pixi tripod, I set myself the challenge to get at least three photographs …

A postcard from Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre

June 7, 2017

Cinque Terre Greetings from Riomaggiore, Italy. This is a wonderful town in the famous Cinque Terre national park in Italy. Just a quick postcard for today. A complete trip report will follow soon. The photo was taken with the Fuji X-T1, Samyang 12mm, f2 along with a Haida ND3.0 and the wonderful Singh-Ray warming polarizer. P.S.: I have been getting dirty looks from the plethora of photographers frequenting the five villages: my tiny and lightweight Fuji setup does not look pro compared to the motor enhanced Nikon D5s, Canon 1Ds etc.. Oh well… 😉

Runography Edition – Q1 2017

April 2, 2017

Runography What happens when you are a passionate photographer along with being a dedicated runner/ cyclist? Something special: an excellent opportunity to see and capture the world in a very unique way. Up until a few years ago, it was extremely cumbersome to take photos while being out and about running and biking. Cameras were just too big and heavy. The advent of action cameras such as the GoPro changed all that. It’s no longer a hassle to combine these awesome hobbies: runography. Today, you hardly ever find me on the road without my beloved GoPro Hero 5 or the …

An hour at the Auditorio de Tenerife

March 12, 2017

Auditorio de Tenerife When you approach the Spanish island city Santa Cruz de Tenerife by sea, you might think that your eyes are playing a trick on you: there is a building that resembles the iconic Sydney opera house. It’s actually not a trick but the island of Tenerife features its very own iconic auditorium. The architecture is quite spectacular, however, the location and the general upkeep of the building is a bit of a let-down. You can find the Auditorio right next to the harbor and it is often surrounded by oil-rigs, drill ships and other other large ocean …

The Azure Window is gone!

March 8, 2017

A sad day Boy, what a sad day. Earlier this afternoon the world found out that the famous Azure Window in Malta is gone. It’s gone for good. RIP. A massive storm took this amazing piece of nature down to the depths of the ocean. I have a hard time expressing how sad I am about this. The Azure Window was one of the most iconic rock formations in the entire Mediterranean. It was a view that I could not get enough of. On some days, I would head out to Dwerja multiple times to view it in different lighting and ocean conditions. The …

The DJI Mavic Pro in the Canary Islands

January 14, 2017

DJI Mavic Pro As a photographer I have always been fascinated by aerial imagery. Getting a drone was therefore a tempting idea. However, until recently most drones were just too big to be practical. The popular DJ Phantom, for example, requires a full-sized backpack or suitcase. This is just not my style. Over the past few years, I have made every possible attempt to shed weight from my equipment which is why I sold all of my beloved Nikon cameras and moved to Fuji. Personally, I want my gear to be so compact and light that I feel compelled to …

The Benagil Sea Cave Adventure

November 10, 2016

Benagil Sea Cave The Algarve Coast in Portugal is an amazing place to visit. The beaches, coves and villages are simply stunning. As an added bonus, the whole coast line is littered with sea caves. Some are easy to visit, others not. Some or boring, others are gorgeous. One of these caves stands out, though. It is breathtakingly beautiful. You have probably seen pictures of it on the internet. I am speaking about the Benagil Sea Cave. You can find it close to a beach of the same name not too far from the tourist town of Armacao de Pera. Easy …

Hiking with the Fuji X-T2

November 2, 2016

Hiking & The Fuji X-T2 Hiking with photographic equipment can be quite cumbersome. There were days when I schlepped a heavy backpack with a set of lenses and DSLR bodies around. Not only was the hiking experience akward but I also often ended up leaving the camera in the bag as it was inconvenient to take stuff in and out. Those days are long gone. Hiking with a mirrorless camera such as the Fuji X-T2 is a joy. Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to discover the gorgeous Lake Duisitzkar (Duisitzkarsee) in Styria, Austria. Together with my family, we …

The Fuji X-T2 in Hallstatt

October 30, 2016

Hallstatt Take a gorgeous lake, put some mountains around it and build a scenic town with cobble stone streets & wooden buildings right on the slopes of the hills. What you get is Hallstatt. Hallstatt is probably amongst the most desirable places to visit in Austria. Its scenery and location is unrivalled for sure. Lucky for us, Hallstatt is just a short 2.5hr drive away from Munich. Fall has been kind to us and we decided to spend a day there. This was also an excellent opportunity for me to test the new Fuji X-T2. I have had the camera for …

Night running with the GoPro Hero 5

October 20, 2016

The GoPro Hero 5 As an avid runner and biker, I really love the GoPro range of products. Earlier this year, I actually wrote that the GoPro might be one of my favorite cameras. No wonder – it’s small, almost indestructible and it delivers pretty awesome image quality. I carry the GoPro on most of my runs and rides to capture beautiful scenes. If you follow me on Instagram you will see an almost daily supply of photos taken with the GoPro. Not a big surprise that I was really happy to learn about the latest release – the GoPro …

Oktoberfest: The Pickpocket

September 24, 2016

The Oktoberfest Six years ago, I went to the Oktoberfest with my wife and one of our best friends who happens to be a photographer as well. We decided to bring our cameras and ended up taking some interesting photos throughout the evening. My favorite photo, however, was the one below: this couple in front of our table clearly had a few beers too many. It was hilarious to watch and there was no shortage of Kodak moments. All except for the one below remain hidden from the online world (I don’t think it would be fair to post anywhere). I …