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… 😉

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 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 …

Two amazing days in beautiful Slovenia

July 17, 2016

Gorgeous Slovenia Some things just don’t make sense on paper. But when you actually do them, they seem right. Last weekend, my family and I jumped in the car to head down to Slovenia to meet up with some good friends that we hadn’t seen in a while. It’s usually a 3.5h drive from Munich but summer traffic added a few traffic jams and hours. But boy….it was so worth it. To make it short: we love Slovenia. Lake Bled Our short adventure started in Bled. It’s a small town nestled between gorgeous mountains and a lake. It couldn’t be …

Scandinavian Summer Days

May 26, 2016

There is something magical about summers up North. Sunrise is bright and early (no pun intended) and the evenings never seem to end. Earlier this week, I had to head up to Copenhagen and Oslo for business meetings. It was a pretty intense and rushed affair. But summers being summers in Scandinavia, days are longer than anywhere else and you get to enjoy life in the sunshine after you are done with your chores. Likewise, days start early: the sun rises shortly after 4am in Oslo right now. Endless days The first evening, my team and I went on a …

Cycling on Mallorca

May 22, 2016

The Spanish island of Mallorca is well known not just for its famous beaches and holiday resorts but also for its exceptional cycling terrain. There is an endless network of smooth & well maintained roads that spans almost the entire island. Combine that infrastructure with beautiful views and respectful drivers and you have something that could be considered a cyclist’s paradise. It’s actually almost crazy to see just how professional the island is about its cycling community: Bike shops and rental places are abound. Most cafes & restaurants have bike stands for road bikes, routes are well marked, etc.. Well, just …

Running in San Francisco

April 10, 2016

A business trip brought me back to San Francisco last week. This is always an opportunity to experience some wonderful runs. The city itself is an ideal stomping ground for runners. Stunning scenery, challenging terrain and decent temperatures all year round make the city so unique. The Presidio especially offers a number of amazing trails with sweeping views over the Pacific Ocean and Golden Gate Bridge. Together with some of my good colleagues and customers, we logged almost 50 miles during that week. The Fuji X70 on the run Running in San Francisco calls for a camera. Instead of my GoPro, …

A few hours in London

March 22, 2016

London is quite an amazing city. I happen to go there a lot for business but hardly ever have the opportunity to roam around except for the early mornings when I go out for a run. Last weekend was different: I decided to fly in a few hours earlier than required to explore the city together with my friend and colleague Aaron. We rented two Santander Cycles to cover more ground and to avoid boring tube rides. Hard to believe but the bikes are only GBP 2 for 24 hrs. The process of renting them, dropping them off and getting a …

Tiger & Turtle – A morning run with the Fuji X70

March 18, 2016

The beauty of traveling for business is that you get to see a lot. At least I do as I am a passionate runner. I always get up really early and go running in the different places I have to travel to. Some runs are better than others. Earlier this week, I had a fantastic experience. There is a famous landmark in Germany close to Duesseldorf called “Tiger & Turtle”. Tiger & Turtle Strange name, huh? What is it then? Well, Tiger & Turtle is a rollercoaster that is situated on the top of a hill. It’s not your ordinary …

A day in Penang

March 8, 2016

Hidden Beauty – Penang Penang is a state & island in Malaysia right by the Strait of Malacca. Its capital George Town is characterized by a wonderful mix of old British colonial style, ethnical flair and modern construction. Walking around the narrow streets is an unrivalled experience. Malays, Chinese, Indians and others ethnical groups live peacefully right next to each other. A block of Chinese stores & homes seamlessly melts into an Indian section followed by gorgeous colonial houses. And then there are a plethora of beautiful temples from all religions. To be honest, it’s not a particularly clean city but it …

The Batu Caves

March 5, 2016

Batu Caves The Batu Caves is a series of well known limestone caves outside of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The caves and the exterior house a number of hindu shrines that are dedicated to Lord Murugan. The whole place is extremely impressive and one could easily spend many hours exploring and observing. Unfortunately, we only had an hour to spare and therefore had to rush through the Batu Caves. I highly recommend visiting this place.

Discovering Singapore

January 17, 2016

The Singapore Adventure Singapore is an amazing place for exploring and taking photos. I recently had the opportunity to spend a few days in this beautiful city. As a passionate photographer, I often suffered from visual overload. There are just too many beautiful and interesting sites. Nightime in Singapor The city certainly offers a particular charm after sunset. While many of the motives have been covered by thousands of other photographers, I really enjoyed walking around with my tripod at night. The warm air paired with the feeling of a hustling & bustling place is truly intoxicating. The first photo …

Run around Frogner Park in Oslo

October 4, 2015

Oslo is amongst the nicest cities in Europe. I am lucky that I get to go there for work frequently. One thing I particularly love about Oslo is the multitude of really awesome and beautiful runs. I usually get up very early for work and check out new parts of the city. Two weeks ago, I realized that I had missed one particularly interesting part of Oslo: Frogner Park. It’s around 1.5 miles from the city center and it contains the famous Vigeland installation. It’s basically a collection of amazingly detailed and really interesting sculptures. Rain, rain, rain When I …

Starry nights over Anterselva

February 21, 2015

Starry nights A few months ago, I started experimenting with photographing the night sky. I had done a few ill-fated attempts at capturing star trails in the past. Inspired by the David Kingham’s eBook Nightscape, I managed to get some nice results while vacationing on Malta this past summer. Unfortunately, there are not that many opportunities in central Europe to get a clear night sky. Light pollution is all around us. I was therefore extremely excited to discover that our hotel on a recent XC ski trip to Anterselva in Italy was located in one of Europe’s darkest areas. Just a quick …

Photo Essay: The Canary Islands in Winter

January 5, 2015

Canary Islands If you want to escape the European winter there is a place that offers decent temperatures and very pleasant climate throughout the season. I am speaking about the Canary Islands. This beautiful spot sits right in the Atlantic not too far from Africa. The various islands owe their existence to a series of very active volcanoes. The landscapes range from luscious greens to dark lava fields and picturesque towns. Just a few days ago, I had the opportunity to travel to some of these gems on board the new German cruise ship ‘Mein Schiff 3’. Here is a …

Christoph Papenfuss Photography