This photograph was taken only a few minutes away from my house, at what should be one of many smallest ski hills on this planet, Hemlingbybacken. It jogs my memory that plenty of the time, you don’t must journey to the opposite aspect of the globe to shoot fascinating images. Simply use your creativeness and you may get these photographs across the nook the place you reside. The fog rolled on this November night time and I used a flash to backlight Anton Bilare when he was doing a frontside 180 over a picnic desk.
Shutter: 1/200
Aperture: f7.1
ISO: 200
Digicam: Nikon D850 on a 50mm
Whitelines: What first bought you into pictures?
Daniel Bernstål: I all the time wished to be a snowboard photographer, proper from the primary day I opened a snowboard journal. Travelling the world and snowboarding with a digital camera in my hand appeared like a dream. So once I misplaced my day job again in 2009 I made a decision to pursue that dream, and at present I can lastly name it my job. It has been a rollercoaster of ups and downs, and it certain hasn’t been simple. However I assume nothing in life that’s actually price having comes simple.
WL: You’re a kind of fortunate individuals who’s turned one thing you like into your job. Does taking pictures snowboarding ever nonetheless really feel like your interest? Or does it all the time really feel like work today?
DB: It’s a little bit of each. If I’m on a paid task it positively appears like work as a result of the shopper expects me to return house with one thing good. I put plenty of stress on myself to get probably the most distinctive images, and that’s one thing that offers me plenty of anxiousness. Then it may be exhausting to benefit from the second. However typically I do ardour tasks only for enjoyable, and that’s once I actually get to take pleasure in what I do.
Each season, Nils Arvidsson and I attempt to hyperlink up at our tiny house ski resort Järvsöbacken. On this present day, it was chilly as hell, so I wasn’t too hyped on going, ‘cos I knew I used to be gonna freeze my fingers off holding my digital camera. I nearly stayed in mattress, however as soon as I bought to the mountain I observed this loopy, uncommon phenomena, with pillars of sunshine within the sky. It solely occurs when it’s tremendous chilly and there are tiny ice particles within the air that the daylight hits. I unpacked my drone and yelled at Nils the basic 4 phrases: “mild’s good, do something!”. He made a pleasant bottom carve, I snapped the photograph and this was the consequence. I used to be very stoked that I didn’t keep in mattress on that day!
Shutter: 1/2000
Aperture: f4.0
ISO: 100
Digicam: DJI Phantom 4 Professional
That is from Riksgränsen, in northern Sweden. We had been ready for good circumstances for a few days, and always checking the climate report. The one window we had was at 3AM, however the good factor is in Riksgränsen at the moment of the 12 months it doesn’t matter what time of the day it’s—you’re to date north that it’s all the time shiny exterior. Sven Thorgren delivered this huge Japan Air and stomped the touchdown on the again of that rock. Nice recollections.
Shutter: 1/2500
Aperture: f4.0
ISO: 400
Digicam: Nikon D850 on a 70-200mm
WL: What’s it that retains you coming again to mountains, as a topic?
DB: Hmm, that’s a very good query. I assume I like the fun of being on the market. The mountains each scare me and fascinate me. And sitting on high of a mountain and watching the solar set is nearly a spiritual expertise. It sounds cliché, but it surely actually is!
WL: Who or what are your largest photographic influences?
DB: In snowboarding it was all the time Vincent Skoglund who impressed me probably the most. His fashion was distinctive, and he was one the primary to actually use flashes out within the backcountry within the 90s. I’ve all the time liked to shoot with exterior mild and he’s positively why I pursued that path. At present, I really like to look at Lorenz Holder for his strategy to taking pictures snowboarding, but in addition all motion sports activities. He appears to see every part from a unique perspective, which I actually admire.
Halldor Helgason was a rider I all the time dreamt of working with. He’s an unimaginable expertise, a legendary hellraiser, and the poster youngster for a complete era of freestyle snowboarders. In 2017, that dream got here true and I used to be lucky to journey with him and take the images for his upcoming video half. This particular spot was actually exhausting to shoot and get a very good angle at. I lastly ended up placing my fisheye lens on the digital camera and going for an angle that actually didn’t showcase the trick itself however seemed artsy. I’m glad I did, as a result of the photograph ended up on the duvet of Transworld Snowboarding journal, which was one other dream come true.
Shutter: 1/2000
Aperture: f6.3
ISO: 200
Digicam: Nikon D850 on a 16mm fisheye
From a technical viewpoint, that is most likely some of the difficult images I’ve taken. It’s shot with a GoPro on a 5 second publicity and with two Elinchrom flashes. You’ll be able to’t set off flashes with the GoPro, so I had to do this manually, and my timing needed to be good. When Sven Thorgren dropped in, I activated the GoPro with my cellphone, after which the flashes with a distant controller. It took a number of tries: both the GoPro didn’t go off, or the flashes didn’t hearth. And everytime that occurred, we needed to transfer additional down the slope to seek out recent snow. Puh! After plenty of trial and error, we lastly nailed it.
Shutter: 5sec
Aperture: f2.8
ISO: 100
Digicam: GoPro
The glacier of Folgefonna in Norway is understood for its changeable climate. It may be blue skies one minute, after which unexpectedly, the fog rolls in. That’s what occurred when this photograph was taken. Thankfully I had my largest flash with me. I turned the publicity down a couple of steps and lit the rider, Ludvig Billtoft, from behind. I’ve all the time liked to work with flashes this manner and create silhouette photographs. They’re so easy and gorgeous.
Shutter: 1/800
Aperture: f10
ISO: 320
Digicam: Nikon D850 on a 35mm
WL: If there’s one photograph you would like you had taken – by anybody, of something, from any period – which one would it not be?
DB: It could be the one in all Ingemar Backman doing the record-breaking bottom air at King Of The Hill in Riksgränsen again in 1996. That needs to be some of the iconic moments in snowboarding historical past. Simply to witness it will have been epic!
WL: They are saying the digital camera by no means lies. Do you assume that’s true?
DB: In my case I’d say it’s the opposite approach round—I all the time attempt to make issues look higher or cooler than they’re, so you might say the digital camera is all the time mendacity! Whether or not It’s utilizing a fisheye to make a leap look greater or utilizing flashes to create one thing mysterious-looking, or simply to mild a scene and make it look approach nicer. I contemplate my fashion extra inventive than documentary. I like to create a scene on the place I’m taking pictures, as an alternative of simply documenting what’s taking place.
The previous couple of years I’ve been experimenting rather a lot with lengthy shutters and freezing the motion with flashes. My thought right here was a snowboarder using down the pipe with a headlamp, then doing a trick on the finish. To be sincere, it didn’t appear like this in my head in any respect, but it surely truly turned out higher than what I had envisioned. The rider is Niklas Mattsson once more. He was imagined to be using in a straight line, however he misunderstood and rode up the partitions. Then the flash missed him and hit the pipe-wall a couple of metres again. However that was truly approach higher—it created a silhouette and made Niklas pop much more. For me, photographs like this are the top of the inventive course of—and what I thrive on as a photographer.
Shutter: 48sec
Aperture: f6.3
ISO: 200
Digicam: Nikon D850 on a 50mm
In case you learn snowboard magazines, you’ll have seen this type of photograph from Folgefonna, a resort in Norway, many instances. Nevertheless it by no means will get previous. This shot of American rider Sage Kotsenburg captured in the course of a Cab 12 Japan is from my first time going there. I keep in mind how thrilled I used to be to be taking pictures with legends like Sage. It’s one in all my finest recollections from that place
Shutter: 1/4000
Aperture: f4.5
ISO: 500
Digicam: Nikon D800E on a 70-300mm
