We are excited to share our quick conversation with ViewBug member and skydiving photographer duelago.
3 tips on how to improve your photos next time you go skydiving:
1) Traditionally when people skydive they just bring a GoPro and hope they get a good shot. I like to plan my aerial photos beforehand, by doing this the subject knows what to do and when to do it. When doing portrait skydiving photography, you only have a few seconds after exiting the aircraft to nail the shot - even good looking models tend to look ugly at terminal velocity.
2) Use a wide angle and get close to the subject. The trick is almost always to be really close or far away, the middle ground is boring.
3) I use light equipment. The mirror-less cameras are perfect for me. I can place the camera on my foot or helmet. A traditional DSLR is to heavy and restricts my work.
This is a great photo - how did you capture the subject in such a way?
Usually I try out an idea with a GoPro first. If it works, I bring out my normal camera and lens. In this case I used a remote timer with a Panasonic GF1 that takes a photo every second. The camera is mounted on a piece of metal and the metal is mounted with straps on my foot. I pulled my parachute high and tried different angles. I also paiud attentions to my clothes, I thought of the colors of the shoe - I think it has a big factor on the composition.
What is your favorite thing about this photo?
I live in the ski resort Saalbach-Hinterglemm and I love both the summer and the winter. The wall ride is made for the mountain bikers to use in the summertime, but it's fun to play with in the winter too. In this shot I just wanted to show the passing of time and the joy of being outdoors.
Can you share a quick tip on how to capture a similar shot to this one?
For me November is a boring month in Europe so I tend to travel a lot. There is an amazing place for para-gliders in northern Chile in a town called Iquique. Just outside this dusty town there are huge sand dunes which become our playground once the winds pick up. There is nothing fancy about this picture, the location is just perfect!
Can you share the story behind this photo?
This picture is one in my series of skydiving portraits. I took this photo because I like this guys's beard and I wanted to show that skydiving is not only adrenaline and action, but it's also fun. To get this shot right I told the model where to line up in relation to the sun and what to do during the first ten seconds of the jump. As I mentioned before, the first seconds are the most important, the rest of the free-fall is basically useless for me as a photographer.
To get shoots like this one I trigger my camera with a switch in my mouth while the camera is mounted on a helmet, I use a super wide angle lens and get really close to the subject.
