Where were these image taken?
It was taken in Crimea, Russia. Specifically, on the dried up lake in that area.
How did you come up with the idea? Is this an idea you have been wanting to try?
I have a checklist with my ideas, they come to me spontaneously and I write them down. This way I don’t forget them. Sometimes I look at this checklist even for the commercial projects.
There seemed to be a ton of pre-shooting prep for this project. Talk about the process leading up to the shoot. Did everything go according to plan? How long did it take?
Yeah. I found the location with cracks on the ground a week before we planned to go on a photo trip with my friends. So, we bought paint, a brush, and a beige swimsuit. We planned to take this photo on the first day when we arrived at Crimea. It was supposed to take us 3 hours to drive to the location, but the road was in bad condition and it ended up taking us 4.5 hours to get there.
When we arrived at the lake we started to search for the right cracks. I mean, the ones that were not very big and not too small. But, once we finally found the right spot and began painting on the model, we were losing sunlight. Nonetheless, I didn’t care because I had Lume Cube 2.0 lights and 2 Lume Cube LED panels with me that I bring on every trip.
Let's talk lighting! It appears that you used multiple light sources to create this image. How did you use Lume Cubes and other lights to light the scene?
We used two Lume Cube panels on the ground and two Lume Cube 2.0 lights that were attached to my drone to help highlight the model from above.
You take incredible drone photos. What are the challenges of shooting drone and landscape photography?
Thank you. I would say that the main challenge with drone photography is to be creative.
Are you constantly traveling to find new places?
Yes. I travel about 4-5 times a year.
Is there a deeper meaning to this image? If so, what does this image symbolize?
Yes. This photo symbolizes that people are closely connected with our planet and how if the Earth were to “dry out”, we will too. I believe that we have to take care of our planet.
Can you share your camera and camera settings for this shot? And please tell us more about what drone you used.
I used DJI Mavic 2 Pro and the settings were ISO 200, f 2.8, 1/60.
What has been the most rewarding part of your photography experiences? What has been the most challenging?
One of my most rewarding experiences with photography was when I did a 3 hour hike in Norway, Lofote. I witnessed the most beautiful sunrise I've ever seen in my life.
My commercial photo projects are the most challenging for me because I want my clients to be seamlessly integrated into my photography. I hate straight forward style ads.
What is your post-process when it comes to editing? Do you edit your photos? Do you have a favorite way of editing them?
Yes. I edit my photos and for me editing is a huge part of my workflow. I never use one preset twice. Every edit is unique. I work with local adjustments a lot to highlight the needed parts of the photo.
Did this photo turn out to how you initially envisioned it?
Yes. Everything was as I planned, except that I wanted to take this photo with the natural sunset light. But we didn’t prepare for how long it was going to take us to get to the location.
Describe Lume Cube in 5 words or less.
Small. Powerful. Must have.
