Great pictures are not enough now, at least not if you want to survive as a photographer today. A strong image may end the end of the process, but now it seems like the beginning of a large range of expectations. Material. Reels. Clip of back and forth. YouTube.
To be honest, it really overwhelmed me first. Suddenly, it was not the goal to finish a picture – it was just one piece of a puzzle. This feeling became the initial point for my new YouTube video, where I take you behind the scenes of my Hasselblad Masters shoot in the Alps and explain why everything changed by adding a full video production.
When everything suddenly takes twice
When the Alps realized my Hasalad Masters Awards Project, I wanted to correct it. Of my $ 5,000 budget, I invested almost everyone in bringing a filmmaker and bringing another photographer on the board. My vision: A professional film that not only documented shooting, but also told a story about how I work. Something that may inspire potential customers and partners beyond final pictures.
So after six days in the mountains, we became a team of three: Daniel, a video maker, who runs his resume with DJI, and an experienced sports photographer, Mathius. I had previously worked with both, but this time I was focusing on production. And it changed everything.
Even in Solden, the first morning felt different. Generally, I would throw and set a couple of lenses in a rooksack. Instead, it was the ritual of taking off the car, checking battery, sorting food, coffee brakes, cables everywhere. By the time we were actually moving forward, we slipped two hours earlier. The ease with which I was used was replaced by the mechanics of a small production.
Two great places, very short time
The gear list alone told the story: Canon full frame, Hasselblad medium format, DJI Ronin 4DTwo Mavik droneAnd a SYRP Slider SystemWith all these devices, we climbed 3,000 meters of Glylchakogle, Gondola opened on us as a steel-blue sky with overhead.
Two sites are awaiting: Iceq Restaurant, made famous in Restaurant James Bond SpectorAnd 007 Elements Museum, a temple for Bond Mythology. Both the sites were fantastic, but also tightly regulated. The months of preparation went to secure the permission of shooting, especially for the museum, where franchise licenses guard their image carefully.
Nevertheless, once on the site, the biggest obstacle did not reach but time. We had only two hours at each place. My plan was ambitious: interior shots, light installation for nightfall, plus solid BTS coverage. Meanwhile, Daniel and Mathius had their own creative ideas to execute each. Add tourists to the mixture, and I was constantly torn between being a photographer and “actor”, making a lot of roles at a time.
Eventually, I had to make a call. When I realized that my Stills Split was suffering carefully, I stopped shooting and gave Daniel and Mathius a place to hold my sequences properly. It is better to have a strong video than averaged photos. When the last tourist left Gondola and fell on the silent mountain, it looked like a relief. We rolled our sleeping bag inside the visitor center, made tea, and washed the sunset on us. This was the first moment to calm the whole day, and it indicated a change: sometimes to let go is the only way.
Insight between drones, twilight and design
The calm did not last long. As an evening, it was time for sponsors to produce material: BTS Shots CRP motion control mechanism And Manfreet tipiWhile Daniel and Mathius adjusted the lights and camera angles, I found myself in an unusual role- technician and even actor. Setting sliders, programming motorized axes, running the same step five times in a row. It was not about making an excellent work of architecture photography at that moment; It was about creating varable, useful, repeated materials.
And surprisingly, I enjoyed it. Along with being in front of the camera, it was strange behind it, but it forced me to loose my grip on perfection. I could not chase the “perfect shot” every second. Instead, I had to think like a storyteller. That change made all the difference.
Mudhuli work for masters chain
Then the day finally gave way to the night, and with it, my chance to focus on the Haselbad Masters series again. Daniel and Mathius stepped back. Tourists had gone. The mountain was ours.
I created three images for my enlightened series that evening. Iceq Restaurant Alpine became a bright glass spaceship in the dark, presented in excellent detail to the edge of every steel and the glass surface Hasselblad X2D 100MPThe hours of the plan were condensed in a moment where everything aligned.
Our last setup was 007 Elements Museum, which we burnt with Hidden APUTURE MC Units Was kept earlier in the day. Controlled from distance through the app, he bathed the forefather in sufficient light to change the building in the fort exiting the barren mountain. Daniel flew Mavik 3 cine To expand the lights in the ridgeline. Results: A hero shot in an ex-pain format that now anchor my masters submission.
One morning painted in fire
The night was small and restless – the general discomfort of the sleeping bag on the thin alpine air, snoring, hard floor. But just before dawn, the sky burned in a fierce red color that lasted only for minutes. Every cloud seemed to be ablaze. It was one of the gifts in which the photographers had dreams about.
Thank you for the plan for which we had done a day earlier, I knew where really stand. Within a few minutes, two images were made which will later become a fine art print in my shop. This was the payment: weather, light, team, technology and a rare, alignment mentality in unforgettable moment.
Suddenly we were in the sink. Daniel filmed, Mathius shot BTS, I worked for my frame. We went as one. Even with tiredness crawling, it felt less and more gratitude like work.
What did I learn from this production
Try back, the last 24 hours were not just photographically acute – they were humanly acute. Here are some takeaairs shared with someone considering a similar project:
- Low shots, more time. Forget about bringing 20 great photos home. Pay attention to a fist, and let the story around them breathe.
- Double your schedule. Every change – gear, battery, data backup, even food – for more time than you think. Build in buffers.
- Work from a clear shot list. We were in Milanot, which contained references to Stills, BTS and sponsor materials. This saved us from repetition and confusion.
- start small. Try a day’s local production before jumping abroad for a ten -day journey. You will learn rapidly what works.
- Team chemistry defeats expensive gear. Shared energy and trust matters more than any lens or drone.
This production in the Alps showed me how quickly the dynamics change when the stils and videos are in existence and you are at the center. It makes energy, planning and compromise. But the result is a rich story, and for me, this was the first step towards the upcoming big products.
