Big Col's

ice sculpture

2009-12-24T21:38:00.001+01:00

ice sculpture
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

In Samoens on Christmas eve, walking around and enjoying the lights and ice sculptures. Bar Aspen in the back ground which does some great beer these days and has a decent selection of malts to choose from ;-)

M3

2009-06-23T23:41:00.001+02:00

M3
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Wet weather fun.

Alpine pics

2009-05-23T22:38:00.002+02:00

alpinepics
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

My bike blogging photo activities are going to be in action over here for this season. It's a joint project with Felix in Innsbruck and myself in Munich. The site is going to evolve over the coming weeks and further development hinges on how bad the weather gets;-) Needless to say, if the weather is great we're gonna be out riding and shooting. Head over there, bookmark it, and follow us throughout the season.

Beer garden

2009-05-11T22:17:00.001+02:00

Niall on the beer garden swing
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows Niall enjoying the Beer garden almost as much as I do;-)

Risserkogel, 1826m

2009-05-10T22:16:00.001+02:00

Risserkogel, 1826m
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

View north from the top of Risserkogel today. Surprisingly little snow left now and more of the fine MTB trails are now becoming free:)

Niall climbing

2009-05-06T22:12:00.001+02:00

Niall climbing
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Down at the kletterhalle this morning with Niall. He's doing okay for a two year old;-)

Nose wheelie start

2009-05-02T14:54:00.002+02:00

Nose wheelie start
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows Fabi starting a trail way above Garmisch this morning. A lot of rain over night and wet, wet trails but it was a lot of fun anyway. Snow is disappearing fast! Broke my 66's on the descent (again!) so I hope they get repaired or replaced very soon...

Out with Rainer at Tegernsee...

2009-05-01T22:03:00.001+02:00

Took some cool pics and goofed around with some video (filmed and cut by Rainer)...

fotofoto from Rainer M. on Vimeo.

Bike magazine, Alpen guide 2009

2009-04-30T21:51:00.002+02:00

Trail surfing Chiemgau style
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Got a pic on pages 22 and 23. It shows Harald Philipp riding off a great summit in the Chiemgau region of Bavaria. Wonderful light and inversion. Awesome.

Bigger pic over here.

Balancing man

2009-04-26T22:12:00.001+02:00

Balancing man
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Niall today in the Perlacher Forest. Not bad for a two year old, huh?

Exposure

2009-04-23T21:56:00.001+02:00

Bottom right pic below, big and in color
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Fabi showing us how it's done on an airy trail above Garmisch. This aint the place to practice your nose wheelies, and it emphasizes the trust put in modern brake technology.

Neureuth

2009-04-17T23:01:00.001+02:00

Neureuth
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Took a ride up here tonight after work. Just made it to the hut in time to order a beer before they closed for the evening. It's amazing how fast I can cycle up hill at times;-) Trails back down were dry and deserted. Lovely!

The Four Horsemen

2009-04-15T21:59:00.001+02:00

The Four Horsemen
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

From clockwise, top left: Max, Johannes, Fabi, Christoph. All on the same bend and pretty much all with the same degree of lean. Sometimes portraits can be a little bit different, eh?

Scream shot

2009-04-15T01:34:00.002+02:00

Scream shot
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows Falk demonstrating exactly how not to ride the trail. Luckily this was about the flattest section on the whole ride so falling off had no consequences. Glad I was lined up at the time and caught the amusement;-)

Smoothies

2009-04-05T22:03:00.001+02:00

Smooth drinks for two
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Warm weather and out on the terrace again this year. Pic shows Niall drinking his lunch time Strawberry smoothie. Yum, yum.

Isar trails

2009-04-04T22:01:00.000+02:00

Isar trails
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows Falk riding his shiny new Rock Mountain on the Isar Trails. Lighting provide by one Nikon SB24 hand held by Sebastian behind the tree on the left. As usual, a walker walks past at exactly the wrong moment.

Guitar man

2009-03-30T08:22:00.001+02:00

Guitar man
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows Niall playing his first notes...

Lago di Garda

2009-03-22T22:41:00.002+01:00

Lago di Garda
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Nothing like a couple of big Lago trails to start the season off. Kind of kicks your ass back on the bike again. And off. We were particularly stressed with the weather: it was too hot for this time of year;-) In the pic: Max Schumann flying off onto that start of the trail.

silhouette hop

2009-03-17T22:46:00.001+01:00

silhouette hop
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pics shows Sebastian goofing around on his Heckler beside a well known river that runs through Munich.

the apprentice...

2009-03-15T21:37:00.001+01:00

the apprentice
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

A very wet afternoon in Munich. So time to head down to the cellar and clean/service the bikes and get them ready for the coming season. Niall came down for a visit too, and helped me service a wheel...

Bombenkrater

2009-03-14T21:32:00.001+01:00

Bombemkrater
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Hopefully someone, somewhere will come to their senses and save the dirt jumps getting flattened this week. Where has the freedom gone to just get out the house and ride your bike? Obviously the police state of Munich thinks it's far safer for kids these days to be inside watching TV, or, at best, just going outside for a short leisurely low-risk walk. Well, get with it guys, because life ain't worth living without a little risk, and some fun too;-)

In the pic: Max Schumann enjoying the Bombenkrater, Jan 09.

Chalet jump

2009-03-13T13:33:00.001+01:00

Chalet sequence
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Matze taking in a roof on the way down from Kotalmjoch, above Achensee. He's in the air so it must be photoshopped ;-)

Above Achensee

2009-03-09T08:02:00.001+01:00

Matze above Achensee
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

In yer face!

2009-03-07T16:41:00.001+01:00

In yer face!
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Chris indoor training at Emmering, Jan 09. With weather like it is in Munich today then staying indoors is a good plan.

Freeride Mag - out today

2009-03-04T23:16:00.003+01:00

Bozen Freeride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Here's one of the pics from the Trail Könige day down at Bozen with Max and Chris. This pic didn't make it into the article for some reason, but I like it anyway. Three flashes are used to light the riders up, two on Max and one on Chris, and the lens used was the Nikon 10.5mm fisheye.

There's also a pic of Max in the gallery on page 9, taken on the Isar Trails, Munich. Same lens as above and a little flash coming in from the side to light the bike and his face.

Whilst on the subject of flash, I found some great stuff today about remote flash and high synch speeds over on Ian Hylands blogspot - worth a read!

Convoy

2009-03-04T23:05:00.002+01:00

Convoy
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

One of my pics came 3rd in a photo competition this week organised by top UK bike photog Seb Rogers. From looking at the competition I sure was amped to make it into the top 3. The winning pic is f--king awesome, however, as for the 2nd pic, well, perhaps Seb has a secret fetish for On-One bikes and pussy cats... ;-)

Taking off with the birds

2009-02-28T10:56:00.000+01:00

Taking off with the birds
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Max riding with the Föhn in Munich. With the warm temperatures the ground turned to mush but the light was fantastic.

Freeride Magazine 01/09

2009-02-27T19:36:00.001+01:00

Trail Könige
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Had the pleasure of taking the action pics a few weeks ago for the Trail Könige article in Freeride this month. Max and Chris are in the photo and enjoying the Bozen trails.

Winter Northshore

2009-02-26T22:03:00.006+01:00

Shore
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Need balls of steel to ride this in winter time, even with spikes. Respect!

ps. This is f/2.8 on the Nikkor 70-200mm @ 95mm.

pps. Felix got a double-trucker this month in the Austrian magazine called Mountainbike Revue... congrats!!

And some video here for Sebastian from the same session ... short & sweet:)

northshore somewhere south from ha ha on Vimeo.

Tail whip in Red

2009-02-24T22:27:00.001+01:00

Tail whip in Red
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Winter time Isar trails are drained of color at the best of times so I was glad the "Max Shirt" came out again. Turned the background into B&W and selected red key to inject some warmth and color back into the scene.

Emmering

2009-02-23T21:01:00.001+01:00

Emmering, 2
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Shadow play with one strobe.

Winter Isar Trails

2009-02-22T21:47:00.003+01:00

Winter Isar Trails
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Spent a few hours down here today with Chris and Sebastian. First 30 mins was spent digging. Then we rigged some lines and Mr Speilberg did some filming whilst Chris flew. I was just the assistant rope (f)rigger but I did manage a few pics in between video shoots.

Shadows

2009-02-18T18:18:00.001+01:00

Shadows
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Sunlight and shadows on the snow covered terrace this afternoon.

Bozen

2009-02-17T21:35:00.001+01:00

Bozen
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Sure was nice to see some sunshine and ride some cool trails. In the pic: the new Max, dressed like never before:)

BMW

2009-02-14T22:24:00.001+01:00

BMW
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Bike and slide with Kev and Max. Pic shows Max flying off something at Olympiapark with the BMW HQ in background.

Silhouette

2009-02-13T22:06:00.002+01:00

Silhouette
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Spotted this fine tree and ridge line down at Olympia Park a few weeks ago. Thank God I had the Manual King along with me at the time, couldn't of done the shot otherwise.

Bike Magazine, March 09

2009-02-11T22:51:00.011+01:00

Photo-story on pages 12 to 18, words by Harald, Pics by me. I know there's nothing like blowing one's own trumpet, but I am pretty pleased about how this has turned out. Thanks to Bike Mag for the superb layout and presentation! The picture above is on the opening double page, Max Schumann and Harald Philipp riding like men posessed.

Size matters

2009-02-06T21:40:00.001+01:00

Nikon 70-200m f2.8 ED VR
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

"The only reason not to get this lens is price, size and weight..." Ken Rockwell.

I couldn't agree more :-)

Instigator down by the Isar

2009-02-05T21:55:00.000+01:00

Instigator down by the Isar
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Thursday morning ride down the Isar. Instigator frame #1 is now back up and running after an extened period this summer in intensive care. Relatively light build: cross max xl's, UST wheels and pikes. A lot of fun.

Back Flip

2009-02-04T08:12:00.001+01:00

Back Flip
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Chris working out at Emmering, Jan 09.

Season is over ...

2009-02-01T23:48:00.007+01:00

A short film about Harald Philipp made by Sebastian Doerk fotografie. Considering the 5d MkII was barely out it's box and this is his first film then I think it's an extremely good effort. Harald's riding is as insanely good, as ever, and this video succeeds in capturing some of his summit ride flow. I especially like the D300 snow shower piece near the end, and this, to me, epitomizes the value of mixing video with stills. I have a feeling there's a lot more of this to come through 2009. Let's hope so.

Salzburg night-life

2009-01-31T22:12:00.000+01:00

Night ride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Film Star

2009-01-30T00:08:00.000+01:00

Film Star
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Red carpet / Tuxedos / Bond Girls. Premier next week :-)

Olympia-air-park

2009-01-24T22:43:00.001+01:00

Olympi-air-park
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another shot from last weekend. Some of the concrete support bollards at the park have just the right angle to launch off. This one did require a little more commitment than usual due to a layer of snow on the up ramp. Got to get on the brakes quick on touch down too...

Sunrise

2009-01-22T21:27:00.001+01:00

Sunrise
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Taken on the bike to work this morning. Little bit of fresh snow, light mist, clean air and a red sun rise. Was completely over-joyed to head into the office all day :-/

Snow manual

2009-01-21T22:36:00.002+01:00

Snow manual
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Yeah, I know he's a little too far right in the frame, looks as if he's about to fall over (he didn't), and it's a bit posed. But to be honest, I was more interested in the sky and the summit cross on this one.

Herzogstand (1731m)

2009-01-18T22:26:00.003+01:00

Herzogstand
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Well, the day turned out greyer and windier than expected. More snow than expected too on the south side trail down to Walchensee, so we had to do plan B. After food and a little re-hydration in the hut we pushed up to the summit and rode the top switchbacks before sliding back down the piste. Climb up to the hut was on hard snow, could ride most of it...

Herzogstandhaus

2009-01-18T22:21:00.003+01:00

Warming up in the Herzogstandhaus
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Two happy faces. Cold and windy outside so we had some warm food and a beer. Thought I'd sort the flash gear out whilst in the warmth. Was probably the first time the waitress had ever cut colour correction gels down to size (thanks Sebastian). Pic taken at ISO 1000 and AW-balance. Be interesting to see how it stacks up to the 5D MkII :-)

Sundown at Olympiapark

2009-01-17T22:19:00.000+01:00

Sunset jumping
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Olympiaberg sure does catch the light. Pic shows Mad Max jumping over the sun.

Schafreuter, 2101m

2009-01-11T21:48:00.002+01:00

First turn on the descent
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Ski toured up this fine peak this afternoon with Markus. We left later to catch the sunset light. Plan worked since the light and visibility was f**king amazing. Began the descent at 4:15pm and had the whole mountain to ourselves. Snow wasn't that great - pretty icy lower down with a couple of stone patches interrupting the flow back to the car. Bavaria needs some more snow, man.

Isar trails road gap

2009-01-07T23:11:00.001+01:00

Isar road gap
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic taken yesterday and shows Max flying through "the road gap". Was getting on a bit by this time and ambient was falling off fast. Resorted to the 50mm at about f2, two strobes, and ISO 500 - and it still looks a bit dark.

Pedaliero #17 - The Collectors Issue

2009-01-05T15:34:00.001+01:00

Mad Max, 3
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Photo shows Max Schumann riding on Wendelstein back in October 2008. In the gallery on pages 12-13 of Pedaliero.

Also some Wilder Kaiser photos too in an article written by Harald...

Isar trails freeride

2009-01-04T23:17:00.001+01:00

Isar trails freeride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Out with Christian this afternoon for a cool Isar trails ride. Cool being the operative word. Conditions were good though; minimal snow and the frozen surface giving plenty of grip. Finished in the dark, as usual :)

Blue skies

2009-01-01T21:41:00.001+01:00

Minimalist
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Starting off the year with blue skies and powder.

Pointe du Chalune (2116m), Haute Savoie

2008-12-29T14:05:00.001+01:00

Pointe du Chalune (2116m), Haute Savoie
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows my father skinning up the last section just below the summit. Mont Blanc is in the background on the left. Superb weather.

Pointe de Chavasse (2012m)

2008-12-27T22:06:00.001+01:00

Pointe de Chavasse (2012m)
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another beautiful sunset, and an "interesting" ski off the summit ridge.

Haute Pointe

2008-12-26T22:54:00.003+01:00

Haute Pointe
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Finishing the ski tour today and catching the last of the light. Some more pics over here in the Haute Savoie gallery.

Tête de Bostan (2408m), Haute Savoie

2008-12-24T23:36:00.002+01:00

Tête de Bostan (2408m), Haute Savoie
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pic shows my father taking a breather. We decided for the late shift today, which meant we were on top mid-afternoon. Snow was a little wet in places on the skin up, however, as the temperature cooled it got better again. Had a wee Talisker on top before skiing down in great light at about 4pm. Weather and views were majestic.

-- mad max --

2008-12-21T13:37:00.001+01:00

-- mad max --
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another photo from riding the Isar trails back in November. This is one of the "easier" jumps :-) in this area with the approach ramp having been solidly re-built recently by "Lasse-shore-building-services" :-) Rider is Max Schumann.

Ski pole light stand

2008-12-16T21:21:00.001+01:00

Ski pole light stand
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

It's an old telescopic ski pole with the basket removed. I was thinking about a number of different ways of attaching the strobe, some more complicated than others. The solution was surprisingly simple, just some bungee cord from Obi. Tie a loop just the right length with a fat knot and, using a twist, the flash is held snugly. Helps if there's a lip at the top of the grip. The light weight solution, too

Feldalpenhorn (1923m)

2008-12-14T21:08:00.001+01:00

Greetje enjoying some powder
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Pretty good snow considering most of the southerly aspects were stripped badly. We found some cool powder higher up and could ski right back to the car. The whole valley is beautiful and now I'm motivated to get back and do some of the other peaks there. Photo shows Greetje on the board.

Snow slide

2008-12-11T21:38:00.001+01:00

Felix skidding to a halt
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another shot from the piste ride and photo / strobist session with Felix from 2 weeks ago. We carried up the piste for a couple of hours to the Erfurter Hütte and, as usual on my trips, the sun came out. We then spent the next 2 hours taking loads of photos and experimenting with strobes and piston bullys. Some of the photos may trickle out elsewhere soon...

Grünwald dirt jumps

2008-12-11T21:33:00.002+01:00

Max at the Grünwald dirt jumps, Munich
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Max Schumann riding. It was getting dark at this point so had to crank up the ISO so the picture aint the best of quality.

Riding the Piste

2008-11-30T21:38:00.001+01:00

Piston Bully vs Bike
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Got some funny looks today from the ski tourers. Felix and I were accused of being two mad Americans carrying bikes, just because we were speaking English I suppose. Well, we did have some mad plan to find a high south side trail that we thought would still be snow free. Guess what? It wasn't. Instead, we had a strobist session, took loads of fat pics then had a laugh skiing on a bike. Snow conditions were perfect :-)

Isar Trails Tricks

2008-11-29T22:14:00.001+01:00

Isar Trails Tricks
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Perfect trails this afternoon down by the Isar. Temperature wasn't that cold and the ground remained frozen and dry. Rode / photographed with Max & Julian down to Grünwald then back up to the zoo. As it was getting dark (which seems usual on my rides these days) we found some more sweet photo spots so we'll be back soon.

On the border

2008-11-27T22:35:00.001+01:00

On the border
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Just looking back over some photos tonight and remembering some of the epic days we had this year. It really has been a great year of biking in the mountains, and photography too. This photo shows Christoph Bayer finishing the carry up to the Meiler Hütte on the German / Austrian border. My Bullit is ready to roll. Sebastian points down to the trail. Weather was changing fast at this point so we put the armour on quick and made tracks - well, didn't really make any, just got our asses into gear. An hour or so later it was raining hard but we were most of the way down by then.

käptnFR

2008-11-25T01:13:00.001+01:00

käptnFR
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Isar Singletrail

2008-11-23T21:25:00.001+01:00

Isar Singletrail, Munich
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Out along the cold Isar trails today with a few of the Munich lads. Just a dusting of snow over frozen terrain so just perfect. We kept moving, except for a couple of photo stops, so managed to keep warm. The amount of quality riding down by the Isar never ceases to amaze me and every time I ride there I seem to do a different trail. Great place.

Light test

2008-11-21T19:25:00.001+01:00

Light test.
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Harald stands at the sweet spot while I get the strobe lighting setup. Well, Alex was holding an SB-24 on the left and I had an SB-28 on a stand off right. Incredible ambient light in the background.

BTW Harald, Bella thinks you look like a porn star in the latest set of photos ... LOL :-)

Inversion above Bad Reichenhall

2008-11-18T22:39:00.001+01:00

Inversion above Bad Reichenhall
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Taken on Sunday during a quick breather / food stop half way up the mountain. An effect of incredible light, mountains and clouds. Absolutely stunning.

Above the clouds the sun shines

2008-11-17T07:52:00.001+01:00

Above the clouds the sun shines
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Riding yesterday in Chiemgau. Another day of awesome riding and great light above an inversion.

Epic:-)

2008-11-16T23:05:00.001+01:00

Convoy
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

It was a heavy duty killer carry today. Hut wasn't even open on top for a beer:-( The views and the light quickly helped me recover. On the plus side the trail was free of walkers, we just about had a 1300m descent of perhaps one of the finest Chiemgau trails known to mankind all to ourselves. Trail convoy photo shows from left to right: Alex, Max , Harald.

Silhouette

2008-11-15T20:10:00.001+01:00

Silhouette
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Here's another photo from the amazing Chiemgau inversion ride we had a few weeks back. Sometime it's best not use remote flash.

Wilder Kaiser sun ride

2008-11-14T21:25:00.001+01:00

Wilder Kaiser sun ride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Against the light

2008-11-10T22:10:00.001+01:00

Chiemgau summit ride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Photo shows Harald riding off a Chiemgau summit. Strobes and sun in the background are just the business:-)

Chiemgau trail motion

2008-11-09T22:12:00.001+01:00

Trail motion, 1
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another amazing ride in the Chiemgau hills today. Every time I go down there with the lads (this time Harald and Alex) we seem to find an amazing trail and get blessed with perfect weather and light. Lower half of the trail was peachy, or very succulent as H.P. is saying tonight;-) Some of the switchbacks were airy exposed and no place to fuck up your nose wheely. Experimented with some panning shots, quite like the effect but have some more work to do to get them perfect.

Bike magazine 12/08, page 117

2008-11-08T12:52:00.001+01:00

Tegernsee, 5
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Something in print:-)

Photo shows Christian Schleker testing out his Specialized Pitch on a very fine Tegernsee trail.

ColinStewartPhotography.com

2008-11-06T22:56:00.002+01:00

Just testing a flash gallery tonight but I think I need to reduce the images a little more due to longer download times. So still under development...

Phatty has also been busy this evening;-)

Trail Air

2008-11-06T20:54:00.001+01:00

Trail Air
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Photo shows Max riding down in the Tegernsee area last Sunday. Just behind the tree there's a perfect wide root to launch off the lip, as he demonstrates.

It's the idea...

2008-11-02T22:18:00.005+01:00

Double manuals along the ridge
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Some people have been asking me about this photo since it appeared over on IBC. How much has the image been post-processed? What camera, lens and settings?

It's good to get some interest in my photo, so part 1 is the technically exact answer and part 2 is the real answer:-)

Part 1
=====

Well, there's no shopping on this image at all and it was taken using a Nikon D300 and Tokina 11-16mm lens.

Details: 11mm, F/5.6, 1/800sec, ISO 200. Continuous focus mode/ dynamic-area/ 51-points /3D-tracking/ Ch-6fps.

Setup: Manual mode. Initially thought 1/1000th but wanted to make sure the riders were exposed enough so dropped to 1/800th instead to let in more ambient. Blew the sky out a bit but my priority was the foreground action.

Part 2
=====

Although the above details are perhaps technically interesting, they aren't what really made the photo. For me there were three points that all came together, and from reading other photography threads/ websites/ books then I think they're rarely given the importance they deserve:

1) You have to have TALENTED riders to make good pictures. Helps a lot if they're well known, if not famous. No brainer. With talent comes the spectacular action, which, pretty much most of the time they can do on request. "Can you just jump off this?" "Can you just tilt left more when you're in the air" "Can you just rob the fecking bank?" Get the idea?

2) When you know that said talented riders are going to be on the same mountain then the next thing you got to have is IDEAS. I knew that Harald & Max would be there direct from talents-ville-arizona. I knew they loved pulling summit ridge manuals. So the idea for twin manuals was hatched on the way down in the car speaking to Max. Harald liked the idea too, which kind of helped.

3) Lastly, it's LUCK (which is great because it sounds like one of my favorite words). It's not that difficult to bring 1 & 2 together but then you have to be in the right place at the right time. It's easy to predict good late afternoon light in Chiemgau during October, however, the quality of the cloud inversion really came as a surprise.

Once I had all the above three then as soon as I saw the trail off the summit then I knew we had the spot. "Hey Guys, can you just manual along this?" I dialed in the above camera settings and a minute later they rode it and I got the shot.

The camera settings are minor details, it's the creative idea, the riders and a touch of luck that makes the photo.

Sunset trail

2008-11-02T21:19:00.001+01:00

Sunset trail
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Max Schumann riding above Tegernsee late this afternoon.

Max on the Isar shore

2008-11-01T21:07:00.002+01:00

Max on the Isar shore
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Was hoping for a sequence shot off the big drop but Max was bailing out because the approach ramp was too wet and slippery. Jesus, I thought these young lads were brave. The approach could really do with some more chicken wire on the first meter or two. These Munich northshore builders must be into cost savings or something;-) Available light is conspicuous by it's absence at that spot of the Isar, so I set the gear up on the lower ramp and fired up at the sky to get some colour.

Chiemgau flow

2008-10-29T22:21:00.001+01:00

Chiemgau flow
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Another photo from last week. Now it's cold and wet in Munich it's hard to believe we had this weather just a few days ago. Photo shows Harald riding.

Scree ride

2008-10-29T21:11:00.001+01:00

Scree ride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

5x

2008-10-29T19:51:00.001+01:00

5x sequence
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

4x

2008-10-28T21:24:00.002+01:00

4x
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Summit ride

2008-10-27T08:34:00.003+01:00

Summit ride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

"Finally I get the photos I want!"

Harald Philipp, Summit Ride.

Klettersteig Freeride

2008-10-26T22:58:00.003+01:00

Klettersteig Freeride
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

When Harald asks you to photograph his trail project in the Wilder Kaiser then you go. When he says it's a klettersteig then you leave your own bike at home, cram your pack full of photo gear and go for a hike. That's exactly what I did today and here are some photos.

Foto der Woche :-)

2008-10-25T22:03:00.001+02:00

Double manuals along the ridge
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Over at the IBC

Inversion

2008-10-24T23:22:00.002+02:00

Harald. Nose wheelie, 2
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Awesome inversion and lighting in the Chiemgau area this afternoon and early evening. Spent ... ahhemmmm ... some time taking a couple of photos on the top ridge line. Photo shows Harald Philipp enjoying the sunshine.

Camera testing

2008-10-20T22:00:00.001+02:00

Sequence 2, with flash
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Buggering about with the D300 late this afternoon, testing the dynamic focus in continuous shooting mode. Seems to work okay. For this I used flash so rode it three times. My father was on the trigger (and on the ground horizontal).

Blankensteinnadel

2008-10-19T21:37:00.001+02:00

Blankensteinnadel, 02
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Rock climbing up here today with my father. The South and West facing walls were surprisingly warm for a cliff at 1765m altitude. Photo shows an unknown climber enjoying the late afternoon sun on the classic Westkante of the Blankensteinnadel (VII).

Schloss Nymphenburg

2008-10-18T21:32:00.000+02:00

Schloss Nymphenburg
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

B&W trail riding

2008-10-17T21:35:00.001+02:00

B&W trail riding.
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

On a fine trail in the Wendelstein area.

Trail sun

2008-10-13T20:46:00.001+02:00

Trail sun
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Mad Max

2008-10-12T21:39:00.001+02:00

Mad Max, 3
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Great ride today with Max, Kev, Jörg and Martin. Photo shows Max about half way down the trail and enjoying it to the full.

On the steps @ Odeonsplatz

2008-10-11T19:39:00.001+02:00

On the steps @ Odeonsplatz
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Niall in Munich today.

Dirk Lüde above Tegernsee

2008-10-07T21:49:00.001+02:00

Dirk Lüde above Tegernsee
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Messing about with Capture NX2 fisheye correction tonight on some older photos. It seems to work quite well providing the subject is in the middle, however, the edges do soften up and any chromatic aberration becomes more apparent. DxO optics may give a better quality correction.

Pedro on the Holzer Alm trail

2008-10-05T21:17:00.003+02:00

Pedro on the Holzer Alm trail
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Quick ride at Tegernsee this morning with Portuguese Pedro. The Gmund 9am attendee list was underwhelming. I'd like to think it was due to the last day of the Fest, or maybe it was just too cold;-) The trail was - as ever - great and the morning light magnificent.

Autumn reds

2008-10-04T21:12:00.000+02:00

Autumn reds
Originally uploaded by Big.Col

Out for a walk and a camera test.