Motorcycle around Maldives

For the past few days I have been riding around Maldives on the back of a motorcycle shooting people who I pass by. I get really excited when I see complimentary colors of clothing and walls or back drops. Which surprisingly happens quite often. 

Thanks to Red Bull Maldives, Jason Paul and I came out here for a week to create some vlogs and content and meet with the local freerunners. 

Due to the relaxed nature of everyone I feel myself getting braver shooting random people I do not know. Although some people may be a bit confused I have yet to come across anyone who didn't want to be photographed. Instead, I have had people request that I take their photo! 

The colors, textures, patterns and clothing have kept me entertained. Shooting from a moving motorcycle I only get a few seconds to frame and get a shot. Angles are limited, but its amazing when it lines up.  Sometimes its just about being ready at the right place and the right time. 

I shot this young man on a boat traveling back to the main island. The sun was just going down and the light was incredible. I asked him to look up and out the window, he quietly obliged. This is very rare for me to approach strangers but I hope to do it more often. 

Even though it is common to see children and helmet less riders in Thailand it is never seen in California where I grew up. Although the site is slowly becoming normalized it catches my eye every time. We noticed small children with belts (that looked like suitcase belts) around them and their parents to keep them secure. 

This man got my attention and asked me to take a photo of him. I was happy to. He got out his calculator and typed 86 to let me know how old he was and very proud. I told him he was looking good! He was selling fruit at the market and full of energy. He kindly picked out a small banana for me to eat. 

When we climbed one of the buildings I noted a lot of solar panels. Afterward I found this sign that said it was a gift from Japan for clean energy and a token of friendship. 

Taking from Wikipedia: According to former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed, the Maldives are ranked the third most endangered nation due to flooding from climate change.[65] In March and April 2012, Nasheed stated, "If carbon emissions were to stop today, the planet would not see a difference for 60 to 70 years." "If carbon emissions continue at the rate they are climbing today, my country will be under water in seven years."

My first lens was a canon 16-35mm which is great for shooting action and freerunning because its wide and lets me be closer to the action. My second lens was a canon 70-200mm which is great for portraits and taking shots that I can not be up close to. My third lens was a 50mm, being a fixed lens with a lower fstop it allows me to shoot in lower light. I tried all three of these lenses while riding around the island. Like the three little bear, the wide was too wide, the long lens was too close and too heavy but the 50mm was just right. 

Thank you Red Bull for bringing us out and for MVPK for hanging out with us!

Last Call For Mr. Paul

As someone who has traveled around the world with Jason Paul for the past two years I can say that this scenario is not too far from the truth. Jason is usually the last one on the plane and I am always worried he's going to miss the flight. For the record, we have never missed a flight. This video shot with Red Bull Germany in the Munich Airport is an entertaining look of what it's like to be Jason Paul. 

The final jump into the plane was the first shot of this intense three day shoot. Which was good because it mean Jason was fresh and ready. It was team work building up to the jump and getting the stairs to the right spot. Once Jason made the first jump he became comfortable with it. I feel like the pressure dropped less and we could focus more on the different angles and body positions. Then again, I am not the one who has to do the jump over and over again.

Everyone on the crew, camera team and airport were amazing. They made it such a fun and enjoyable experience. They worked hard and fast as they faced challenges with the weather, timing for planes, locations, and restricted areas. It all came together. 

One of my goals was to get an image with three logos in it. Red Bull, which is located on his hat. Lufthansa, on the tail of the plane. And the M for Munich airport. All heavily supported the project and made it possible. Red Bull did all the planning and shooting, Munich airport gave us access to their location and Lufthansa even gave us time with one of their planes to shoot in.

I was excited to see Jason do more acting in this pieces. Especially in a production at this scale with bigger setups and extras.

Most of the time I am working behind and around the video-crew to get the shots I need. Figuring out how and when to crop them out, while also getting an interesting shot. I also enjoy showing the behind the scenes aspects of the project. 

YouTube celebrity, Nino Taku, had a cameo appearance in the bus during the video. He is reading Once Piece, one of Jason's favorite animes and has been a great source to recommending us more shows to watch! Samurai Champloo and Food Wars are now two of my favorites.

On top of being the main character for this video Jason also took on shooting his own vlog, photoshoots in between takes, a facebook live stream for Red Bull, as well as his own social media on Instagram, Snapchat, and so on. It was a very content packed three days. 

Jaanus Ree featured above was also a photographer on this shoot. Having to work with time restraints and lighting set ups is a challenge to balance with the shooting schedule as well as Jason's energy level.

It was fun to see what its like behind the closed doors of the airport. Places where I probably would never have to opportunity to see otherwise. The luggage shoot really does make for a great slide. 

Taping shoes for a faster slide. 

I lost count of how many Red Bulls we had on this shoot. Please enjoy Last Call for Mr. Paul:

Random Roll of Film #2

A random roll of film I just got developed. Recently shot this year in Tokyo, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt. I feel like my eye is slightly different when I shoot with film. I can't put my finger on it. 

Stuttgart, Germany May 2016 

Stuttgart, Germany 2016

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Jason Paul 

Frankfurt, Germany 216 - Jason Paul on a Eiserner Steg bridge 

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Eiserner Steg bridge, Jason Paul, always on his phone. 

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Jason Paul 

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Enis Maslic

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Stadt Für Alle - A city for All

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Enis Maslic

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Selfie 

Im pretty sure this was me trying not to draw attention to Jason up on the roof so I pretended to do a photo shoot with Enis at the bottom while we waited and took some photos of some mirror scratch art. 

Frankfurt, Germany 2016 - Jason Paul roof gap 

The draw back with cheaper cameras is they are so much slower than what I am use to. And I ran out of film. 

American Killers - Band shoot 2014

After developing a roll of film I had neglected since 2014 I was reminded of a band shoot I did in in San Francisco that year. I still had the images saved on my google drive and I downloaded them to do some reminiscing. Although its not as death defying or mind boggling as the freerunning images I shoot more often, this is where I got my start in photography. 

When I started to get serious about photography I was assisting commercial photographers and applying what I was learning to my friends. All my friends at the time were in bands and through the popularity of Myspace and my love for music I got to know more bands in the Bay Area. They would hire me to do shoots like this one to use for their social media, albums, flyers, etc. 

This is how I learned to make images quickly and to observe personalities. I would meet up with band members in a cool area of town depending on where they were located or where they wanted to travel to and spend all day walking around with them. Even though I was still living at home, in a way, I was also traveling. 

I had so much fun living in their worlds, seeing their lives from where they slept and ate to where they practiced or hung out. Sometimes we would just pick cool places we were unfamiliar with and spend the day exploring new towns together. 

I loved meeting new people and just getting to be creative with creatives. I had so much freedom to shoot what I wanted where I wanted. I think it spoiled me in a way. I never put time limits on my shoots. We just shot until we felt like we had enough images to choose from. 

Check out American Killers, music and more here. 

Day One - Team Farang In Bangkok

Farang's Jason Paul, Dom Di Tommaso, Zen Shimada, Anan Anwar missing Pasha "The Boss" Petkuns. 

I joined Team Farang for day one of their video shoot in Bangkok. The first video shoot with Zen Shimada as an official team member. We drove about an hour in Bangkok across from Impact stadium to an abandoned building. We were able to shoot all day without getting kicked out and even ran into a few other people doing their own photoshoot. 

When there is graffiti it is a good indication that the place is accessible to get to. Even if it takes a little climbing. If there is a lot of detail in the graffiti or multiple works of art, it shows that you most likely wont be bothered at this spot. 

This shot makes me thing of an invisible bridge. I've seen in an anime. 

Lovely light and some interesting remnants from past guests. I am always curious what others leave behind. 

Team Work. A lot of planning goes into shooting even if it feels spontaneous. The great part of Team Farang working together is how they understand camera angles, style and their own movement. They can trade places and shoot each other. 

We make our best efforts to get up early and shoot in morning light. Taking a break for lunch we can avoid the direct sunlight over head that isn't very flattering. Shooting when the sun starts to go back down can be tricky when you are shooting around high buildings but golden hour always has the most beautiful light before sun down. In Bangkok with the pollution it can be cut short and the sun can disappear behind some haze before it meets the horizon.

Shooting Dom Naked On Rooftops

I always find it refreshing when people are down to shoot nude photographs with me. I admire their bravery and that they trust me. It takes some one who is extremely comfortable with themselves or doesn't take themselves too seriously...  usually a bit of both.

Dom and I shot a nude photograph together a few years ago while traveling in Singapore. Finding a location to shoot that wouldn't surprise or disturb anyone was a bit of a challenge. When we arrived in Bangkok and got to the top of a 25 story abandon building we knew we would be far from anyone we could stumble into or offend. 

Farang Look Book: Outsider Collection

Team Farang's Winter Outsider Collection releases today. A few days before we shot the look book in Bangkok. In true model fashion the guys were sweating their asses off in the heat while trying to look dapper in apparel. 

We looked for simple tones in the backgrounds, but played with the rails to add more dimension. I'm usually not a fan of shooting in the mid-day sun, but for this collection and against the while walls it added nice contrast. 

Jason showing off the new Ninja Hoodie. 

Having two people in the shot helps show off more of the collection. I enjoy having something in the foreground to make the shot interesting. Having different layers adds depth to the image.

It's nice to work with people who aren't afraid of heights.  Even when it doesn't how high they are it allows me to shoot them in unique scenarios. Typically it can be challenging to get people isolated in the sky unless they are higher than you and your background. Being in the sky allows for more attention on the subject.

Its always nice to see how clothing moves in action, but also makes it challenging to see what it looks like without covering itself. A simple standing jump can show both and be an entertaining image. 

It's all in the details. I have documented these guys go over details of the clothing, coming up with rough ideas, preparing the prototypes up to meetings with factories. It's so nice to see it come to life and finally be ready to share. 

Team Farang is made up of freerunners from all over the world with a passion for traveling: Thailand, Australia, Germany, Latvia, and Japan. At some point we are all outsiders and their label encourages others to embrace it as a positive experience. 

Don't ask for permission, just ask for forgiveness. This saying comes in mind a lot when we are exploring and shooting. Usually it is just too hard to explain and get someone to understand what we are doing. Permission is rarely given, but forgiveness usually is. 

Here is Jason's Vlog about the new collection I helped him shoot. 

Tel Aviv - Totally Instagram-able

Our guide in Tel Aviv took us to a lovely viewing deck above the city and then we began to look for ways to get onto the roof. Luckily someone had left the door open and we walked right up there. Fifty stories high on a beautiful sunny day. I found it interesting that although we were breaking the same rules as individuals I wasn't as nervous about getting caught since there were more people involved. Logically I understand that the consequences are the same no matter how many people are involved. 

When shooting on roof tops we are very conscious of not breaking and entering. All doors were unlocked and accessible. Although it might have not been meant for the public we didn't break any rules getting there (depending on the country, rules will vary). As it turned out, no one saw us or no one cared and we still felt like we were in our own personal spy movie. 

Ive never had a fear of heights. I have the natural, healthy, fear though. It still makes my stomach turn when I watch some of Jason's videos like the one below. However, If I have a camera it creates a divide where I am more focused on what I am shooting than how the drop is making me feel. I don't think I could go around with these guys on ledges and just be a spectator. Photography is really essential to me being able to stomach it all. 

Looking back on these photos I am aware how I have gotten accustom to posting to instagram. I remember trying to post twice a day was such a challenge but with a few months practice it become easier and easier. Now its like second nature. When I got out and shoot I have my shots for Instagram in mind. As my instagram posting has improved, I feel like my other channels may have suffered, and maybe even my photography. Its a challenge to make a story out of this very adventurous trip but I am missed the images to go with it. Starting the Vlog with Jason in June might have contributed too. I am now shooting video and we are putting together a story through that median as well. 

My new challenge is to work on shooting the story and share it here on this vlog with you. 

Wish me luck, edi

Jerusalem - Getting permission and still asking for forgiveness

The ministry of tourism brought Jason Paul,  Amadei Weiland  and I to Jerusalem to vlog about our travels there. An ideal experience for Jason and I, to have permission to explore a location and document it. We saw some iconic locations like the Mount of Olives and the Tower of David. Most unique was being able to watch him jump across the pillars in the Cardo, remnants of a central street in the Roman Period. By building a human pyramid with the Help of Amadei and our local freerunner, Aaron Sarfaty, Jason was able to reach the top.

View fullsize

View fullsize

Climbing and shooting in public usually comes with security guards and a high level of sneakiness. With our entourage from the ministry we abandoned all caution. 

As Jason was preparing and testing the sturdiness I had double duty of shooting the video for the vlog while trying to get some still images as well. I wish I had more time to shoot the photos but the video does more justice to the actual situation. My challenge was to show the height of the columns while not getting the other camera men and spectators in the shot and the right timing of the jump. A crowd of onlookers gathered, curious as to what was going on. Suddenly a man dressed in a bright yellow vest starts shouting at Jason. We assume he is a security guard trying to chase us off. After making sense of his broken English we understand he is asking Jason to clean up all the rocks that were on the top of the pillars. 

Shortly after the police do show up and ask him to get down. We didn't realize the pillars were in site of the police station.  Jason didn't bother explaining that we had permission since we got the shots anyway and were ready to move on to the next location. 

 

Shooting an Abandoned Plane in the Arab Desert

Jason Paul, Abudi Alsagoff and I traveled outside of Dubai to Umm Al Quwain, to find an abandoned plane. It was just too tempting and the rumors too good. Could this be a plane that use to carry illegal weaponry for Viktor Bout? The man aka "The Merchant of Death" and  the main inspiration for the movie 'Lord of War'  who is currently serving time in prison? And if not, seeing a huge abandon plane falling apart in the middle of the desert sounded pretty cool. 

Originally we wanted to shoot a video with the plane but after scouting we realized it was in no condition to take the weight of the jumps and moves for a video and instead we planed for a photo shoot. We woke just before 5am to get an early start and drive to the location about an hour away. Our hopes and dreams were to get some magical shots in sunrise with this huge plane. However, once we arrive we stayed in the car till the sun rose high enough to give us light to see through the overcast weather. We didn't get any epic sunrise shots but, what we got instead was more time with less contrasting light through out the day to get what we needed. 

Being inside a huge plane that is clearly falling apart (it had been stripped of all valuable items, which probably didn't help) is such an eerie feeling. These things are suppose to carry us in the sky? I was amazed that there weren't any bugs. Where I am from this place would have been crawling with spiders and insects but, here in the desert there were just birds and lots and lots of bird poop. We got a few photos inside while we waited for the weather to clear up but I felt like I needed to keep getting fresh air. 

Being on top of a plane was such a cool feeling. Its like having fun somewhere you know you aren't suppose to, like when I was a kid and my father would let me watch 1980's Eddie Murphy comedies (Beverly Hills Cop, Coming to America) with him as long as i didn't tell or get caught by my mother. For the athletes, the plane was challenging and at times limiting. It was slippery and dusty with untrustworthy areas. Ideas that had to be ruled out due to not being safe. Still, I feel like we were able to create some amazing images with the diversity of their skill, bravery and talent to adjust to these places. 

Feeling nervous at the RedBull launch in Indonesia

Last week Red Bull Indonesia launched by throwing a kick off party in Jakarta. They flew in Red Bull athletes, wings girls, and me to shoot images. I was reminded how I still get nervous before shoots. The pressure felt high. I had one day to get images of people flying in from all over the world.

I was nervous about not having enough time to get what was needed. There is always a tight schedule and many things to do in a day. On top of it Jakarta is notorious for traffic that made getting to each location more time consuming. However, everyone was down to get up early and explore. 

Luckily, I was working with Pasha the Boss, who I have shot with many times, and Jason Choi, a sponsored skateboarder from South Korea. Its been a while since I had shot skateboarding and I have missed it! There was never a problem of us all getting along and everyone brought their positive attitude. 

Shooting in the old town Sheva and Pasha were mobbed by a group of young kids frantically wanting photos and selfies with them because they were blonde foreigners. As they posed and made their pouts and duck faces Pasha copied them and made a kissy face and sounds to go with it. The whole group erupted in laughter. Smiles and selfies are universal. 

I got to meet many new friends from all around Indonesia in the parkour and freerunning community. We talked until it got dark and had to leave for dinner. This is what I love most about traveling, meeting people for the first time from a different place and finding every reason to relate.

I got to do this when I was traveling with bands. We would make new friends in every city in one night. Now its the freerunning community that introduces me to these magnetic individuals, but the connection is the same.

Thanks to the internet and social media I know our conversations will continue until our paths cross once again. 

There is an odd sadness when I travel and am exposed to new cultures, foods and languages, I will never have enough time to experience them all. 

There are over 700 living languages in Indonesia, and I most likely will not be get to hear them all let alone understand them. I won't be able to learn all the languages and have conversations in native tongues. I can only hope to taste as many local dishes as I can. 

I am blessed to visit Jakarta for the first time and lovingly bombarded with all the other beautiful places in Indonesia I must visit with first hand accounts from people who have left their countries and moved there. I want to go there, I want to see it all. And this is why I may never call one place home. 

I am so thankful to Red Bull for giving me this opportunity and bringing these amazing people together.

- edi

GoingOTE - Chicago

These photos make the Chicago part of the tour much look warmer than it was! It got very windy the day of the jam. I like to use my photography to show the best of each scenario and what I want to remember and I happen to be a wimp when it comes to the cold. Luckily, on the second shoot day the sun came out! Enjoy the video at the end.