INTO THE NIGHT a retrospective portfolio by Colin Stewart
Above Salzburg early 2009. With Harald I began experimenting with making night time mountain bike images. The challenge was to capture some interesting foreground action together with background scenery. In the beginning I used one exposure, bulbed with the flash on the rear curtain. Rider: Harald Philipp
In August 2009 I met Harald at the train station in Chamonix. The plan was to try some night photography on the Brevent so we went up late afternoon and had one run in daylight to location check. After the gondola closed we chilled on top for a while then worked through the locations. This was the last spot of the evening and, for me, the best image made that night. Rider: Harald Philipp
Schliersberg shooting with Schlecker, FREERIDE magazine. Was the first night freeride shoot I had ever done. Schlecker took me to a spot in the middle of the forest, it was pitch black and he told me here is the location. Was a steep learning curve to produce enough images for the article. This was the biggest drop, when you launched you couldn’t even see the landing ramp. Rider: Christian Schleker
I had been running up Schliersberg several times before in day light then one evening I ran down just after sunset and saw this gap in the trees to the lights below. Instantly I saw a cool night shot and dragged Elizabeth out a few nights later to make it. Runner: Elisabeth Schwojer
Andi running on RoĂ&#x;stein & Buchstein, close to Tegernsee. A storm was approaching with some serious sounding electricity so we had to work fast. The sunset light bouncing off the storm clouds made the atmosphere special. Runner: Andreas Preilmaier
Samerberg is the closest bike park to Munich, just 30 mins South via autobahn. In late 2010 Max Schumann and I quietly drove the car up the access road in the evening and made some shots. This picture is an overlay of two images, one for long exposure and the second flashing Max in the air. For easy overlay be careful with the subject framing. Rider: Max Schumann
The bigger North Shore drop at Samerberg was begging for a night shot. Taken the same night as the image on the previous page. Rider: Max Schumann
Two years later we returned to make a night time MTB video for Lupine. At the end of the evening and filming it was so easy just to take the same image again as I had previously done in summer time. With the snow it looks more epic. Rider: Max Schumann
I’d been wanting to do a wall ride night shot for a while. Challenge with this one was to stay steady enough standing on a log nailed to the side of the wall. Tibor’s stories and jokes always make for a funny evening. Rider: Tibor Simai
The way light worms weave through trees is great. Samerberg, Autumn 2014. Rider: Tibor Simai
Lighting around your subject and from behind can produce a more interesting image than direct flash. Two speedlights were placed in the forest, one high right and the other low left. Taken on the Holzer Alm trail above Tegernsee. Rider: Berny Stoll
All the ingredients are in this image; summit cross, exposed ridgeline riding, mountain hut, valley lights and a famous rider. This is what night riding and shooting is all about. Taken above Seefeld, Austria, with Inntal below. Rider: Harald Philipp
From Munich it’s possible to reach many cool locations fairly fast with autobahn and this “back yard” trail is my favorite. In mid-summer we hiked up to the summit of Hochstaufen and rested on top waiting for the sun to set. After some food in the hut we started our descent at about 11pm. At that time we had the whole trail to ourselves. Rider: Andi Prielmaier
Pushing back up to the top of the bike park. Sometimes the bike lights themselves, without flash, can create a nice picture especially with snow aiding the light bounce. Rider: Max Schumann
The Isar trails in Munich are an institution and can be ridden all year round. The classic loop starts at the Zoo on the East side of the River, trails South to Gr端nwald then comes back North on the West side. This is one of the first tree root jumps ten minutes into the ride. Rider: Max Schumann
Sometimes in autumn the snow comes late to the high mountains, allowing time still for a Karwendel summit. In the sun it can still be quite warm with dry rock. Having great bike lights means we can wait and enjoy the sunset light on top before riding down to the valley. Pleisenspitz, Autumn 2013. Riders: Fabian Gleitsmann & Max Schumann
The Eisbach is a super famous river surfing spot and, probably, the most photographed urban surf location in the world. In summer time it’s elbow to elbow with tourists but in winter at night there is space to move, shoot and experiment with light. This image was made during the filming of “Winter Eisbach”, January 2013. Surfer: Maximillian Schwarzkopf
Eisbach. I shot this from the bridge. Sometimes just one speed-light is enough. Surfer: Maximillian Schwarzkopf
Nobody rides the Eisbach like Tao does. At night there are many different ways to shoot this wave and, this time, I had in mind a high contrast back-lit jump shot. I placed a single Elinchrom Quadra head on the opposite bank and pulled the trigger. Got it on the 2nd jump. Nikon D800 & Nikkor 85mm 1.4G. Surfer: Tao Schirrmacher
Night time powder shredding with Andi above Spitzingsee, Bavaria. This was one of the first night ski shots I did and, afterwards, it’s what seeded the idea to make the Eisbach shot with Tao. It’s difficult to place any kind of flash in POW so we had Berny helping that night, skiing in parallel with a Quadra head at the end of a pole. One light; keep it simple. Skier: Andreas Preilmaier
In Winter 2012 we had some of the lowest temperatures for a while, getting down to about -20째C in Munich. On the mountain it felt brutally cold. Berny, Andi and I skied up a local mountain to do some night shots but arrived an hour before sunset. There was no choice but to sit in a private hut and drink schnapps to wait for darkness and escape freezing. Stepping outside I shot this quickly before my fingers froze. Snow boarder: Berny Stoll
After work ski touring above Garmisch is a lot of fun. The skin up Hausberg to the “Drehmöser 9” hut takes an hour or so and, inside, is hot pizza, weissbier and a great atmosphere. Half way down the descent one snowy evening I placed two speedlights behind a ridge line and shot these two dudes. Skiers: Andrea Kolndorfer & Fabian Gleitsmann
Mad Dog Andi pulls out the stops every time. Sending jumps like this at night aint that easy and requires some commitment. Michi was holding a speedlight higher up on the right, I pre-set focus using a Lupine light then Andi dropped in. No second chances for this shot. I’m surprised at what can be achieved using a single speed-light at night on snow. Spitzingsee, Bavaria. Skier: Andreas Prielmaier
Kampenwand, October 2013. Bernd and Nico setup an amazing slackline over looking Chiemsee for the night film “Gravity�. Slack liner: Nico Rogner
Solln pump track, Munich. Rider: Laura Brethauer
Night time SUP at Tegernsee, Bavaria, with a single speed-light placed on a boat in the background. Gotta love back light! SUP paddler: Elisabeth Schwojer