In Pictures - Longboarding Together

My fourth post ever was about why it is so great to get together with people when longboaring. This here is a little follow up of pictures I found on Pinterest that really express the message I had in that post.

Each of these pictures tells a story of friends getting out together and searching for the thrill and fun of longboarding. Of course they all need a long road ahead - feeling the freedom and stuff. So beside that cliche and the fact that none of them was a real situation, I really like how they look and have different styles. One is dark and full of tension, another one showing the party going on on the road and one spreading pure summer and very happy and adventurous vibes.

However, I just wanted to show you these few pictures to stay motivated for longboarding - summer isn't even that far away! I'm already planning for new adventures and I might also buy a new board. But I will surely update you about anything exciting as it happens. Protect your spots and keep exploring!


Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Chasing The Sun

One of the things I hate about fall and winter is how little light we get throughout the day. Especially if your photo- and videography is only a hobby - measured by the time you have available for it - it is hard to get ready for a shoot before the sun goes down. And we still have one and a half months left until we have the shortest day of the year. I'm stunned every single year again.

Like really stunned: Once I realize that it's happening I can't find the motivation to get out and shooting. It just seems like I won't even find anything before it get's dark again. Yesterday I was on my way home around 4 pm and guess what I saw: Golden Hour! But of course I couldn't carry my camera around all day - also I didn't even think that it would become such a nice day. But let's not get too depressed because of that - here are some pictures I collected this summer.

Visual Vibes - He Nailed It

Do you remember Ben Brown from three months ago? Not that it was the only time I mentioned him, but it was the last time that he released one of his Visual Vibes videos. So guess what happened this week: Buffer Festival in Toronto, Canada. A festival bringing content creators from YouTube to theaters all over Toronto. Many more or less famous YouTubers showed their latest creations and milestones and gave a little background information to each of the videos. Also pretty much everyone had a meetup after the screening where as many of the fans as possible got the opportunity to take pictures and get their questions answered.



So, this is Ben's latest masterpiece: The Canada Visual Vibes. Shot on his sponsored trip through Canada two months ago he captured the amazing wildlife and breathtaking views of mountains and ice-cold blue-water lakes that are spread all over the country. The editing took it's time (also because of the Seven Swims where he produced seven awesome videos for Lewis Pugh) but it turned out wonderful. I don't know what it is like if you don't know about the adventures he had in Canada, because for me it is also a awesome recap of all the things he did with Steve Booker and all the other people on the trip.

So whether you want to see what Canada might be holding for you or just like awesome film making you should definitely take a look at this video and subscribe to Ben for daily vlogs and travelling Visual Vibes.


Follow my blog with Bloglovin

One Day in Hamburg - Alstervergnügen

So over the summer every year, there are some events that just affect the whole city. This here is a good example: the Alstervergnügen / the Alster pleasure. While the larger part of the lake Alster is home to all kinds of small boats, sports enthusiasts and all winter lovers when the ice is thick enough (that happes like once in five years and becomes a pretty big thing), the smaller part is home to many events and street festivals like the CSD and of course the Alstervergnügen, once in the summer months and once in the winter months. The pictures are one and a half months old now but is still was a pretty awesome day to spend in Hamburg.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Hamburg Bike Spots - Once Upon a Time

Wonder why I chose this title? Well, this spot is still pretty nice. Beautiful views over the water and the fields, a nice BMX/MTB trail and lots of green. Your butt gets tortured a lot, but I guess that's just another side effect when riding your bike off road. This is the Westensee, a small artificial lake that was planned to become a hotspot for young families.

The problem is that it is pretty much at the west end of all the south-east suburbs. So, opposite of the resedentials there is nothing but fields and industrials. Doesn't sound that awesome, right? But on top there are plenty other lakes that are either more central or have better water and surroundings and therefor attract more people.

Over the last years the environment was pretty much left to itself and now there are more than two thirds of the beach covered in grass and all kinds of plants. Also the paths that made for wonderful bike trails became to tight with spiked branches on both sides to just shoot through them. I am actually quite shocked by that as I haven't been there for more than a year. And suddenly a wild nature appeared.

So next time I will visit another lake that is a lot better for a nice bike ride as well as your workout rides, even if it might be harder to reach. Also there is something new planned this Wednesday and Saturday. Until then, respect your spots and keep exploring.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Hamburg Longboard Spots - Dove Elbe

So this week it pulled me out of the city once again, but not quite that far. Actually it was both, board and bike as my girlfriend was with me, but I was on the board so this counts as a board spot, I guess.

So we started right at at the east end of the marked path. Medium quality ground, some cars and a nice view. And if you take your time to look around instead of racing along you find these things that make you wonder about the story behind it. Like this little wooden boat there. I mean, when was the last time that you saw a boat completely made of wood out on the water? It must have been the for some years or maybe even decades.

And then, of course, there are just beautiful views of the river and nature. And you are mad because you have a 18-55mm lens only. But on the other hand, I like this shot of the river in the front at the cows at the riverside just chilling there.

Maybe I should explain: We were at the Dove Elbe, a arm of the Elbe of about 14 km length. At the place I live the Elbe is about three times as far away. This makes the Dove Elbe a good place if you want to chill out at the riverside.

We then finally arrived at the Hamburg Olympic Center of rowing that recently was the location for the rowing world cup. But I like it a lot more when everything is calm and there is a small boat driving by every now and then. Also, most people driving by are so nice and greeting each other - this is traffic how I like it.

That's it for today. As allways, keep exploring and protect your spots

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

My first very own camera - Nikon D5200

So I finally made it to get my own camera. Finally I can film while I am on the board, take the camera where ever I want and don't have to worry about people being paranoid about their pictures when they are moved from the memory card to a hard drive.

May I introduce: The Nikon D5200. As you might have read in the news section I bought it mostly because of the filming perks like 60 FPS shooting and exposure adjusting. The only other difference to the D5100 I used so far is that I now use the auto focus system of the lower upper-class D7100.

Also I love the updated interface. The graphics showing the exposure settings don't only tell you the current settings, but also give a relation to the overall spectrum of each of the settings by a visual feedback in the outer circles. By linking your most often used settings to the "My Menu", Nikon frees you of searching the currently important item in all of the different menus.

The kit I ordered comes with the AF-S DX 3,5-5,6 / 18-55mm VR II G lense. In addition to the camera itself there will follow a decent bag (currently I am aiming for the Case Logic SLRC-205) and a standard tripod. However, I will try to get as much out of the camera as possible with these so far rather limited possibilities.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Hamburg Bike Spots - Green, Planes, Sheep

Here we are, Hamburg Bike Spots episode one. This time it is not about a single route but a complete area of forest, dunes and slopes. The marked area on the map doesn't quite fit the actual area but it gets pretty close. I tried to cover as many of the individual spots as possible but as I said it's quite huge and many of the spots are hidden behind turns that don't actually look that inviting so although I personally kept exploring it for about two years I still find new trails and views every time.

We started at a little trail at the west-end of the area that leads through some trees and bushes. It is actually quite some fun to get along the tiny paths and try not to get your legs ripped apart by all the spiked branches reaching halfway over the path.









Following up there is a longer bit that is rather wide open and you can ride over the sand really fast and also have a wonderful view. You get the feeling of flying over all the little humps and also it feels like you aren't anywhere near Hamburg or even Germany.

You can also get along some small trails that have lots of soft sand on the ground - so wider wheels are recommended. And never stop, just try to drive through it and keep your front wheel straight. It's a great feeling to get across a hump that is fully covered with that sand and ride right down there.

Also, as seen on the map, there is that huge field with a airstrip. Actually there where ultra-lightweight planes flying that day. And also there were sheep. These sheep are part of the area and been there ever since I first explored the spot.




A bit further the surroundings changed to something rather forest-like. To the left was a hill of about 50 meters in total and there is a stair going up at one point. But going up is lame - let's get down there. In fact you could choose between the stairs - two meters forward from step to step - and a steeper bit. Guess what I chose.


However, this is it for today. More pictures, less text. Come back Wednesday for the first episode of the non-regular "Alien Post" series featuring a restaurant that I'm going to go to tonight or tomorrow evening. And still, keep exploring and save your spots.

Oops, I did it again - Morning Bike Rides

Storm it! Once again I got caught up getting ready for a bike ride instead of going to bed when arrived at home at six in the morning. This really get close to a bad habit as these hours decide whether your day will be awesome or terrible.

The obvious thing about going to bed at that time is that you won't wake up until noon. That might be part of a lifestyle for some people but I do not like that anymore as it destroys your biorhythm and leaves you with half of the day gone.

On the other side you might have a problem when you're inexperienced with staying up more than 18 hours at once. Because if you decide to stay up throughout the morning you'll have to keep it going until the following evening. What is just as bad as missing the first half of the day? Missing the second half. Or even most of the next night as well.

But once you are about to get out of your cycle or if it is already out of control, it is the best possibility to bring it back with one -- for your body terribly shocking -- night and day with out sleep. Because when you go to bed at the time you actually need to you will actually sleep. At least if you didn't use caffeine or anything alike to stay awake, they might actually get you into trouble in terms of sleep.