Vacation Photography: Switzerland

Tony Yang October 4, 2011 5 Comments Vacation

Imagine you’re on a vacation of a life time, you spend a large amount of time researching what camera and lens you need only to find out it’ll cost you more than you imagined just to snap some mediocre photos on your trip because you don’t even have time to learn how to use it. Not to mention, you will have to carry a few pounds of equipment every where you go. Or perhaps the only photos you will take during your vacation are a few mobile phone snapshots, which is not worth looking at again. So how do you solve this dilemma? Hire a vacation photographer!

I was hired by my friend Jennie for a snowboarding vacation to Zermatt, Switzerland early this year, and my job was to document the trip and scenery. I flew to Zurich, rented an eco-car Ford Ka, and proceeded to setup my iPad navigation to route to Zermatt. I found out the hard way that the Wi-Fi only iPad can only activate GPS when it’s connected to Wi-Fi, what a waste of a GPS feature! My iPhone had GPS signal but no data service, so I could only use a cached map of Switzerland on Google Maps to guide me through the major highways. The rest of the local roads and all German signs I had to learn on the way. What would’ve taken 3 hours on the major highways ended up taking me 7+ hours on local scenic routes. Every minute of it was exhilarating and beautiful, I would’ve missed all the sights had I used the highways. I was able to experience endless tunnels through mountains, windy dangerous roads, and car trains.

I explored the resort in Zermatt, and took a lift all the way up the mountain to 9,000 feet where they built a restaurant complete with free Wi-Fi. You can see the famous Matterhorn mountain which is the logo used for Toblerone chocolates. From there, I took another lift higher up the mountain followed by a short elevator ride and two flights of stairs to finally reach 12,736 feet on top of the Swiss Alps, “Europe’s highest mountain lift” so the sign says. Those crazy Swiss had also decided to build another full restaurant/gift shop on top!

I had once seen a travel show on Lake Como, labeled as one of the most beautiful places in Italy. Star Wars and James Bond were both filmed there, and Clooney, Versace, and Madonna have all had homes on the lake. After watching the show I knew I wanted to visit there someday. While looking at the map, I noticed Lake Como was only a short drive away, I couldn’t pass up the chance to visit. Jennie and I were so excited we planned a one day trip to Lake Como, and we can now say “Yeah, we drove to Lake Como, Italy just for lunch and gelato.”

I couldn’t have asked for a better trip. My ideal vacation is to be spontaneous and adventurous. Rent a car, and explore local sights and good-eats, with an occasional tourist stop. I have enough driving experience in different countries to get me around without much issue, and getting lost is half the fun. Jennie was able to enjoy her vacation fully without having to buy and learn a new camera, carry the equipment, stop to take photos, learn how to drive stick, navigate alone in a different country, come home and download/edit/upload tons of photos. All the things I take care of as a hired vacation photographer.

Where do you want to take me next?

Drive

Tony Yang September 30, 2011 7 Comments Automotive, Other

We all have certain movies we fantasize about playing the same role as the hero, for guys it would be a wide variety in an action movie from special forces to martial artists to professional drivers. The hero usually has an amazing ability to never die, can kill anyone with their bare fists, and of course, drive any car and perform stunts without beading a drop of sweat. While you watch the movie, some of the times you really want to believe you can do those things too, and the majority of the times you realize how ridiculous and blown out Hollywood makes it all. Then there’s Drive.

Drive might be the complete opposite of over blown Hollywood stunts, CGI, and sexy heroes. The nameless Driver in the movie is anything but charming. Awkward introverted personality with a deep dark secret. The movie is mostly slow paced with chunks of action scenes that kicks your heart rate into 0-60 in a split second. What I love about the movie is how it romanticizes pure driving. You typically associate cars with guns and women in movies – and yes, Drive has guns and girls too – but it really emphasizes on just the drive.

You watch the Driver cruise down the city streets alone, slow, with just radio chatter – not unrealistic for an evening drive. The simple visual stimulus of street lamps and street lines zooming past your windshield is enough for me to escape the world. This is probably how the Driver escapes his world.

When he meets the girl, his idea of a date is to ask her out for a drive. Inside the car, he is able to share his world with her by transforming what average people consider a hassle of driving, into an adventure, all without a single word being spoken. She is charmed by this. Here is a guy sharing his best moment with someone special and she is intuitive enough to understand and appreciate every moment of it. They proceed to go on dates, each time sharing a moment inside the car.

This movie best portrays my love of pure driving. Not necessarily being a gear head, nor a professional driver, but enjoying the road on a set of four wheels, and what better way to enjoy it than with someone else in the passenger seat? Unfortunately it is not a popular romantic idea, just like this movie isn’t a popular Hollywood action flick. I think it’s hard to convince a woman that all you want to do is to take her out on the road and just enjoy the drive, but for the right woman that says yes, I have found my bliss. I hope you can watch this movie too and feel what I feel.

El Bob at Baltimore Grand Prix

Tony Yang September 21, 2011 1 Comment Automotive, El Bob

El Bob goes down to Inner Harbor, Baltimore for the Grand Prix weekend. It was exciting to walk the track built on the city streets, eat good food, and have good company. It was always El Bob’s dream to go 180mph, so this was his next closest thing.

El Bob tests out the tire barrier for the Grand Prix. Safety’s number one!

El Bob goes to Edmonton, Canada

Tony Yang September 20, 2011 1 Comment El Bob

El Bob takes his first trip to Canada, in Edmonton. He loves the long daylight hours, which means more time to play!

El Bob always enjoys a large bowl of congee on a chilly night.

Beautifully Sad

Tony Yang September 11, 2011 2 Comments Photography

A Journey into a Storm

Tony Yang August 30, 2011 10 Comments Other

It was finally her turn to find true love, but he hurricane had taken away all that she had worked for. She was left to her own devices to search what she was looking for, and without a soul in sight, she found herself. The storm had set her free.

Fly Maya, Fly.

El Bob goes to DUMBO

Tony Yang July 13, 2011 1 Comment El Bob

El Bob spends the morning in DUMBO, Brooklyn and walks across the bridge for the first time with all the tourists! There is always lots of colors to see in DUMBO and the place never looks exactly the same when you go back. One thing for sure, El Bob never leaves without making a new friend, even in New York!

El Bob inside the “Plaza” which looks more like a tunnel than a plaza.

El Bob goes to Atlanta Georgia

Tony Yang July 7, 2011 2 Comments El Bob

El Bob visits Atlanta Georgia, and the famous Varsity hot dog joint and Coca Cola factory. Coca Cola had some unique friends waiting for El Bob.

El Bob likes his hot dogs with onions, ketchup and mustard.

Mila in Baltimore

Tony Yang June 24, 2011 4 Comments Automotive

I recently attended a large BMW East Coast meet called MPACT in Baltimore, MD. I took the opportunity to have a photo shoot in front of the hotel and at the stadium. All of the shots are taken with multiple exposures or bracketing for a slight HDR editing effect that isn’t too obvious or noticeable, therefor a tripod is a must-have. One thing I dislike is over abuse of HDR. Photographs need contrast and a focal point.

Below you will see a composite from the evening photos. The main shot is the ambient light from the street. Other shots of Mila and the smoke were taken with a Canon Speedlite on a Quantum battery, triggered remotely by an Aputure Trigmaster (more reviews on the device in a future post). The camera is on a tripod while I hand held the flash at different angles pointing at Mila, and my assistant Tiffany would press the camera shutter on my command.

El Bob stays at Hotel Monaco

Tony Yang June 22, 2011 2 Comments El Bob

El Bob recently visited Inner Harbor Baltimore and stayed at Hotel Monaco. This magnificent structure was built in 1906 as the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad headquarters. This hotel is a great bargain compared to New York hotels, at double the floor space for a quarter of the cost. I will be sure to come back for future projects. The staff are extremely friendly and completely open to photography even with tripods on property.