Zeiss Infinity Tour - Dubai

Reaching The Skies

ZEISS INFINITY TOUR

Located on the northern coastline of the United Arab Emirates, the city of Dubai fascinates visitors with its record-breaking architecture and man-made islands. Extremes meet when you leave the city of luxurious modernity to find the more traditional Arabian Life in the magnificent deserts and mountains nearby

I moved to Dubai four years ago and I must say that, having lived in many different countries and cities, Dubai is the youngest out of all of them and it wants to remain young – even the historical or older parts of the city get a facelift.

Dubai is the city that witnessed the biggest shift in my professional life. Here’s where I said goodbye to a boring job and my passion became my profession.

Now I live in Dubai, and if asked what I shoot the most there, my answer is: the skyscrapers. Sometimes I feel that in certain areas the skyscrapers compete to see which of them will reach the sky first.

Everyone who follows my photography would know that I shoot architecture, landscapes, cityscapes and some street photography. And here I’m in a city that offers immense architectural diversity, no matter if you shoot from the ground or from the rooftop.

Accessing rooftops in Dubai is actually rather difficult. Getting a permit is the hard part, and being there at the right moment is challenging. The seasons still change up on the rooftops, and during the few months of fog all the rooftopper photographers in the city don’t get any sleep. Dubai skies don’t usually offer many clouds, so the fog season is every rooftopper's dream. Thanks to this special weather, you get the chance to take incredible photos showing how nature smoothly embraces the massive skyscrapers.

Yet Dubai rooftops also offer you the magnificent skyline and architecture of the young city. As a photographer, I document those gigantic buildings competing to reach the sky – in the city of a thousand skyscrapers.

In our rooftopping workshops, Daniel Cheong and I want to offer beginners and professionals the opportunity to experience and capture the vast landscape from Dubai’s rooftops. Somehow these moments make infinity tangible. Particular striking, as Daniel mentioned when I asked him, is the correlation of size from big to small - moving from the universe to micro worlds. It’s always a pleasure to meet him and to get inspired by his character and his attitudes.

Zeiss Infinity Tour - Berlin

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Berlin - A Diverse Capital

The Berlin stop of the Infinity Tour wasn’t my first visit to the German capital. I’d held a couple of workshops there in the past. It is, however, almost guaranteed that you’ll discover new buildings, street art or new local grocery stores every time you visit the city – not just because of its size, but first and foremost because of the constant state of flux.

Some say that Berlin is whatever you want it to be. Be it the business, entrepreneurial and fashion aspects, or – by way of contrast – the laid-back, creative inhabitants roaming the city in a famous neighborhoods like Kreuzberg or Tempelhof-Schöneberg. Everything is there – you just have to discover it for yourself. And a gritty fashion boutique might have become a five star hotel the next time you pass it.

During the workshop, I met Peter who lives in Berlin. We had the chance to discuss not only photography, but also his definition of infinity. He stated that infinity allows you to be creative without boundaries – a challenge all of us face as photographers. Photography force you to realize your vision and be creative with your subject within a limited timeframe.

Although the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag and the TV Tower are some of the popular key landmarks you'll find on most Berlin postcards, I chose the Jacob-and-Wilhelm-Grimm-Library as my infinity spotlight for Berlin. If you pass by the building late in the afternoon, the scenery is simple spectacular as the building is submerged in the setting sun. The library within the building looks like a place of infinite wisdom, as exemplified by the depth of the room. I was told that it houses around 2.5 million books, some of which are more than 100 years old – I find that very impressive!