With the start of the new APC season right around the corner, we are excited to bring our Featured Photographer back to the website.
For those unfamiliar with this feature, every month we select a member to be featured and showcase their work. It’s a great way to display the talent of our ever growing club.
This month, our featured photographer is Auggie Werner.
Bio:
Growing up in scenic surroundings in Switzerland where hills, mountains and lakes are never far, I learnt my favorite two lessons even before thinking of taking any picture: Views & perspectives are the result of where and when, or location & light/weather/seasonal conditions. Compared to other things I tried to capture with a camera, I soon found landscapes to be much easier and more rewarding to capture.
While in high school I watched a presentation and slideshow of aerial panoramas of Switzerland by local pioneer Emil Schulthess and decided this was the coolest thing because it showed my country’s amazing geography, revealed new perspectives & angles and above all was simply gorgeously beautiful. It wasn’t long until I tried to fit together a set of captures into a panorama using glue tape.
I continued to be fascinated by scenery & later travelled to many different countries carrying just using inexpensive compact analogue then digital cameras. However, when I finally discovered how to create digital panoramas using stitching software my old fascination came back immediately.
Rather than thinking of taking shots of a particular view or sight, my main interest is in finding great locations, ‘scanning’ their views completely and finally stitching the panorama. Image composition is a crucial part and happens both before and after I use the camera. Rather than shooting photos that can be stitched together, my mind is set on finding places that allow a great view all around that can be composed into a single panorama picture. Panos come in all sizes and shaped. Often they’re most easily and best viewed on a computer & in an interactive manner. Very often my goal is give the viewer a feeling of being “on location”.
- How would you describe your photography style?
Panoramic Landscape Photography - Which photographer is your biggest inspiration?
These days main inspiration is the probably subject. Because it is probably impossible to make a living as a panoramic landscape photographer, my heroes are mostly passionate amateurs, especially the community at alpen-panoramen.de & panorama-photo.net. Originally it was Swiss Photographer Emil Schulthess (1913 – 1996) who triggered my fascination with Panorama Photography. - How long have you been interested in photography?
I assembled my first panorama with glue tape thirty years ago. My first attempt at creating a digital pano was about six years ago. - What was your first camera?
I don’t remember. These days I consider the panorama stitching software the more defining piece of equipment than the brand of camera. I only have a (premium) compact camera and don’t have any plans to buy a DSLR. - What is your dream photo trip?
I’ve been fortunate to travel around quite a bit: my online photo gallery has photos (not all of them great) from 20 countries. These days I can’t think of a greater place than my old home country of Switzerland. I don’t think any other place has such a variety and diversity of stunning landscapes within easy reach. Here in Ontario, down town Toronto abounds with views that cannot be captured without the tools of panorama photography. Georgian Bay also features many of my favorite landscapes.
You can view some of Auggie’s work at http://www.panoramio.com/user/2086011 and https://www.360cities.net/profile/auggie