I took my leuk to photograph Arctic cars. These are my tips for pro

I was traveling to Sweden recently in order to research, write and produce a characteristic of CNET Why electric cars are great for winter driving. It was a great story, asking me to travel through several parts of Sweden and to resort to the north in the frozen Arctic circle. As a journalist and professional PhotographerIt was my job not to tell the story, but to catch her camera. That meant a trip with just real equipment and to know exactly how to use it to get the footage I need.

From the camera equipment that I took with me to the difficulties in filming the location and the process of thinking behind my shots, here's how I recorded my camera story.

The camera gear i used

While traveling through Sweden, jumping off the trains, planes and taxis, I knew I had to keep my setup easy. I didn't want to be burdened with a heavy backpack full of camera bodies and a large number of lenses and accessories. Instead, I only took one camera: my new Leica Q3 43.

I bought this camera for myself late last year. It combines a high -resolution image sensor, a full frame with a fixed focal length of 43mm. I love this focal length because it provides a great balance between a wide angle look and the zoom look. I often shoot 35mm or 50mm lenses, so the 43mm lens that is permanently glued to the camera is a great sweet place for me. The result is that I had only one camera and carrying lenses, maintaining my packaging load and eliminating any questions that distract them in the head for which focal length to use. Instead, he encouraged me to work harder to find the best compositions.

I brought a spare battery, along with an Energy Bank to complement the camera over USB-C if I needed (which I didn't do). The only addition to my setting was a Gold Fog Fog 135. This provides a gentle gold fog over the images that softens sometimes the rough details of high -resolution footage and provides a little aesthetics similar to the film I love absolutely, and I kept this filter on the camera almost all the time.

To help protect my camera I used leather Obervert half caseIt also helped to provide an extra undertaking – helped from the polar thumb on the back. So it was always ready to shoot, I often carried the camera around my neck using a Bowman's leather camera tape. Needless to say about a $ 7,000 camera, I had my own photographic insurance so that something happened.

When I am not in use, I carried the camera, accessories and other pieces and pieces in my Backpack of Wandrd Prvkewhich provides a safe storage part for my cameras equipment, along with the expanding of the top of the roll for my jacket, cap, bracelets or anything else I need to take with me.

Video equipment

I also had to shoot a video on this trip, and for the CNET video Personal photography on YouTube channel. To help reduce weight, I decided to buy a combo with DJI Osmo pocket creators. This small, stabilized camera stabilized with a large, smooth recording and was the perfect partner for my busy schedule.

I used it to capture B-Roll at Volvo's headquarters in Gothenburg, to shoot cars as they slipped on the frozen lake and to catch my photographic trips to Stockholm on one of my free days (seen built above). Of course, maybe the shots were not as cinematically as I was normally trying to achieve it from my usual Canon R5, but it looked more than good enough and it was far easier to carry with me than full size of a mirror camera and lenses.

Arctic photography

The first destination of my trip was Volvo's headquarters, where I was shown various areas used to test its electric vehicles. Places like these are not always easy to shoot. The main question is that Volvo, understandable, is not interested in showing all its engineering secrets, so many areas that I visited were out of the photography boundaries. Other places where photos can be taken may not have been so illustrative for my story, so it was important to work with Volvo – as I do with every company – to find compromises that both sides are satisfied.

It was not a problem, and I was particularly pleased with some of my pictures taken in the company's battery testing area, which was a key part of my written piece. As a journalist and photographer, my goal is always to rely on my pictures when I visit an area like this. It adds the authenticity of the story, showing CNET readers that I was actually somewhere and saw something firm. This would not be the case if I simply used pictures provided by the company.

Things have become dramatic when I joined Volvo in the frozen north of Sweden. My trip took me first to the Arctic Circle to the city of Kiruna, where I not only saw it in the Volvo Arctic Testing facility, but it was also given the opportunity to drive a snow engine through the frozen lakes and through the snow -bound forests

It was amazing, especially when we stopped and received a brief overview of the northern headlamps. I set up the camera on my Time Trip Trapod Travel Travel, framed my image using snow engines as interests in the foreground and used a three -second shutter speed and ISO of 800 to catch enough light. I am pleased with the picture I managed to get.

Frantic photos of frozen lake

Then we traveled a little more south to the city of Lulja, where we handed over the keys to all Volvo's electric EX90 and given the route that would take us through the villages and the ice trail that Volvo cleared on the frozen lake. I shared driving with another journalist on this foot of the trip, giving me the opportunity to shoot out of the car window, catching a few details about the area I thought I would add extra color and set the scene in my story.

On the lake, things were less sedat. I started doing some of my driving, going hell to the course around the course in the hope of sending the car aside around the corners-and I often turn from the snowfall track. Great fun. I attached my DJI OSMO to a small clamp in the car to record my efforts from multiple angles, but then it was time to do something a little more dangerous.

I had to take pictures and shots of driving cars and it required a more complicated setup. First, I needed one of the Volvo test drivers to drive the car that would be the subject. Then I would be in the car in front of, sitting in the trunk with an open rear door, allowing me to freely photograph the car while moving behind us. When I do this on public roads, I wear a high -highest vest and I am firmly attached to the car using a safety fastening. We didn't have this on a closed trail, so I had to sit in the back and try not to slip as we took every corner.

At one point I almost did, but I kept my leg strongly pressed on the side to support me, which helped. Was it safe? No, no, and it is absolutely not something to do on public roads, if nothing else because it would be illegal. But that was the only way I managed to get the footage I was looking for from cars in action. Freezing conditions and high speeds on the track meant that snow and ice scattered around me, which covered me – and the camera – in the snow. Fortunately, my Leica Q3 43 is a sealed weather, so I wasn't concerned about any water damage. You can see me sitting with the snow remnants at me at the top of this article.

I used slower shutter speed on my camera – usually about 1/80 of a second – which slightly blurred the movement of the car wheels and the ground as it accelerated, while hoping to keep the car in a sharp focus. I used shooting mode to increase the chances of getting sharp, usable pictures, but even then I got just about 10 that I was satisfied with out of the few hundred I recorded. But that's good, I only needed a few to illustrate my story. I made another attempt, this time with my eighth video recording. I made some of the rear and some out of the side windows by shooting both the thematic car behind and some shots of the car we drove in order to give our talented video editors different workouts.

After the last round, the day ended, as well as my time in Sweden.

Editing and tips

I recorded a lot of pictures on this trip using the built -in chrome color profile of Leica. I love the colors and tones it provides, especially when paired with the polarpro gold fog. But I was shooting my pictures in both JPEG and RAW, allowing me to apply my own edits to RAW -the files if I wanted. For some shots – like those of cars on the track – I used my own edits, while for others I just used JPEG with a built -in chrome profile.

I was filming a lot of pictures for my own travels, and most of my favorite shots use the built -in colors of the look of the Leica. Don't be afraid to use these profiles as they can offer you a great creative reinforcement when you make your pictures. Fujilm's cameras (like Great X100VI) are known for having built -in a variety of stunning film color profiles, so look at those if you are interested in using camera colors.

Overall, I am really pleased with the variety of images I shot for both CNET and myself. It really helped me keep the load on my equipment to a minimum because it allowed me to be nimble and respond quickly to the moments when I saw them. If you are interested in taking photos of your own travel and documentaries, make sure My full professional trip photography guide.

Note to editors: The costs of traveling to parts of this story were covered by the manufacturer, which is common in the automotive industry. The judgments and opinions of CNET staff are ours.