I can’t believe 2019 is almost over, it’s been such a busy but great year!

I’ve decided to put this article together first to find the motivation to edit some unedited images (lazy me!) but also to share with you some of the adventures and some of my favorite pictures of 2019. Let’s begin!

JANUARY & FEBRUARY

After keeping 2018 at a really hard pace I wanted to take the beginning of 2019 easy so I’ve decided to leave my camera gear on the shelf for a while. Only office work and some easy trips to unplug and relax including Portugal, Thailand, Tuscany & Naples, where I’ve set a new personal record of 5 pizzas in 24 hours 😀

MARCH

• It’s March 19th and I’m on my way to Patagonia a couple of weeks before the beginning of the tours with the idea to head to El Calafate and shoot Mt. Fitz Roy & Cerro Torre from the air. On a side note, I was supposed to do this flight in 2018 already. But after a long waiting, when the weather was finally good to go, the radio of the Cessna broke and the pilot had to cancel. Anyway, back to March 2019, after a week of problems with the plane again (and great weather everyday!) I was about to give up. But on the last available day, everything worked out and I was able to fly. Needles to say it was mind blowing, what an amazing experience to see this area that I know so well from a different perspective!

APRIL

• On April 1st, the first out of three workshops in Patagonia begins. We were able to see Cerro Torre with every single group and, if you’re familiar with the area and this mountain, you know how hard it can be! We had some pretty spectacular moments and I personally got some of my ever-favorite images from the area this year. As always, camping and hiking in Patagonia was great.

MAY

• Back from Patagonia on May 4th and home until May 25th when I’m heading to Menorca to be one of the 12 photographers to teach at the Photopills Camp. Sixty participants, the Photopills team, a beautiful island to explore and so much fun. Hard to describe what a great experience it has been! Also, the Photopills Camp marks the beginning of a long sleepless summer…

JUNE

• Back from Menorca on June 2nd, I’m preparing my backpack for a new adventure starting on June 8th with Max Rive, to a place I’ve been wanting to shoot for a very long time: Peru. It was my first time at such high altitude (5000+m) and the place went way above my expectations. I went scouting for the first couple of weeks in some areas that are truly off the grid, then had a quick 3 days holiday in Machu Picchu.

JULY

• On July 12th I’m guiding the summer tour in the Dolomites. A week of early alarms (like… really early!) and late dinners, with another great group.

• After the Dolomites and 1 day back home, I’m heading to Iceland on July 18th to be ready to guide another summer workshop. After that, since the lack of sleep was not enough, I decided to do the loop of the country in the 4 full days at my disposal. Crazy? Oh yes! Not to take stellar pictures of course, but more to visit some new areas. Funny fact, despite all the driving, I managed to take some images I really like.

AUGUST

• On August 1st, I’m flying from Iceland to Sweden. A quick visit to Stockholm, a fly to Kiruna and a drive to Evenes later and the camping workshop in Senja begins. We had amazing weather and, again, no much sleep! But that’s part of the fun too 🙂

• A week later, the trip in Senja is over, better be ready for the Faroe Islands! On August 12th I meet with the Photopills team and the first out of three workshops I’m guiding in the Faroe Islands begins. Every single workshop was different, almost every day we experienced all 4 seasons. The only thing that stayed constant? The hot dogs at the gas station 😀

SEPTEMBER

• The last Faroe Island tour with Michael Shainblum is over on September 8th and… Wait, is it September already? What a busy summer! Back home after 6 workshops and 2 months away. After ten days home, I decide to fly to Australia on September 20th and stay there for 7 full days. Crazy idea, crazy trip! We flew to Adelaide, drove 1000km north into the Outback and reached Lake Eyre, the biggest salt lake in Australia to take some aerial images. I flew above the lake for about 6 hours in the only 3 days I had there and took a crazy amount of pictures with the new Sony A7RIV.

• On the way back to Italy, had a quick stopover in Dubai until October 3rd. Of two things I’m glad: meeting up with my friend Khaled, who showed us around and surviving the day, with 45 degrees Celsius outside and 3000% humidity 😀

OCTOBER

• Yay, it’s that time of the year! On October 12th I met up with my first group to guide a private workshop in the Dolomites, then guided another two tours til the end of the month. This year we had some crazy fog conditions and some pretty starry skies…

NOVEMBER

• The last workshop of 2019 is over and with it, my last photography trip as well. On November 4th I’m heading to a small island in the UK for a quick visit and then, it’s home time again.

DECEMBER

• The Holidays are here as well as the New Year! No long trips in December, only some short visits to several areas of Italy, among Christmas trees and sparkling lights.

 2019 has been another great year and I’m thankful for what I’ve been able to do. 2020 is around the corner and with it many new adventures and places to discover, can’t wait for it!

The post 2019 Year In Review appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Full disclosure! I’m a big fan of obtaining my images right in camera and my inspiration comes from being outdoor seeking for the perfect moment.

Personally, I’ve never replaced the sky of any of my images before this post. I’m not saying other people should not do it, this is just my personal choice. Everyone draws his/her own line and this is simply mine 🙂

However, I totally understand the need for some people to do it, such as for commercial/advertising photography. Thankfully, there are softwares that can help us basically with everything nowadays. But one in particular has recently announced a revolutionary feature…

…Although it was already possible to replace the sky of your images, you will agree it was a pretty frustrating and tedious process. Particularly when masking around complicated things like leaves.

So what would you say if I told you that it’s now possible to replace the sky of your scenes with one single click?

The team of Skylum just launched their new and upgraded Luminar 4, which, along with other great features, comes with a one-click sky replacement feature. I know, it sounds too good to be true and you probably don’t believe me. I also couldn’t believe this at the beginning, but Luminar 4 proved me wrong!

» TRY IT YOURSELF! GET YOUR COPY OF LUMINAR 4 HERE. «

In this video I go through 5 of my pictures which originally had a pretty boring sky. I’ll prove you how easy it is to replace the sky with Luminar 4 along with my tricks and tips. (Scroll to the end for a promo code and to see the before/after!)

» ALREADY HAVE LUMINAR 4? TRY MY PRESETS PACK! «

Here below you’ll see the before and after of my 5 images where I’ve replaced the sky using Luminar 4. The replacement requires one simple click. You can choose among different types of skies (dramatic, sunsets, blue skies…). If you’d like, you could upload your own sky as well.

Let’s take a look at Skylum Luminar 4’s new AI sky replacement feature

1

3

2

4

In picture number 4 especially, where masking the tree would require a lot of time, you can notice how great AI Sky Replacement actually is.

These are just a few examples of how you can use this tool. All I’ve done, was to open an image in Luminar 4, select the creative tab (rights sidebar) and select a new sky from the drop-down menu to add to my image. However, keep in mind that the AI Sky Replacement does not add the new sky to reflections.

RULE OF THUMB FOR SKY REPLACEMENT

• Look at your photos and understand the direction of the light. If the sun is not in your frame, you can understand the light direction by looking at shadows or parts of the scene that are catching the light.
• Be Logical. If in your scene the sun was originally rising from the left, don’t choose a sky where the sun is on the right or the lights won’t match.
• Match the exposure & the temperature of the sky with the ones of your image.
• Build your sky archive! When you are out shooting look around you. You might not have clouds on your subject, but maybe behind you. Shoot those clouds and use them later on. Like that, your skies will be unique and different from everybody else’s.

Use promo code MGP10 at check out and get 10$ off your Luminar 4 purchase!

In conclusion, I do think that this AI Sky Replacement feature in Luminar 4 is pretty great. As well as a real time-saver. I also think that this is just the tip of the iceberg and I see huge possibilities for this super clever AI in the future expanding its capabilities not only for sky replacement but for creating accurate masks and selections in the blink of an eye. What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts and/or feedback about it. Just leave a comment below!

The post One-Click Sky Replacement Using Luminar 4 appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

In this guide I’m going to share and explain my preferred Sony a7r iv settings. Please note that since I’m not into videos, you won’t find any details about video settings in this guide.

Sony A7R IV Menu Set Up: Everything You Need To Know

Please take a moment to review the legend below for easy navigation through this guide:

• The article is divided into three main sections. Section number 1 is about “Default Settings”. The colored icons indicate which menu tab you need to go to in your camera (there are 6 in total);
• Under each setting, in bold, you’ll find the exact steps to change that setting;
• When I say “Navigate To Page (1/15)” it means that you’ll find that setting on page number 1 out of 15 in the specific menu I’m talking about;
• Each setting includes an explanation and the reason why I suggest changing it.

USE THE BUTTONS BELOW TO JUMP DIRECTLY TO THE TOPIC OF YOUR INTEREST:

DEFAULT SONY A7R IV SETTINGS TO CHANGE

MENU TAB 1

FILE FORMAT

One of the first things to do when setting up the new Sony A7R IV is to make sure that you select the right file format. By default this is set to JPEG. While RAW files are bigger in size, if you shoot landscapes you will find yourself in need of doing color correction to your files, recover shadows and possibly do even more extreme adjustments. For this reason, RAW format is what I recommend you to select.

LONG EXPOSURE NR

When shooting long exposures, the Sony A7R IV automatically takes a second exposure (dark frame) to reduce the noise directly in camera. Example: if you take a 30” exposure you will have to wait another 30” for the dark frame to be taken.

The system itself works well in terms of noise reduction. What I personally find frustrating and time consuming, is having to wait for it to take the dark frame after every single shot. Especially when there are several methods and softwares to reduce noise afterwards. Plus, if you want to use the dark frame method you can still shoot those dark frames yourself once you’re done photographing and do it manually in Photoshop.

COLOR SPACE

By default this is set to sRGB, but AdobeRGB will actually allow you to capture a wider range of colors. This is particularly good if you are printing. However, the every day devices we use are calibrated to reproduce sRGB (since it contains less colors). So my suggestion is to shoot using AdobeRGB to take advantage of the full color range, then convert your file to sRGB for online use afterwards.

BRACKET SETTINGS

To activate it and be sure you’ll be able to use the bracket mode later, you just have to set a shutter delay first. I personally suggest choosing 2 seconds. Additionally, from the same menu you can decide to force the order of the different exposures, which by default is set up to  0 > – > +. I prefer to change it to  – > 0 > + as I find it easier to keep track of the bracketing set when reviewing my images. 

Once you’ve selected the self timer you won’t need to use this setting anymore. You will now be able to turn the bracketing function on and off from the control wheel on the back of your camera. (More on customizing your buttons later).

FOCUS FRAME COLOR

A small yet super exciting news for Sony users, is that you can now choose the color of the AF area. In the previous Sony I was often loosing track of it as it was light grey and blending with the scene most of the times. By default this is set to white, but my suggestion is to change it to red instead so that it pops out against bright scenes too.

A7R III – Grey

A7R IV – RED

DRO

This function only works with JPEG format. When DRO is “On” in the Sony a7r iv settings, the camera automatically corrects the gamma curve, exposure level and other parameters to remove portions that appear darker than they would to the human eye. Sounds pretty good right? While it is a cool feature, I prefer to have it “Off” mainly because I don’t like if the camera thinks for me. I rather do it myself later during the editing process to be sure I have more control.

However, I definitely see a use for this new feature as a faster way to have your image ready to deliver. It reduces workflow time in case post-processing is not something you want to do.

DRO: Off

DRO: On

SHUTTER AWB LOCK 

I use auto white balance all the times, but it has some limitations of course. One, for example, is when you are shooting a panorama as you change the composition and the white balance in the scene slightly changes from frame to frame. When you are shooting a panorama you want consistency between the frames and by selecting this the white balance will stay the same.

MENU TAB 2

RELEASE W/O CARD

If, by mistake, you are shooting without SD card and this function is enabled you will be able to take photos and you won’t get any warnings (only a little yellow text on the corner of the viewfinder/LCD, not very noticeable). Of course it happened to me twice!

To avoid that this happens to you too, you just have to disable this function. By doing it, as soon as you’ll press the shutter you will get a warning saying that you can’t take photos because the SD card is missing.

Before (Enabled)

After (Disabled)

FINDER FRAME RATE

Set up to “Standard” in the Sony A7R IV settings by default, you can change it to “High” so that the viewfinder will have a higher frame rate. This means less latency, what you see through it it’s going to be more smooth and it will feel more natural. This will have no effect on the LCD screen.

GRID LINE

Although I like my viewfinder and LCD to be as minimal as possible, I do use the Rule of 3rds Grid. I guess I became so used to it that I don’t even see it anymore and I don’t feel like it is blocking/covering the image in any way. The main reason why I use this grid is not for the composition, but to check if the camera is leveled. I don’t like to have to press buttons to see the level of the camera, and the in camera level blocks the image too much for my taste.

MOVIE BUTTON

The reason why I prefer to set this to “Movie Mode Only” instead of “Always” is to avoid touching the button accidentally (Left Picture) and start recording unnecessary video clips. By changing this setting, recording only starts when video mode is selected on the Mode Dial on top of the camera (Right Picture).

MENU TAB 5

MONITOR BRIGHTNESS

Having a brighter monitor is a bit of a trade off. Compared to the default setting “Manual 0” it will surely use a bit of extra battery but you’ll see much better from your LCD. Also, the Sony batteries are really good and one will last plenty of time despite this.

VIEWFINDER BRIGHT

With this function set to “Auto” by default, the viewfinder will constantly adjust the brightness level based on the ambient light. Because of this, you could potentially think that what you’re shooting is underexposed or overexposed. To avoid miscalculation of the real exposure of your image, this function is better set to “Manual +2”, so that its brightness stays the same and doesn’t change with ambient light.

DISPLAY QUALITY

By changing this setting the definition of the LCD display will be better and you will be able to take full advantage of it.

COPYRIGHT INFO

Once you turn On this function, you’ll just have to fill in the information required and all your pictures will come with your copyright embed in the metadata. Highly suggested!

REC. MEDIA SETTINGS

Even though I personally have the following settings:

• Prioritize Rec. Media > Slot 1
• Recording Mode > Standard
• Auto Switch Media > On

I do think you should take a moment to think about your preferred settings here. Specifically, when clicking on “Recording Mode”, you can choose to save your files simultaneously on both your memory cards in order to have an “in field” back up in case something happens to one of your memory cards. 

In my case, I prefer not to have a second copy of my files (in camera), so it’s set to “Standard” for this reason. With the Auto Switch Media set to “On”, once the first memory card is full all the files will automatically start saving on the second one.

CUSTOMIZE YOUR CAMERA

After adjusting all the default settings, the next thing to do is to customize your new Sony A7R IV. As you’ve surely noticed by now, there are so many menus and pages for each one of them that looking for something can be very frustrating. But the good news is that the camera is fully customizable! And if you do it right, you won’t have to go through the menus ever again.

That’s exactly why customizing the camera is so essential, as it allows you to have fast access to your preferred and most-used features in a short time. There are several different things you can customize in your Sony A7R IV settings:

• Custom keys functions when shooting
• Custom keys functions when in playback mode
• LCD & Viewfinder customization
• Fn customization
• Custom Menu

CUSTOM KEYS

Keys are the buttons situated on the rear and top of the camera. You can customize them for still images mode, video mode and playback mode from Menu Tab 2.

By selecting the first “Custom Key” option, you’ll be able to customize all the buttons for when you’re shooting still images. This means that, when you’re shooting, you can click on those buttons and change certain settings. Below you’ll see an example of my settings:

By selecting the third “Custom Key” option, you’ll be able to customize all the buttons again but this time for when you’re in playback mode.

This means that, when you’re checking your pictures, you can click on those buttons and do certain things such as rating an image. Below you’ll see an example of my settings:

LCD & VIEWFINDER CUSTOMIZATION

This customization allows you to choose what you see on your LCD and on your Viewfinder when you’re shooting. Note that you need to set up both separately through the setting DISP Button.

As I was saying earlier, I like my displays to be as minimal as possible. Below you’ll see an example of my settings:

FUNCTION MENU SET

The Function Menu Set is a button you can use to recall your custom functions (up to 12) when shooting. 

Below you’ll see an example of my settings:

Starting from the top row, left to right, here is what those settings indicate:

CUSTOM MENU

The custom menu is the 6th and last menu tab in your camera. Think of it as a summary of all 5 menu tabs and as a way to group all the functions you use the most together. 

Once you customize it, it will most likely become the only menu you’ll ever use. Below you’ll see an example of my settings:

NEW CAMERA FEATURES

The Sony A7R IV has surely some cool new functions. Below I’ve made a list of what for me are the most useful and appreciated improvements of this camera:

• With its 61 megapixels the quality of the images is even better than it was before. While not everyone will fully benefit from this, higher resolution is especially good for printing. More megapixels also mean more cropping power which can come very handy;
• The body feels much better. The grip is deeper and fits hands more comfortably. Buttons are more squishy and rubbery;
• It has improved weather-sealing protection, which is always important for people like me shooting outdoor;
• The new DRO function is definitely something cool to play with, especially when editing is not in the plan;
• While its predecessor had only one UHS-II SD card slot, there are now two UHS-II SD slots that ensure you faster data transfer;
• Another very cool thing is that this camera allows you to save your settings and copy them to another camera. This is incredibly useful as it saves you plenty of time importing your menu settings to a second camera body!

TO IMPROVE NEXT

After all these improvements, there are now two things I’d like to see in the next camera:

• The touch screen menu. It would made the navigation so much smoother!
• Have something like a mirror to cover the sensor when changing lens. This would limit the amount of dust that gets inside!

QUESTIONS?

If you made it to the end of this article, congrats! I hope you now have a better idea of how to set up the menu of your Sony A7R IV. While it can be overwhelming at first, once you set everything up including your custom buttons and menus, you won’t have to navigate through the other menus much again.

However, if you still have some questions/doubts about Sony A7R IV settings that I haven’t covered in this article, please leave a comment below and I’ll be happy to help you out!

The post Sony A7R IV Menu Set Up: Everything You Need To Know appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

We’re going to Antarctica! Are you in?

Two entire weeks of exploration and unforgettable experiences in the White Continent. The trip of a lifetime in this remote part of the world, immersed in the wilderness. The endless golden light, the midnight sun along with the marvels of the highest, driest, coldest continent on Earth. 

Giant icy cliffs, spiky blue icebergs, dramatic seascapes, frozen landscapes, polar volcanos, whales (humpbacks, fin), killer whales (orcas), seals (Weddell, crabeater, leopard), penguins (Adélie, gentoo, chinstrap) and lots of birds (skua, antarctic tern, petrel) and so much more. 

This Antarctica Expedition in collaboration with PhotoPills, will begin with a direct flight from Punta Arenas (Chile) to King George Island (Antarctica) on a private charter flight, skipping the Drake Passage – the roughest sea in the World! 

Once there, we won’t be joining one of those jam-packed giant tourist expedition vessels. Instead, we’ll jump onto our 20-meter yacht designed to explore shallower waters and get into locations that bigger ships can’t reach.

Can you imagine it? This is one of those rare opportunities that crosses your path once in a lifetime. 

Our vessel normally sleeps eight guests in four cabins, but we’re limiting the group size to six people for more space on board, in the zodiac and at landing sites. We’ll always choose the best route in order to maximize the photographic opportunities we’ll find at our destinations along the way, while responding to local conditions of weather and ice. And of course, we’ll be taking photos all day long…

It’s a dream come true! Who’s in?

Applications will open very soon. For now, you can sign up to the priority list through the link below. You’ll be the first to be notified when the bookings are officially open. Promised!

SIGN UP TO THE PRIORITY LIST HERE!

The post Antarctica Expedition – The Trip of a Lifetime appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Even though I love traveling, there’s now something that makes me suffer when I’m away from the office… What about? Well, being away from my BenQ SW320 monitor!

Since last January my workflow has completely been upgraded by this monitor which has truly simplified my approach to post-processing and brought my work to the next level. On such a bigger screen, my pictures look alive and really reach in details. And I finally don’t get crazy anymore with the zoom function when I post-process my work!

The BenQ SW320 monitor is part of the PhotoVue Professional Series and with a 99% Adobe RGB color space accuracy provides spectacular color performance and superwide color range. I’ve been wanting to upgrade to something similar for a while, but now that I finally have I fully understand what I was missing and how this monitor has improved (and will keep improving) my workflow. In addition, such a great quality for this price (1.499 USD at the time of writing) definitely makes it the best choice among its competitors that offer similar quality for much higher prices.

But now, let’s get into the details. I will analyze the BenQ SW320 monitor from a photographer point of view and share with you my personal thoughts about it, including what I like and what I don’t like about it.

WHO’S THIS MONITOR FOR?

A BenQ SW320 monitor is the ideal choice for anyone looking into printing his/her images. The 99% RGB color accuracy of this monitor will make sure that whatever you are going to print is going to look great. No bad surprises, with the correct calibration your print will look exactly how it looks like on your screen.

THE SPECIFICS

To better understand what’s great about this monitor, let’s have a look at the specifics first:

• 31.5 Inch, 3840 x 2160 UHD 4k Resolution
• 99% Adobe RGB Color Space With IPS technology
• High Dynamic Range (HDR)
• Palette Master Element Calibration Software with Hardware Calibration
• Brightness Uniformity Function
• Color Switching from AdobeRGB to several color spaces including sRGB and Black and White Mode
• SD/MMC Card Reader at the Back
• DisplayPort v1.4 Connector

31.5 Inch, we are talking about a monster monitor that will display a very large preview of your image and that will certainly make your post-processing easier. Also, the 99% Adobe RGB color accuracy, really leaves no space to errors. Another exciting feature is that you can rotate the screen very easily. This allows you to edit your vertical images in a vertical orientation with ease, without loosing any bit of screen real estate.

SETTING UP THE MONITOR

The monitor is super easy to set up. It comes with a screen, screen support, a Hotkey Puck that lets you switch between Adobe RGB, sRGB, and Black & White modes and detachable shading hood, to make sure that light sources that might be in your office/studio don’t distract your view on the screen. The set up is pretty straight forward and takes only about 10 minutes.

It’s very important to calibrate your monitor with the color profile you intend to work with. Before using a BenQ monitor, the following was my workflow. I was working with an online service to print my pictures. The company would provide me with the color space of their printer and I would set it on my old monitor to check how the colors would be. The thing is that, if your monitor has a lower color accuracy, those colors you see on your screen won’t match the ones you’ll see when you print, even if color calibrated.

The BenQ SW320 monitor will instead give you a precise preview of how the colors will actually look when you’ll print your image. All you need to do is to take knowledge of what color profile your printer uses and calibrate the monitor to match it. Colors will be correct and you won’t have any bad surprises.

Now, my honest opinion is that this monitor is great and does even more than what I need it for. It’s a high-quality screen that totally improves my editing process and the quality of my prints. Therefore I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to obtain similar results. In conclusion, below are the things I like and the ones I don’t like about it.

WHAT I LIKE 

• Screen dimensions
• Vertical orientation option
• Screen shading hood – to keep you focused on the screen
• 99% Adobe RGB color accuracy
• Value for money – very high quality for a smaller price compared to competitors

WHAT I DON’T LIKE

• SSD card reader at the back – one thing that would make the workflow even faster would be to have it at the front

The post Why You Need a BenQ SW320 Monitor in Your Life appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

With 2018 almost over and 2019 quickly approaching, I was looking back at this year’s adventures and awesome experiences and decided it would be cool to share some of those funny moments, cool pictures and milestones. Let’s see what it comes out of this year-in-review!

JANUARY

• As a tradition, Jessica and I like to begin the New Year in a place (possibly a country) different from our hometown. So on December 31st, after a very long brainstorming of where to go, we jump in the car and drive all the way to Lake Bled in Slovenia to celebrate the beginning of 2018. 

• It’s January 9th and I’m heading to Scotland for a 2-weeks solo trip. Things are going well on the Isle of Skye until it’s time to drive back to Edinburgh, a couple of days before my flight back home. A huge snowstorm causes schools and roads closure, everything is covered in white and the driving is super challenging. Why is it so challenging? My car has no winter tires and no chains! In the end I got to Edinburgh safe and sound just in time for my flight, but hey… lesson learnt: buy more backup candy for emergencies 😀

• January 30th, leaving Italy for a 3-weeks trip to Norway. First time visiting the country, first time being above the Arctic Circle and first time seeing the Northern Lights. Jessica and I spent our time visiting Stetind, Senja and Loften Islands and loved it. I was amazed by the fact that thanks to the Gulf Stream, if you’re near the sea, temperatures aren’t extremely cold. It’s happened a couple of times that it’s rained instead of snowing because the temperatures weren’t cold enough. Incredible, right? But the most surprising thing is definitely the Northern Lights. One moment you’re looking at a starry sky, the next one there’s aurora dancing all around. It’s just one of the most beautiful experiences ever.

FEBRUARY

• It’s February 13th and I’m spending my last week of the trip to Norway in the Lofoten Islands with my buddy Tobias Hagg who’s invited me to stay with him in Hattvika Lodge, a sick hotel in Ballstad. To sum it up, our days are all about shooting, pizza, more shooting and Northern Lights chasing!

About Lofoten, two other things I can’t forget are my surfing experience in the Arctic Circle without feeling my feet and hands anymore and the best Indian meal of the year cooked by Chris Hoiberg. Thanks buddy!

• On February 26th my flight was landing in the Faroe Islands. Third time in the country but first time there during the winter! You can tell from the pictures that I had a good time and as always I met some great people along the way, Felix Inden, Dennis Polkläser, Thomas Vikre and the “german roamers” Lennart Pagel, Leo Thomas, Roman Königshofer and Max Fischer. Again, as with Lofoten, I was amazed that the temperatures were not as cold as I was expecting and it blew my mind to see how “local” the weather is. I often had snow in one island and nothing in the one next to it (just a few kilometers away).

So yes, the snow was pretty cool, except when I almost risked my life on an icy road just to get sushi 😀 Second snowstorm of the year for me, dozens of cars crashing everywhere, but that additional 1h drive just to get to the restaurant was totally worth it… Maybe!

| SEE: Faroe Islands Workshops

MARCH

• It’s March 18th and Jessica and I are flying from Rome to El Calafate (Argentina). Spent almost two weeks shooting around El Chalten and Torres del Paine National Park, getting ready for a whole month of workshops and adventures.

APRIL

• On April 1st, the first out of three workshops in Patagonia begins. Three groups, a lot of camping, some crazy conditions and so many wonderful people. Hard to describe how wonderful it was, so I’ll let the pictures speak for me! Also, celebrated my birthday in Patagonia for the second year in a raw!

| SEE: Patagonia Workshops

MAY

• Back from Patagonia on May 5th and home until May 22nd when Michael Shainblum, Raphael Pons (PhotoPills) and I meet up in Edinburgh for a trip together. Funny fact: we just booked the tickets and picked a place where to meet a couple of days before the trip, with no plans, but it worked out great! We spent some days shooting around the Isle of Skye, where those two guys kept making fun of me because I was eating prawns everyday, and camped a couple of days at the Old Man of Storr.

• Scotland was actually a quick stop before flying to the Faroe Islands. Once again, it was my first time so up north in this period of the year and it wasn’t getting dark. So no, I didn’t quite use the headlamp I brought even though we were hiking around in the middle of the night. 

| SEE: Faroe Islands Workshops

JUNE

• The roaming around was over on June 12th, after spending some time in the Dolomites, but the next trip was just around the corner.

JULY

• On July 4th I was in Iceland for my first time, co-guiding a camping tour in the beautiful Highlands with Brynjar Agustsson. It was a dream coming true and I can’t wait to get back there and spend more time in the area which is such a photographer’s paradise!

• Back to Italy, ready to spend 1 wonderful week guiding a workshop in the Dolomites starting from July 12th. Flowers blooming, beautiful sunny days and a great time. Between one photo session and the other, booked tickets to Norway, ready for another adventure.

| SEE: Summer Dolomites Workshops

• Left for Norway on July 20th to travel around until August 4th. Apparently, when we were there, we experienced an unusual hot weather and even enjoyed a couple of days at the beach. Needless to say, diving wasn’t pleasant at all and the water was freezing 😀 But Norway allowed us to live another incredible experience: the midnight sun. We were hiking until 3am in the morning, without feeling tired, above spectacular fjords. Truly unforgettable. 

| SEE: Senja Workshops

AUGUST

• Without even realizing it, summer is almost over and on August 19th we leave again to begin our Faroe Islands workshop, among thousand of puffins, amazing sceneries and more sushi!

| SEE: Faroe Islands Workshops

SEPTEMBER

• A quick 1-day stop over in Copenhagen and it’s already time to get ready for Norway, where a camping tour above the fjords in Senja is starting on September 1st. Crazy to think I had never been to Norway before 2018 and visited three times over the year, you must guess I really enjoyed it 🙂 

| SEE: Senja Workshops

• Back to Italy, where a whole month of office work is waiting for me, until something unexpected and new comes up: I was invited last minute by Max Rive on a trip to Greenland starting on September 19th to co-guide a 10-day workshop with Matt Jackisch, camping in some unbelievable places and facing some amazing peaks. Another “first time” for me, a real adventure backpacking in a place I’ve been dreaming to go since I started out with photography. 

Plus, on the way there, I got the chance to fly over the rivers in Iceland with Haraldur Diego (@volcanopilot) and be directly dropped off at the airport to catch my flight to Greenland 😀 Just amazing!

OCTOBER

• October, where to start from? The beginning was pretty rough, but everything worked out great in the end. Coming back from Greenland was an adventure itself, got home on October 1st and left again for a private tour in the Dolomites on October 2nd. 

• By October 17th, back in the Dolomites to guide two workshops in the area (you can tell I love the Dolomites!). The autumn colors were just perfect and we enjoyed some great weather. 

| SEE: Autumn Dolomites Workshops

• Back from the workshops, we were getting ready for our next and last trip of the year starting on October 30th: a whole month exploring USA south-west and some sick locations. We had been already in the area two years earlier but didn’t have a drone at that time and enough time to properly scout the area.

NOVEMBER

• Had this trip in the States planned for a while, but finally got the time to go during the month of November. Among the highlights: several hours flight above Monument Valley to shoot aerials with Chris Dahl-Bredine; winning the lottery to visit “The Wave” (with over 100 people applying by the end of November!); endless kilometers of off-road with the coolest Jeep Wrangler 4×4; being cosy in the car with -9C outside while flying the drone for over 200km around the Colorado Plateau; meeting up with Michael Shainblum, Daniel Kordan and Skylum team in Death Valley.

DECEMBER

• So it’s time to say goodbye to the States, but not before a stop in New York. First time in NYC, attended the DJI Osmo Pocket launch, met great people and had an awesome experience (we’ll be back!), but the trip is over and we’re just ready to spend the holidays back home.

It’s been busy, tiring sometimes, but definitely great. I’m grateful I’ve been able to travel so much and explore so many new places this year and look forward to next year’s adventures. In the meantime, I wish you all happy holidays and a merry Christmas!

The post 2018 Year In Review appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Last year, I donated one of my pictures to Art Rangers, a nonprofit online gallery that sells national park-inspired work of art with the purpose to give back 100% of the profit to the US National Park Foundation.

Today, too many of the parks are in disrepair and as Oscar Nilsson and Alex Tatem (Art Rangers’ co-founders) say, Art Rangers is a chance for everyone to give back to the places that have given and keep giving us so much.

Recently featured by National Geographic, you can read their full article here.

Everyone can contribute and buy art here or submit his own art by clicking here.

The post Art Rangers – Donating art to save the parks appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Since the first moment I got into photography, I’ve seen National Geographic as something very “far away” but yet something I should try to reach. That’s why today I’m super excited to share with you that one of my photos has won the third place of the 2018 “National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year” contest!

A bit mote about this shot:

These natural sand towers, capped with large stones, are known as the Earth Pyramids of Platten. They are situated in Northern Italy’s South Tyrol region. Formed centuries ago after several storms and landslides, these land formations look like a landscape from outer space and continuously change over the years and, more accurately, over seasons. This natural phenomenon is the result of continuous alternation between periods of torrential rain and drought, which have caused the erosion of the terrain and the formation of these pinnacles. As the seasons change, the temperatures move between extremes and storms affect the area, pyramids disappear over time, while new pinnacles form as well.

The post National Geographic Travel Photographer of the Year 2018 appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Joined the Iceland Photo Tour’s team in September 2017 as a guide for Iceland and Faroe Islands workshops. You can see all my workshops listed here.

The post Guide at Iceland Photo Tours appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.

Hey! 500px has invited me as a Guest Editor for the whole month of June. Come and say hi for a chance to be featured!

The post 500px Guest Editor appeared first on Marco Grassi Photography.