Bernhard lang 的采访：空中视觉下的二重性世界
bernhard lang interview: the aerial photographer on life in the sky

由专筑网黎旭辰，李韧编译

Bernhard Lang的航空照片很容易让人们联想到抽象的艺术绘画。这些站在直升机从空中捕捉到的鸟瞰图像记录了许多令人惊奇的景象，只有亲身经历才能体会到其中的惊喜。

the aerial photographs of bernhard lang draw frequent comparison to abstract paintings, and looking at them it’s easy to see why. captured from above by helicopter or small plane, the birds-eye images conjure up strange and mesmerizing patterns that are all but invisible when standing on solid ground.


鸟瞰图：海港／from aerial views: harbour. all images by bernhard lang, courtesy of the artist

从许多方面可以看出，Lang丰富多彩的作品表现出孩童般的特征; 它们的颜色丰富，充满活力，有着严格的网格和线条。另外，这些照片让我们对世界有了更多不同角度的看法，这是那些我们很少关注的鸟瞰细节。照片让你感受自己漂浮在空中，跳出常人的约束去欣赏人类世界的美丽。

在飞行中，Lang的图像使我们能够跳脱出人视角的束缚，从而更加独立的看待这个世界的好与坏。 Lang最感兴趣的事情是通过他的拍摄得出不同的结果，这是来自人类世界与自然世界之间的平衡，也来自人类与地球之间共生却又相互斗争的关系。

in many ways, lang’s colorful compositions appeal to the childlike; they are rich with color, deliciously vibrant, full of satisfying grids and lines and the imagery of order. more simply, they offer a perspective on our world that we are rarely granted in such intimate detail. soaring from on high, lang indulges our collective dreams of taking to the air and floating above, leaving the earth below far behind.
in flight, lang’s images free us from the bonds of gravity and allow us to take a more detached look at the world and our effect on it — both good and bad. it is this duality that lang is most interested in investigating through his work, the strange balance between beauty and destruction, and the ongoing struggle for symbiosis between human kind and the earth we inhabit.


鸟瞰图：海港／aerial views: harbour

每一次观看Lang的照片你都能注意到一些不易察觉的细节，种植了几英里的一排郁金香，就像地毯中的线一样穿插在这些小屋子中。同样地，一个铺满运输集装箱的繁忙港口就像孩子们喜欢的乐高玩具。

但仔细观察，往往又能够发现一些并不那么乐观的细节。那些红色和白色的像地毯一样蔓延的图块实际上是马尼拉最拥挤的贫民窟，而那些像静脉一样的色彩实际上是多年的采煤活动所留下的痕迹。

设计师在他的工作中谈到这些细节，以及从天空拍摄的各种困难。

lang’s images demand repeat inspection, with different approaches offering multiple minute details. rows of tulips, planted for miles, could just as easily be the knitted threads of a carpet or jumper (the tiny houses give it away). likewise the vividly hued shipping containers of a busy harbour call to mind the colourful lego bricks of children around the world.
closer inspection however, often reveals a more destructive narrative contained within. that sprawling tapestry of red and white is actually one of manila’s most crowded slums, and those veins of colour so perfectly etched into the earth were in reality created by years of coal mining activity.
recently, designboom spoke with lang about this balance within his work, and the unique challenges of photographing from the sky.  


鸟瞰图：养鱼场／aerial views: fish farm

designboom：一开始是什么激发了你对摄影师这个职业的兴趣，又是什么让你想要通过摄影去探索世界？

Bernhard Lang ：我一直渴望从事一个类似摄影这样结合创造力和技术技能的职业。但实际上我是一个很晚才接触到摄影的人，大概在我23岁的时候，那时候我在专门从事广告摄影的摄影工作室开始做学徒，直到三年后才成为一名摄影师。在我一开始当学徒的时候，我甚至不知道有关摄影的任何事情，但幸运的是，通过不断的学习，我发现自己是一个对视觉空间极具天赋的人，后来我对图像的激情逐步发展到能够自己创作。这种对图像的热情让我继续前进。

designboom: what first sparked your interest in becoming a photographer, and what is it that keeps you exploring the medium today?
bernhard lang: I have always aspired to be in a profession that combines creativity and technical skills — something which I found in photography. I was a late starter. at 23 years old I started an official 3 year apprenticeship as a photographer at a photo studio that specialized in advertising photography. at the beginning of my apprenticeship I didn’t know anything about photography, but fortunately it turned out that I’m a visual person, and my passion for imagery and its creation developed step by step. this passion for imagery keeps me moving on.


鸟瞰图：adria／aerial views: adria

DB：拍摄鸟瞰图的最初灵感来源？

BL：是在一次乘坐飞机的过程中。实际上我一直对飞机窗外的景观着迷。我记得是在从慕尼黑飞往东京的航班中经过了西伯利亚，以及在另一次飞往南非的旅途中我看到了浩瀚的沙漠，我们都被雪地和沙漠景观所吸引。从10,000米以上的高空看到沙漠中的巨大河流，这些图像令人印象深刻。 而这些风景给了我抽象绘画的灵感。

DB: what initially drew you to the idea of aerial photography?
BL: I have always been fascinated by the vistas outside the window during usual passenger flights. I remember being particularly captivated by snowy landscapes during a passenger flight from munich to tokyo over siberia, and the vast deserts I saw on another passenger flight to south africa. it was very impressive to see these structures from 10,000 meters above…the landscapes, the huge rivers and structures and patterns in the deserts. these sceneries often reminded my of abstract paintings.


鸟瞰图：adria／aerial views: adria

DB：你可以跟我们谈谈你拍摄的图像吗？这种类型的摄影需要哪些准备工作或者设备？以及每次拍摄中的准备情况都足够充分吗？

BL：组织和规划是花费最多时间和精力的部分。首先需要做飞行路线的计划，包括我想要拍摄的有趣的景点。然后我需要雇用一架直升机或一架小飞机。但在飞行拍摄期间，我却不会严格按照预定的飞行计划来拍摄。通常是在空中看到自己喜欢的风景和景点，我就会进行拍摄。

我用高分辨率芯片的中端数码相机拍摄，因为只有高分辨率文件才能形成这样制作精美的艺术品。对于我来说，用大尺寸格式看它们时，这些航拍的照片效果最好，观众能够看到照片中的丰富细节。

DB: can you talk us through the process of capturing your images? what preparation or equipment is involved in photography of this type, and how much planning goes into each project?
BL: the organization and planning is the part which takes the most time and effort. first I do a flight route including the interesting spots I’d like to photograph. then I hire a helicopter or a little plane. during the photo-flight I do not strictly follow the flight plan. I often decide spontaneously by seeing for myself from above which sceneries and spots to photograph.
I shoot with a medium format digital camera with a high resolution chip, because I need high resolution files to be able to produce fine art prints in a high scale format. for me, aerial photos have the best effect when you can see them on large scale format, so the viewer is able to see the richness of the detail.


鸟瞰图：郁金香区／aerial views: tulip fields

DB：那么你是如何选择你想要拍摄的地点呢？

BL：在我的想法中，拍摄的地方首先要有趣，同时也要拥有一定双重性的问题。 我的目的是展示地球的变化以及人们对地球的破坏。

DB：您的照片可以看作是图案或色彩的抽象作品，也可以作为你对社会、经济和环境问题的独特评论视角。你能谈谈这两个部分对你的工作的影响吗？

BL：这正是我工作的指导思想：一方面有正式的美感或视觉上的秩序，另一方面则是这些地方是由人类活动的影响所造成的转变或破坏。我不想传道或呼吁，我只是试图通过我的工作展示这种过程与结果。

DB: how do you choose your subjects?
BL: for my aerial views project the subjects should be on one hand visually interesting and at the same time also be about a relevant issue. my aim is to show the beauty of the the transformation/destruction of earth.

DB: your images can be viewed both as abstract compositions of pattern or color and as a commentary on various social, economical and environmental issues. can you talk a bit about the dynamic between these two dimensions to your work?
BL: that’s exactly the guiding idea of my work: there is the formal beauty or a pleasant order on one hand, and on the other the transformation or destruction of original nature, caused by human impact. I don’t want to preach or moralize — I am just trying to display this antagonism through my work.


鸟瞰图：郁金香区／aerial views: tulip fields

DB：你能谈谈你最新的系列“养鱼场”吗？ 该主题的灵感来源是什么？以及此次拍摄过程是怎样的？

BL：其实之前我已经从空中看到了这些养鱼场里不同形状的网和笼子形成了一种超写实的图案。奇怪的卵形外壳似乎像抽象的几何设计。海上密集的大规模鱼业养殖可能是不断增长的世界人口的固然需求。另一方面，鱼类养殖方面存在许多问题，诸如饲料、疾病、寄生虫、抗生素药物的过度使用、以及不恰当的屠宰方法等。

DB: can you speak about your most recent series, ‘fish farms’? what about the subject captured your imagination, and how did the project come about?
BL: I have been captivated seeing from above the surreal looking arrangements of the different shaped nets and cages of these fish farms. the strange, ovoid enclosures appeared like abstract geometric designs to me. intensive mass animal farming on the sea might be one way to help feeding the growing world population. on the other hand there are issues in fish farming which are quite controversial like feeds, diseases and parasites, use of strong antibiotic drugs, slaughter methods and so on.


鸟瞰图：马尼拉／aerial views: manila

DB：随着instagram和iPhone的兴起，拍摄和分享照片的方式在过去十年中发生了巨大的变化。这样的变化是否对你的工作方式产生了影响？现在哪些新技术能够让你着迷？

BL：我用中端相机拍摄的方式没有受到社交媒体或iPhone的太多影响，但是当然，我看到这些平台在摄影方面的巨大变化，甚至人们还通过使用无人机的空中摄影。

这样每天都会出现大量的图像，这些图像通过各种社交媒体渠道传播，这让我有些措手不及，因为图像的更新换代太快了。

但是另一方面，instagram是一个很好的渠道和营销工具，可以轻松地向全世界展示你的工作。就iPhone而言，我最近与苹果合作，这是在2016年开始的新活动。他们要求我通过迈阿密的直升机用iPhone进行拍摄，这真的很有趣。当然，所拍摄的照片已经在全球苹果商店展出。

DB: with the rise of instagram and iPhones, how photographs are taken and shared has changed drastically over the past decade. how has this, if at all, impacted the way you make work, and are there any technologies emerging at the moment that you are particularly excited by?
BL: the way I shoot with my medium format camera has not changed that much through social media or iPhones, but of course I see the dramatic changes in photography as a result of these platforms, and in aerial photography through the use of drones.
there’s this daily immense flood of images emerging through instagram, other social media channels and iPhones which reduces the time of interest in your work, because so much new imagery emerges, so quickly.
on the other hand, instagram is a good channel and marketing tool to easily show your work globally to a lot of people. as far as the iPhone, I recently collaborated with apple for their ‘start something new’ campaign in 2016. they requested that I photograph with the iPhone out of a helicopter over miami, which was real fun. the resulting photos have been shown globally in apple stores.


鸟瞰图：煤矿／aerial views: coal mine

DB：你有特别喜欢的特定照片或系列吗？

BL：我迄今为止印象最为深刻的经历是今年在菲律宾的马尼拉。曾经我去过那里，从上面拍摄过一个关于人口过剩的系列照片。在飞行前的那个晚上，我提前在我们想要飞过的地方进行拍摄，突然看到在城市里有巨大的火光。然后第二天早上，当我们又一次在这个贫民窟区域飞过时，我们看到这片区域已经被彻底烧毁了。 我看到人们爬过那些被摧毁的房屋，试图找到他们的物品。

DB: do you have a specific photograph or series that you are particularly fond of?
BL: the most impactful experience I have had so far was in manila, philippines this year. I traveled there to shoot a series about overpopulation from above. the night before the photo flight I saw a huge fire in the city directly at one of the areas where we wanted to fly over to photograph. the next morning when we were flying over this slum area, we saw that this quarter was completely burned down. I saw people crawling through their destroyed homes, trying to find any of their belongings.


鸟瞰图：煤矿／aerial views: coal mine

DB：对于你很着迷的那些艺术家的作品，你是怎么把它们如何融入自己的作品中呢？

BL：虽然我不能说出特定的艺术家，但我对抽象绘画很感兴趣。英国的一个评论家评论了我去年在荷兰拍摄的郁金香区域系列作品，“如果要联想到艺术作品，我觉得它像是Piet Mondrian的抽象几何画”，但是，我想表达的不是将我的照片和一位画家进行比较，画家在他的想象中创造了自己的作品，而我只是拍摄了地球的图案。

DB：有没有一些地方你曾经在空中拍摄过，但却没机会进行实地考察？

BL：是的，有很多。有些地方距离机场太遥远，所以飞行的费用太高。 或者是一些禁止进入的区域，例如非洲或俄罗斯的矿山。

DB: are there any other artists you are currently fascinated by, and how do they feed into your own work?
BL: I can’t point out particular artists, but generally I am interested in abstract painting. the british guardian wrote about my aerial views tulips fields series which I shot in the netherlands last year: ‘if they bring to mind any artwork, it is the clinical geometric abstraction of piet mondrian’. but I would like to be modest and not compare my photographs to a painter, who creates his work in his imagination — I am just cutting out frames of the surface of our planet.

DB: are there any specific locations you would to photograph from the air, that you haven’t had the chance the visit yet?
BL: yes, there are a lot of them. some are just too far away from any airport, so the flight costs would be too high. or for others it is not possible to get a permission, for example the mines of africa or russia.


鸟瞰图：马尼拉／aerial views: manila


鸟瞰图：马尼拉／aerial views: manila


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