Laura Oppelt Photography

This week we put the questions to Laura Oppelt, a Landscape Photographer from Germany.

What got you into photography?

Good question! When reflecting on that, I think I’ve always enjoyed being outdoors since I was a child,

especially in the mornings and evenings when the sunlight was soft and golden. Luckily, growing up at the

countryside meant lots of nature around. Little by little the feeling of capturing these moments in pictures

emerged. When I got my first camera (a cheap and tiny digital 4 mp camera from the discounter) at the age of

eleven the photography adventure began. About three years after that I bought my first DSLR camera, a

Canon 600D, and another two three later, when I was seventeen, I stepped up to full-frame with a Canon 6D.

Throughout the years I’ve engaged a lot with different shooting and post processing techniques and never

lost my interest in nature, which has always been the basis for my photography. Actually, quite a boring story

since there was no big ‘wakeup’ event that suddenly changed everything. For me, it was more of a gradual

development and fast forward to today, photography has turned into a huge part of my life and personality.

How long have you been shooting for?

I consider the real start of my photography in summer 2016 when I began shooting with my first full-frame

camera. Eight years of beautiful moments outdoors and lots of lessons learned have passed since then.

Do you have a favourite camera setting?

I love shooting into the sun to create sun stars! People often tell me that they recognize my images by that.

So, an aperture of f/16 might be my favourite camera setting.

What camera do you shoot with and what else is in your bag?

Since summer 2023 I shoot with a mirrorless Canon R5 and absolutely love it! My favourite lens is the Canon

16-35 mm f/4 (because of its beautiful sun stars). Furthermore, I use the Canon 24-105 f/4 as mid-range lens,

the Canon 70-200 f/2.8 as zoom lens and the Sigma 14 mm f/1.4 for night and astro photography.

What’s the hardest part of working as a photographer (if any)?

A big challenge is to always come up with something new and to keep up creativity and motivation. The lack

of sleep can be quite tough as well of course. But for me personally it’s the combination of working as a

photographer and studying fulltime. Luckily this is nothing permanent but at the moment time is very limited,

which makes it hard to perform great in both ;)

If money was no object, what would your dream camera be or are you happy with what you have?

A camera is always just the tool for a photographer’s personal vision, the medium to turn ideas into something

we can actually look at. Even though the right camera is important and eases much of the process to achieve

the result we want, it should not be overestimated. I’m happy with what I have. But I could name at least three

more lenses that I would absolutely love to possess :D

Do you have any photography inspirations and who are they?

That would give a long list of names since there are so many great and talented photographers out there!

Especially when starting out my biggest inspirations were Ryan Dyar and Dennis Polkläser, along with

Nicholas Roemmelt and Stefan Hefele. As you’ve probably noticed, these are all men and for a long time I

haven’t questioned why I couldn’t name any female photographers. I still feel that women are not that visible

and equally represented in landscape photography, but we are here! Rachel Jones Ross, Sabine Weise,

Sandra Bartocha, Victoria Haack and many more. Today, there are lots of fantastic photographers, male and

female, from whom I can learn and get inspired every day. Little by little I’ve found my own style and personal

approach, but there are definitely many photographers I really admire.

Is there anywhere or anything that you haven’t photographed but you’d love to and why?

Oh absolutely, the world is wide and I haven’t been to a lot of places yet. Like many landscape photographers

I’d love to explore New Zealand with my camera, as well as Iceland, Patagonia or Canada. Other dream

destinations on my list are Tasmania, Nepal and Kazakhstan. Why? Because it’s always something different

to experience places from your own perspective and with your own eyes. There’s beauty anywhere to be

found and I love the feeling of soaking in the views in an unknown place.

What advice would you give to a photographer regardless of gender just starting out?

Be curious and interested, have no fear to fail and find out what really thrills you. Shoot together, shoot alone,

ask for feedback and be open-minded. Frustration is part of the process, setbacks are normal. Stay positive if

something doesn’t work out with the first attempt. But the most important thing is having fun ;)

What’s the one question you wish I’d asked you and how would you have answered?

What is your biggest childhood dream and why?

Since I was little I’ve been the biggest penguin lover you could imagine. I spent countless hours watching

documentaries and studying books about them and my biggest childhood dream hasn’t changed ever since:

Photographing emperor penguins in Antarctica! Facing the extreme temperatures they live in and

experiencing their strength would be the adventure of my lifetime!

Golden-Shores

Fallig-Star.

Arctic-Awakening

To learn more about Laura and her work please visit the links below.