Photography

The extraordinary aerial photography of Bernhard Lang

The extraordinary aerial photography of Bernhard Lang
From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
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One of Lang's personal favorite photographs, a triptych of beach umbrellas in Versilia, Tuscany
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One of Lang's personal favorite photographs, a triptych of beach umbrellas in Versilia, Tuscany
The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila
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The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila
The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila
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The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila
From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
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From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
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From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
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From Lang's 2015 Sony World Photography Award winning series called Adria, investigating mass tourism along the beaches of Italy
One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
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One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
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One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
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One of Lang's favorite recent projects is called Crate Stacks, looking at the Tetris-like patterns in crates at a German beverage manufacturing plant
London, July 2019
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London, July 2019
London, July 2019
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London, July 2019
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
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Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
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Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
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Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
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Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
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Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
East Frisian Islands, Northern Germany, 2018
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East Frisian Islands, Northern Germany, 2018
East Frisian Islands, Northern Germany, 2018
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East Frisian Islands, Northern Germany, 2018
Open pit phosphate mining in Florida, USA 2015
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Open pit phosphate mining in Florida, USA 2015
Open pit phosphate mining in Florida, USA 2015
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Open pit phosphate mining in Florida, USA 2015
Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
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Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
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Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
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Harbour, boats and fishing - Manilla
Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
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Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
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Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
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Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
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Fish farms off the coast of Greece, 2017
The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
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The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
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The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
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The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
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The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
View gallery - 31 images

For over a decade Munich-based photographer Bernhard Lang has been working on a massively impressive project called Aerial Views. From the abstract spectacle of solar power plants in the United States to the dense urban jungle of Manila, Lang has extensively explored our world from above. New Atlas spoke to Lang to uncover his favorite images from a decade of stunning snaps.

In 2010, after being inspired by the gorgeous abstraction of landscapes when looking down from above in a passenger plane, Bernhard Lang began an ongoing aerial art project. Since then, Lang has traveled from Europe to Africa to the United States, capturing a broad variety of landscapes from above, and winning an array of awards along the way.

Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018
Solar power plants in the United States, photographed in 2018

When Lang first began his aerial photography project commercial drones were only just reaching the market. Despite rapid evolutions in drone technology over recent years Lang still prefers getting in a plane or helicopter to capture his images.

“I wouldn't say that I generally don't like drones,” Lang tells New Atlas. “There are many areas where drones make more sense than taking pictures from an aircraft. For me personally, I prefer to take photos from aircraft because the question of permits is better clarified. There are often many legal restrictions on drone flights. A pilot of an aircraft knows exactly where, how high or how low he is allowed to fly. In addition, the resolution of the chip of my medium format camera and the quality of the lenses is significantly better compared to a consumer drone.”

The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy
The Carrara marble mines in the Apuan Alps in Italy

Lang’s work primarily focuses on geometric patterns and interesting color contrasts. However, his subjects are not solely chosen based on aesthetic values. His work almost always offers an investigation into the interactions between humans and nature.

“I am trying to find locations which are having visually interesting graphic structures, a richness in details and interesting colors,” Lang explains. “Besides the aesthetic aspect, I am also trying to find places covering global and environmental relevant issues.”

Not every project goes to plan. In 2017 Lang visited Manilla, in the Philippines, with a plan to fly over the city and capture a striking perspective of an extraordinarily overpopulated urban environment. The photographs he ultimately ended up taking were certainly not what he originally envisioned.

The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila
The day after a fire spread through Tondo, one of the most densely populated parts of Manila

"I traveled there to capture an aerial views project about overpopulation,” says Lang. “The night before the photo flight I saw from my hotel room 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. It was dramatic to see people crawling through their destroyed homes, trying to find any of their belongings.”

In 2015 Lang won one of the world’s most prestigious photography competitions, the Sony World Photography Awards. The winning photo-set looked at the immense scale of tourism on the beaches of Italy. The incredible patterns created by sun-umbrella formations on tourist beaches has often fascinated Lang, and he has returned to the subject several times over the years. One of his all-time favorite images is a triptych of sun-umbrella patterns captured in the resort town of Versilia, an Italian resort town in Tuscany.

One of Lang's personal favorite photographs, a triptych of beach umbrellas in Versilia, Tuscany
One of Lang's personal favorite photographs, a triptych of beach umbrellas in Versilia, Tuscany

“The arrangements of the parasols on an Italian beach and the coloring look interesting, and for me the image has a special positive expression, that makes me think of vacation, sun, beach and sea,” Lang adds.

Take a look through our gallery at more of Bernhard Lang’s incredible aerial photography.

Source: Bernhard Lang, Instagram

View gallery - 31 images
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