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Yannick Lyner
@yannicklyner_pictures
Photographer based in Switzerland
When you struggle at mathematics and geometry at school, but shine when doing any creative activity (literally and figuratively), you kind of know in what direction you will be heading. So after school I decided to do an apprenticeship as an advertising engineer. During this apprenticeship I discovered my passion for photography.
Once I had saved some money from my first wages I bought myself a Nikon D5000 and with full enthusiasm I went outside and took my first nature and landscape pictures. At the beginning I was only shooting in the village where I lived. Sometimes I went to the forest and spent a whole afternoon in the woods with my camera, and very often I went to a lake near my village to shoot at sunrise and sunset. I took that many photos of this lake that one day someone wrote to me asking if I could shoot something other than only that lake. So this was the point when I started to explore more locations within my region and in Switzerland.
After 1.5 years I felt the need to improve my photography skills, so I decided to quit my job and started looking for an internship in a photo studio. Without any experience, it was difficult to find something. But one day I received a phone call from one of the studios I sent an application to and got the chance to do an internship for 6 months. Meanwhile I also was looking for a higher education school in photography, found one in Zurich and got accepted after doing the entrance examination. In February 2017, I finally embarked on this learning journey for the next three years, where I also established my own photo studio. In February this year I graduated with an Advanced Federal Diploma of Higher Education in Photography.
"During my studies I learned to step out of my comfort zone."
Landscape photography had been the only thing I did for several years, and for some projects at school I decided to do something very different. I tried portrait and people photography and for one project I worked with watercolor and centrifugal force. This allowed me to grow as a photographer. Never had I dealt before with people in front of the camera, so I learned about capturing emotions and key moments of people and about my role as a photographer in that process. It was a discovery of new genres, of what I enjoyed and didn’t enjoy, and so my passion for photography became more complete and defined.
For my final project at the university I had decided to do something innovative and creative, something challenging. Thus, inspired by Felix Rachor, a German beauty and fashion photographer, I thought of doing beauty portraits with special details added to the faces besides the make-up that would be used. As I didn’t want to spend too much money on this, I got the idea of “upcycling” after a few hours of brainstorming. The concept was about transforming garbage into something aesthetic, something beautiful. I wanted five models to do five shootings with five different types of waste. I had collected litter from a horologist, a carpenter, a florist and a Formula One team. Finding the models was quite a challenge, so at the end I did four shootings and I am proud to have been able to include my wife both as a model and make-up artist. We carefully discussed which type of make-up would match the type of litter which was an interesting process. Afterwards, I had to learn about beauty retouching for the post processing.
Today I mostly shoot for businesses, do events, weddings and of course landscape photography, which is still my biggest passion. When I‘m out in nature I can switch off all the negativities, bad thoughts, stress and I can fully relax. Out there in nature I only hear the birds, the wind blowing through the trees or the swoosh of the water. But the best moments are when the sun rises and the light touches your face after a cold night outside in nature. This, for me, is like meditation or yoga. Being outdoors taking landscape photographs, is a very good diversification to my daily routine. If I wouldn‘t do landscape photography I would miss out on the most beautiful phenomena and moments that exist in this world. With my landscape photos I hope to bring the beauty of the natural world to the people.
"I hope my photos can touch someone's feelings and can warm some hearts."
This is why I love photography. A photo can capture a moment, transmit feelings and provoke emotions. It‘s unbelievable. One of my favorite photos is still one of lake Palpuogna (Lai da Palpuogna) that I took in 2017. It was the last picture I took of an amazing adventure and for me, it reflects all the good moments from this trip. When I see this photo, I go right back to the moment that I took the photo and feel the energy and emotions caused by this memory flowing through my body.
In October 2017 I went on a two days trip to Engadine, in the canton of Grisons, with my friend Samuel Büttler. We woke up very early to catch the sunrise at the glacier Morteratsch. We hiked like 20 – 30 minutes to a spot we found to be perfect; from there you have an incredible view over the yellow trees until the glacier. When we wanted to prepare the cameras I noticed that I had forgotten my tripod in the car. So I made the same route again, almost running, to be back there for sunrise. Only then we realized that it wasn‘t a very good spot for sunrise because on the east, where the sun comes up, was a huge mountain. So we simply had breakfast and enjoyed nature. While we waited we saw two people walking the way up towards us. One of them was Tobias Ryser, for me one of the best photographers I have followed since I started. We had a really nice talk and started taking photos around 10am, when the sun had passed the mountain.
"This was a surprising moment and it was fun and special to shoot with someone I admire."
On the same day, we went to lake Palpuogna (Lai da Palpuogna) for our sunset spot. After we arrived there, we walked around the lake to find the perfect spot. There were a lot of photographers; almost every good spot was occupied. So we waited one or two hours until sunset since we had arrived early. The sun disappeared really fast behind the mountains and all of the photographers left the lake right after that. Since it was our last moment of our trip, Samuel and I decided to wait a little longer on a really cool spot where the mountains were reflected in the lake. We almost lost our hope when the clouds began to get color and we could catch a really beautiful light. This day showed that patience is rewarded and you should never give up too early.
"Nature needs its time and we have to respect that and adapt."
"Actually, I believe the only obstacle in photography is ourselves."
The weather can‘t be an obstacle because we can’t control it anyway and simply have to use what nature provides us with. Time can‘t be an obstacle as you are in control of prioritizing what you do in your life. And travel can’t be an obstacle because we don’t actually need to travel to find something worth photographing. Now I am lucky to live in Switzerland so I don’t feel the need to travel to other countries to take photos anyway. Nevertheless, for me my biggest obstacle is me and my laziness. It is me who’s responsible for the obstacles and opportunities on my path. Sometimes I would have the time, but it costs me quite an effort to get up and go out. Generally, I prefer to plan something with a friend because it is easier for me to get up and it is just much more fun.
"We can exchange experiences and tell stories, learn from each other and share memorable moments in nature."
There‘s always something to learn, but I don‘t have one specific thing in my mind. I want to develop my photography continuously, but I believe in the principle of learning by doing. So I go with the flow, take up the questions I encounter along the way and follow my curiosity. One project I would love to realize though, is to make a reportage about Colombia, my wife’s home country. Colombia has so much to offer; one of the largest biodiversity, the Amazon, mountains with snow, coast on the Caribbean and on the Pacific Ocean… I would like to capture all of it over the years, to compile everything in a photo book demonstrating the beauty of the country.
I consider it to be very special that I can contribute to the image others have of a place by showing my photographs, and that my photographs freeze how a place looks like a second in time, an instant in history. That I can capture moments and bring the memories and intense emotions back through my photography.
"But it is even more special to me that my wife and my family are always there for me, an incredible support so I can keep pursuing my passion."
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