
Simon Hechtbauer (@roamwithsimon): Best of the Week 32 at #nomadict
Simon shares the journey behind his photography, from early inspirations to field techniques, editing, and the story of the winning shot that shaped his path.
My name is Kevin Bruseby and I am a 16 year old photographer based in southern Sweden. When I was 6 years old, I became interested in meteorology. I was deeply fascinated by the nature and different weather fenomenas, and as I got older, this interest of mine kept growing. No matter where I was, I would often find myself looking up at the clouds and curiously study them as they gently moved across the blue sky, or I would be drawing weather maps over Sweden, creating my own weather forecasts. I used to draw all the time anyway and I loved creating my own comic books, but I stopped doing this when life got busier with school.
My family showed nothing but a great support as photography has always been a part of my family’s traditions. I took my first photos during a trip to Switzerland in 2015; I got to visit some very photogenic locations such as Lauterbrunnen, Wengen and Grindelwald. I was immediately fascinated by the beautiful nature, and it was unlike anything I had ever seen before. At this time I used a cheap Sony phone to take photos, but since the landscapes were breathtaking in real life I also expected my images to be as beautiful. To my disappointment, the images did not at all turn out the way I expected them to. When I got home, I ended up deleting almost all of the images before even transferring them to my computer.
After a year I created a new Instagram account dedicated to my photography and I started following photographers that inspired me, such as @jordhammond. I began taking photos with a pocketable point and shoot camera, but soon after that I bought new gear and I slowly developed my own style in terms of composing images and how to edit them.
Having the opportunity to work with brands has definitely helped me improve as a photographer, since I’ve got to photograph things that I normally wouldn’t. When working for a real client that expects the images to look good one needs to do his absolute best in order to live up to the client’s expectations. I think this is the best way to improve as a photographer since we often need that extra push in order to step out of our comfort zone. Some essential things I’ve learned through these collaborations are to really understand what you need to know from the business itself to be able to create the best possible images, and to clarify very well all the details of the project, especially when working with brands from other parts of the world, to prevent misunderstandings.
It’s also very cool to see that quite many brands are open to work with a 16 year old. I think this proves that anyone can achieve success as a photographer as long as one creates good content and is dedicated. This definitely makes me feel confident about my work while it also gives a lot of inspiration to keep improving. It’s not always easy to take the first steps, but I if you never try, you will never know. I could never have imagined that things would work out as smoothly as they did; the people behind each brand are very kind and strongly believe in their visions and work hard in order to bring them to life.
Today, my interest for meteorology still is the main contributor to my passion for photography. I’ve always felt a strong connection to the nature and being able to experience tranquil moments outdoors definitely helps me to keep my mind at ease when life gets hectic. Nevertheless, it wasn’t until recent years that I began to fully understand how different elements in the earth’s ecosystem are connected and how our way of living can affect the earth and the wildlife in a negative way. In 2018, I got to visit the Aletsch Glacier in Switzerland and witnessed the retreating glacier with my own eyes. The same year, an extremely dry spring and summer lead to dreadful wildfires occurring all across Sweden.
Considering that the nature always has played an important role in my life, I feel like it’s my duty to do my best in order to help tackle these problems. The more I learn about our planet, the better I want my images to be in order to be able to express my thoughts through the images I take. As I got into social media, I knew that I wanted to take this opportunity to make a positive impact on the world.
When sharing photographs on social media, my main goal is to post images that make people feel happy and calm. Photography is all about telling stories and evoking emotions through images, so if I could make someone’s day a bit better with my photographs, that would make my day.
Apart from the social media aspect, I’ve also made changes in my own lifestyle. Even though they may seem small changes, in the long term they can make a big difference. In the future I would also like to be part of live clean-ups and support local organisations such as @_cleansea in order to directly help solving problems with littering and contribute to a more sustainable world.
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Simon shares the journey behind his photography, from early inspirations to field techniques, editing, and the story of the winning shot that shaped his path.

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