A Light Painting Trip to the Monastery and Castle Oybin

Link to the video

Its been about a year ago since I visited Oybin. Together with Sven Gerard and his family,

we meet Danilo Eberhard Strauss from Görlitz in June 2019 at the hillside of the Monastery and Castle Oybin. Since it was summer we knew the night will be short. As it turns out really short.

Light Painting where? At the Monastery Oybin
We went to the most famous mountain in the Zittau Mountains. The 514-meter-high Oybin, is a sandstone massif in the middle of a basin surrounded by volcanoes such as the Hochwald (749 m). This extremely picturesque landscape created the forces of nature over the course of millions of years: In the Cretaceous period, the sandstone, which broke through in the Tertiary period by volcanic magma, first appeared. The grandiose ruins of the medieval buildings in conjunction with the special natural conditions make the Oybin one of the main sights of Upper Lusatia, the visit of which makes the highlights of a stay in the Zittau region. Source

That was where we head out to go. When you read this you almost get a blockage the pressure this place creates. I got to come up with some great images here.

But first we have to get there. OOH yes, and we have to bring “light tools”. All of them.

We did travel with cars – not exactly ‘light’
Arriving at the base of the monastery we got the help we needed. Bringing two metric tons of flashlights and orb tools as well as two beers up that hill would have been super exhausting. We all been super happy that we have been picked up and all the equipment was brought up the mountain with the trailer.

Why go there? My 5 reasons to go to Oybin?

1. We got invited by super nice people. Everyone there is so open and positive.
2. They said we can stay throughout the night. When do you get that? We loved it.
3. We can access all the areas we like. So trustworthy we are!
4. We can fly the drone, see the images. Not a standard these days.
5. All of the above – what am I talking about, see for yourself

Light Painting Monastery Oybin

In the beginning, we spend time to inhale that historic smell of the ancient walls. Once it got darker we all started running around and shed some light into the arches and backyards. The camera was not exactly running at all times. But two images I can share that show off the Monastery Oybin

The Monk of Light

The most prominent photos I got that night are featuring “The Monk of Light”. Danilo brought this impressive Monk suit. For us, the theme was most definitely Light. For me I wanted him to find this centered position inside the altars former space filling it with a trail of light. We cant rebuild the physical features of the monastery yet we can hint what was there not in features but in meaning, by leading the viewer eyes.

Light Painting the Castle Oybin

On the hillside of the Monastery, you’ll also find the remains of the prior castle. The walls are breathing the history, being the perfect backdrop for Light Painting. The night getting shorter and shorter we knew we need to come back. But one or two shots should still be possible.

Thank you, Felix (FerpixeLt) for modeling. There is one more person in the image. Have a closer look. Can you see it?

Light Painting Monastery Oybin Video
If you want to get a bit closer and see what it was like you can watch the “Behind the scenes” – “Making Off” video footage from that adventure. Marla Singer and Sven Gerard shared their images and allowed me to add some impression that illustrates how they are working.

Got 7:35min? Watch the Location Check 009 on my Youtube Channel

All of us are super thankful for this opportunity and are looking forward to our “come back” in Oybin.

I hope it was informative and maybe also inspirational. If you have more questions please do not hesitate. I am happy to share my knowledge.

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Gunnar Heilmann Photogrpahy

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