Northern Lifestyle Social Media Influencer: Photographer Spotlight Q&A With Daniel Ernst

Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series we have Daniel Ernst.

Daniel is a self taught freelance photographer from Frankfurt, Germany. His photography is inspired by nature, focusing on the outdoors, adventure and northern lifestyles.

With 602k Instagram followers, Daniel falls into the category of “social media incluencer”. Daniel’s work is absolutely amazing and it’s easy to see why he’s so popular on Instagram – but what is really interesting is his final advice for photographers who would like do something similar.

Q&A With Lifestyle Adventure Photographer Daniel Ernst

1. What is your specialty? What do you love to photograph?

I see myself as an adventure / lifestyle photographer mainly in the colder regions of the North or the mountains. I always try to take people along on my trips through the photos and document our daily lives while traveling.

2. How long has it been since you first started taking photography seriously – what has that progression been like?

I first started taking it more or less serious from October 2014 on when I was in New Zealand for around a year. Being surrounded by the beauty of this country gave me an extra motivation to gain more knowledge in this.

3. Are there any particular images you’ve captured that stand out as being especially meaningful or satisfying to you?

There are dozens of photos that are especially meaningful to me as they remind me of special person in my life or a certain moment.

4. What challenges do you face capturing the shots you want to capture?

Usually it’s the weather that doesn’t keep up to my expectations.

5. What motivates you to put in the effort to overcome those challenges?

Just finally realizing the shot that has been stuck in my mind for a long time gives me enough motivation to visit places many times and wait for the perfect image.

6. What gear do you use? Why?

I’m the opinion that gear doesn’t matter, especially when the shots are for Instagram. So I see myself shooting with a bunch of cameras from full frame to micro 4/3, drones, iPhone and Polaroid :)

7. Is there a market for your work? How do you make money?

There are a lot of clients that I’m shooting special commissions for, but apart from that I get a lot of requests for doing ‘influencer work’ from my large audience on social media .

8. How do you promote yourself and your work?

Mainly through Instagram and events.

9. What are your goals for your photography career in the next year, 5 years, long term?

A big goal is to finally get a book done – that would be my 5 year goal. Other goals are to improve and enhance my style, my photography and use my social media to raise people’s awareness about environment. But honestly I think planing in this market is really hard as you always need to adopt and react to the market, especially in a fast industry of social media.

10. Do you have any tips or advice for photographers who love your work and would like to photograph something similar?

My best advice for them is not to get too much influenced by the stuff you see on social media. This can destroy one’s own creativity as you’re only having these Instagram shots in your mind while being on a location. Try to find a way to capture something unique and do it with a lot of heart. And be patient, that is probably my second best advice.