☆☆☆flosmithphotographic☆☆☆¡¡ɯǝʇsʎs ǝɥʇ ʞɔnɟ☆☆☆

my passion!

photo-journalism from the iraqi desert up to the himalayas...

my love!

landscape photography all around this beautiful globe...

my roots!

from austria's highest peaks through the western alps...

my addiction!

from the early days in the punk movement to hardcore music...

my style...

the conclusion of my passion, love, roots & addiction!

CUSTOMER

and many more...

KNOWLEDGE

“The only source of knowledge is experience”

Albert Einstein

mountains

Born and raised in the Tyrolian mountain ranges, I have felt a deep connection to the alpin environment since the very beginning. I started to devote my early life to mountaineering and have spend almost 20 years in the western and eastern alps, doing big-wall climbing aswell as alpine tours and ice climbing. For years I even worked full time as Canyoning Guide and Arial Rescue Paramedic. With all that experience in extreme situations and handling the gear I feel confident to best the challenging situations in expedition and climbing photography.

combat medic

I started my experience when I was 14 with joining the youth devision of the Austrian Mountain Rescue and Red Cross where I anticipated a training as first responder. Later on I served in the NBC defence unit of the Austrian Army and took the knowledge of the military medic basic training with me. With finishing my basic military service I worked full time in the Austrian Red Cross where I finished the schooling for the EMS paramedic which I later expanded by going through an EMT-P & EMS paramedic training after international example and continued to work in the arial rescue. Medical emergency skills been as well necessary when climbing the summits of the alps and it is again an invaluable asset when working in the conflict areas of the modern world. For the future I'm planning to develop my knowledge with specified trainings like HET or RISC Training to get more specialised on conflict areas.

experience

The desicion to become a photographer has been one I made at an quite early stage of my life. But back then I was not encouraged to chase the dream of doing photo journalism but rather settle as a studio photographer in my neighborhood. This was clearly not my intention and so I started exploring the alps with my climbing boots and for 13 years I have photographed the world around me on film, which should prove as an ideal preparation for what my way held for me later on. When I started proffessional sports photography in 2007 I could already look back at an impressive amount of life experience not only but also as medic, graphics designer and extreme sports athlete. These skills have eventually made the final leap into conflict photography an easy one when the opportunity finally arose. And still the continuos stream of new experiences I take with me every time I hit the dirt keeps adding to the treasure of knowledge that I bring into every job I am assigned to

network

Every aspect of the work I do benefits from maintaining a wide spread network to the different types of people out there. Specially when working in conflict areas good contacts and friendships with locals, fixers and interpreters, aswell as other journalists are key to be successful if not even survival. I have a couple of good friends - writers, journalists, fellow photo- and videographers - out there who are in the same boat as I am, delivering images to the world, and we work closely together to keep ourselfes informed and aware of the events taking place. To make the most out of my time in the field I can reach out to a number of photo editors all over the world in various media outlets in different genres. And to hold up high the ethics of working journalists and to stand up for the rights of a free press I work closely with NGOs like Reporters Without Borders or Human Rights Watch so that together we can act unified if the need arises.

passions

When I am not clinging to the camera in an intensive moment somwhere far away from home, I love to use my time off to get in touch with nature and arts. Long hiking trips to enjoy the sunset over the summits and visiting concerts with friends I havent seen in a while, getting my mind back on track. Also maybe less of a passion but rather a way of life is my desire to ban animal-cruelty from my daily routine and therefore I enjoy cooking delicious plant-based meals for my flatmates and friends. And if time allows, you may even find me relaxing to some cartoon flicks of Invader ZIM or reading a good book.

flexibility

Travelling is one of the perks aswell as chores at the same time in this type of profession. I always keep my luggage packed and intent to loose no time when the need arises, whereever in the world the next mission might take place. Especially the arabic world has become my second home and don’t hesitate a second to leave my homebase in the alps to head out for the deserts of Middle East.

graphic design

For ten years graphics and design was a fundamental financial base during the off-season when I didn’t have snow or rock under my feet. With earning great reputation over the years at various graphic agencies and print houses, I got the chance to be a founding member of the Downdays Freeski Magazin where I was the head of pre-print and image processing for over 3 years and also contributed as a part of the editorial team as junior photo editor. I keep this experience in the back of my head when I’m out there photographing to produce images with an understanding of the editorial side of the business underneath it.

PUBLICATIONS

JOURNALISM

Wall Street Journal,  Time Magazine ,  VICE news ,  The National Interest ,
Prager Zeitung,  über.morgen - Dein Begleitheft zur Krise,  Der Spiegel , Profil,  Wiener Zeitung,  Global Journalist,
 Berlin LIVE,  Now Toronto,  The Sacramento Bee,  Daily Mail,  Latino Times,  Miami News Day,  Philly.com ,
Star Telegram , Kristeligt Dagblad , Mother Jones,  Maclean`s, World Food Program-Protection Briefing Kit...

SPORTS

Method Mag , Snowboarder MBM , Playboard,  Skiing Mag,  OnBoard ,
Downdays.eu , Bike - USA , Red Bull - BIKE , Mountainbike Rider Magazine , Random Issue 6 - the silver surfer edition,
MTB Mag India , WOM - World of Mountainbike,  UP and DOWN,  MTB Freeride.tv,
 Pedaliero - Magazin für Geländeradsport,  Transworld Sports,  Transworld Business,  Transworld MotoCross , Climax Magazine...

...with a ever growing set of publications!

GET IN TOUCH WITH ME AND DROP ME A LINE!

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If you think I'm the right guy for your project
don't hesitate to contact me via mail or phone!

Open | Mon-Sun | 00-24h
Hawler/IRAQ
mobile-austria: +43 660 6232 507
mobile-iraq: +964 750 706 7441
Skype: flosmithphotographic