Feel and Express

Photographs by Pascal Lieleg

Skate photographer Pascal Lieleg talks about the skate scene in Hamburg, shooting in an art installation, and discusses the elements that make a great skate image.

Hamburg, Germany

What came first: photography or skateboarding? How did you get into both?

Skateboarding was first, but I was always impressed by really good skate photography. I’ve been skateboarding since middle school in 2001. The school I went to had a little shitty skate park and my schoolmate, who was quite good in skateboarding, skated there. I wanted to learn it by myself, so I started to learn how to skate. Photography came into my life in 2010, while I was abroad on a backpacking tour through India, Nepal and Thailand and because of this adventure I bought a compact little camera.

What is the skate scene like in Hamburg?

It’s a very colorful scene with very punky, very metal music loving people. They are all open minded and definitely people with strong political believes like no fascism, no racism, no homophobia. The scene is very mixed up and multicultural.

In your opinion, what makes a great skate photograph?

First of all, the hardest part of skate photography, is to catch the right moment with the right camera. The equipment makes a big difference because it matters if you can do 20 shots in one second or 5 shots in one second of the same trick. This can be like gambling at the beginning of skate photography. As a photographer, you have to be very patient because sometimes it takes a long time till the skater will land the trick. Also, it is important to figure out the reference points; the viewer of the picture should see and imagine how high the trick would be. It is part of the game to think and work as a team and it’s a no go to use a photo of not landed tricks.

Tell the story behind one of your images.

I love the Terminal shot. Unfortunately, this is a shot you must see printed in a very large size, otherwise it doesn’t impress you on the first sight. “The Terminal” is an art object by Karolina Halatek. It’s a full pipe six meters long and 3meters wide, behind the inner plastic surface are 600 meters LED-stripes. This art object was outside in front of the museum “Kunsthalle” in Bremen available for everyone. I asked a few of the local skaters to do a session over there. The surface was very slippery but possible to skate. Both had there fun and also came up with some really impressive tricks. At the end I asked them if they can do a double and boom after a few tries I had the shot which I had in my mind…. and the picture I took, looked like an illusion. Fun fact… I posted this on my Instagram account and also tagged the artist to support her great work and her stunning installation. Her reaction was that she where quiet pissed off, because skating is not allowed in this object. Don’t ask for permission, ask for forgiveness and at least there where no signs or security so, I don’t care, it’s a great shot. Done!

If you could photograph any skate scene in the world, where would you want to go and why?

I definitely would like to go to the USA for the backyard bowl skater’s scene… checking for abandoned houses with backyard pools, cleaning them up, and shredding them. Yes, I would love to see these awesome places to take quite a lot pictures of them. But on the other side, I would love to go into rising up skate scenes, which are in the very beginning. In 2015 I was on the Maldives and I saw the locals building up their own first skate bowl on the main island, Malé. The people over there were so friendly and so talented. I lost a game of skate against one local. It was a pleasure to lose!

How has photography influenced you as an artist and skateboarder?

Photography influenced me in that way, that I started thinking and imagining everything in pictures. Everything I see, recognize, feel and express, I have it in my mind and how it would look like in a photograph.

What is next for you?

Fucking get my work framed…just kidding…ah…no kidding lol. I stared working at my first photo book for skate photography called “Bowlshit” and I have plans for my own exhibition. I guess, that is pretty much work for the first time now. There are a lot of plans in my head, but they aren’t matured yet.