2013 Red Bull Illume finalist Rutger Pauw faced tough photo conditions during Red Bull Hard Line, but thanks to some quick thinking during preparation, he got some stunning photographs.
"I got to shoot Red Bull Hard Line last week, it’s one of the (if not) gnarliest down hill mountain bike races in the world. Dan Atherton spent months preparing this course with some of the biggest jumps and gaps mountain biking has seen," said Pauw.
"Usually, I would bring two flashes to a race like this, and shoot at spots on the course, setting up, and moving to the next spot when I feel happy with the shot. In this case though, things worked out completely different."
"Because the course was so demanding (and intimidating), practice was done in one big group of guys coming down the mountain, and us photographers with shoddy knees trying to keep up with them."
"I was really happy I thought of bringing my broncolor Para 88 because it ended up saving my day. I had an assistant on site, who would follow the riders holding the Move head MobiLED through the air, making sure I always had the right light. This would have never worked with me setting up with light stands."
"Then, in the forest the Para really worked out great, light conditions were very poor, and most guys were cranking up the ISO very high. We just attached the Para, which took less than a minute, and could start shooting straight away, and I was so happy with the result. It doesn’t even feel like flash light to me, it’s so natural, but still crispy without harsh shadows."
This article originally appeared on the broncolor blog