Hello W! Could you introduce yourself and how did you start photography?


I'm W, an artist who uses photography as a medium. As a person who feels visualization, I prefer patterns over words, this is how I came up with w.vv.vv. I allude identity just to keep people intrigued, so I have never revealed anything about myself.

Facts about me: I'm in my twenties and have been living like a nomad since I was young. My unconventional experiences have contributed to my bizarre perception of the world. My life has always been in a rush, I often find myself losing memories, as everything comes and goes like in a Zoetrope. 

If something wasn’t captured by the camera, it’s like it never happened. Photography helps me remember the visual aspects of the moment. When viewing photographs, I feel like reliving the full panoply of emotions from the long-forgotten memories.

A few years ago, I bought myself a DSLR camera, the original purpose was cognitive offloading. As a person who doodles a lot, I started using photography as the canvas to create, to satisfy my lust of customizing the world with my aesthetics, and to overlay my imaginations with the real world. This is how I started photography.

How do you come across such sublime scenery? How do you differentiate yourself from other landscape artists?


I am a free soul who follows my heart more than my brain, so there is no specific routine as every day is different. As a spontaneous person, I prefer staying flexible and to go with the flow. I found myself more productive when I'm in the right state of mind, especially during photo editing.

As you might have noticed, I travel quite frequently. Before the trips, I would research the place and study the city plan and the geography of the area. This is to look for any possible photo spots, e.g. accessible buildings, lookups, or anywhere with high vantage points. A lot of my photos were taken in unusual places with no typical landmarks, which often make viewers look twice before questioning whether or not that location actually does exist.

Nowadays, there are millions of pictures taken in those prominent tourist spots, and uniqueness in style is the key to catch people’s eyes. I want to share my own perspective in the ordinary scenery and let people reappreciate the beauty of the original cityscapes.

Your work seems to cross many themes such as fantasy and infrared photography. It's as if we're transported in another world, how did it come about?


My work portrays my subconscious mind, I visualize my thoughts by transcending ordinary reality into a fantastical landscape that offers the viewer an imaginative escape. The goal is not only to plunge viewers into fascination but to make them re-evaluate our world and our existence. 

To me, photography is about seeing the unseeable. I often receive comments like “This is fake, it doesn’t look like that in reality”. This might be true from a human's vision. However, the intention of my photography is to bring viewers to another level -- to see beyond the comprehension of naked eyes and walk into the universe of invisible spectrums.

It is true that my work covers a range of different themes. While infrared photography is one of my signature genres, viewers’ major impression on my photos also includes Japan, pastel, futurism, urban, cyberpunk, etc. The reason behind the variety of themes is that I don’t limit myself to a certain genre, I click my shutter when I see the potential in the shot. Every time I visit a new country, I gain different inspirations from each scene I witnessed. 

The constantly changing environments allow me to connect spaces with concepts, and hence immerse myself in the wonders of unique imagination. Most of the time, the theme is born on the spot during the shoot, with the inspiration drawn from external stimuli. I enjoy getting new stimuli and constantly expanding my imaginations through trying on new photography styles.

Infrared photography of Osaka Ferris wheel

Infrared photography of Matsumoto Castle in Japan

Escape to w.vv.vv's subconscious mind on Instagram.

My work portrays my subconscious mind, I visualize my thoughts by transcending ordinary reality into a fantastical landscape that offers the viewer an imaginative escape.

The fantastical world of infrared photography with w.vv.vv

Hi Chris! How did you get from being an aspiring photographer to make it a full-time passion?

I started shooting photos at 19 years old after experimenting with drawing and art in high school. I realized that it enabled me to do art in a mobile state, to explore and adventure, and show people the beauty in the world around me. At that point, I realized that I enjoyed photography but the idea of turning it into a career was overwhelming. I knew I had to give it 100% if I wanted to make it into something so without any formal training I quit my job at a magazine store and started shooting anything for anyone. I would go and shoot surfers at the local beach and try to sell them pictures on DVDs.

I shot weddings and senior pictures and interiors store photos. That obviously wasn't my end goal but I had to start somewhere! I wanted to learn more about action sports and landscapes photography which is what I was excited about but didn't know where to turn, so I started applying for internships. I finally got an opportunity to intern with Michael Fatali, a large format landscape photographer, and I got an internship at Transworld Surf magazine which was an incredibly valuable experience. 

Through trial and error, I taught myself and began to develop a style. Hard work, persistence, and having a passion for what I do has taken me a long way. For the first part of my career, I slept in my car a lot, so nothing happens quickly. I would say it was about 4 years until I really started making an income. During my transworld internship, I commuted 5+ hours every week and lived in my car. I really look back fondly at those more challenging times because it makes you appreciate having to work for what you have and giving something of yourself for your career.

Could you share the joy and challenges associated with landscape photography?

At least for most of my work, it’s freaking cold. Frostbite cold! And I'm speaking from experience; I've had it! Additionally, logistics are a nightmare! It takes 2-3 years to plan some of these trips, and absolutely nothing comes easy. People see the images and they don’t understand the time and energy that goes into creating those moments. You have to really give something of yourself to make this stuff happen. I guess that's why I feel so emotionally invested. But that is the joy, getting to show people the images I've worked so hard to create. Passion is what drives us, nothing else!

You’ve seen many places and adventured to the most remote places of the earth, how do you plan your journeys to capture these incredible shots?

Without properly preparing you can leave yourself open to missing opportunities to capture photos and it will eat up precious time on a trip. To begin, my studio and I use Google Map Engine to build out detailed maps of the locations that we are planning to capture. You can add destinations, location images, and details about accommodations or food along the way. Packing correctly also will help you optimize your traveling space. Make sure the essentials are always available. My essentials are my camera kit, a headlamp, multi-tool, light jacket, beanie, and a light tripod. This all usually fits in one of my camera bags. Having these readily available keeps you ready to take photographs at a moment's notice. One last step in preparation is finding out where the sun will set, rise, and where the Milky Way will cross the sky. (Note that the core of the Milky Way is not visible during winter months of the northern hemisphere).

As an accomplished traveler, what advice would you give people in search of intense adventure?


My first piece of advice, which I mentioned in the last question, is to prepare. The most important part of an intense adventure is to stay safe, and preparation is key for this. Know where you're going, have the right clothing and equipment, notify friends and/or family where you're going! Aside from this, I would say to seek places that few people go. People often tell me that Iceland is overrun with tourists and not wild, but those people usually stay on the tourist route and go to the same places as others. There is nature and intense adventure everywhere, you just have to go to different places than everyone else.

Photography of an adventurer kayaking through cliffs.

Photography of mountains covered in snow.

Night photography of trees reflecting on water.

Photography of the shore with orange clouds.

Photography of landscape with mountain, clouds.

Without properly preparing you can leave yourself open to missing opportunities to capture photos and it will eat up precious time on a trip.

Exploring landscape photography with Chris Burkard

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The fantastical world of infrared photography with w.vv.vv

Exploring landscape photography with Chris Burkard