Jens Klettenheimer

Landscape | Last Updated: April 4, 2024

Hi, my name is Jens, I’m a photographer from Heidelberg, Germany, and I’m deeply in love with the landscapes and natural phenomena I can observe in the Nordic countries!

From my perspective, taking long time exposures out in the nature is a perfect opportunity for recreation and for approaching one’s inner center, and I love to share this photographic experience with others who join me for one of my photo workshops. I run a photography business called “schiefLicht Fotografie” in Germany and conduct photography workshops in Iceland and Norway under the brand of “Arctic Photo Tours.”

I started photography in 2003 with Canon releasing its first affordable DSLR camera, the EOS 300D (aka Digital Rebel), and having settled on Canon, I purchased a lot of Canon EF lenses in the subsequent years. My next body was the EOS 40D (in 2008), and I used it during my first trip to Iceland in summer 2008. It was soon followed by the EOS 5D (as I wanted to move to full frame which I never regret – this body was simply wonderful), EOS 5D Mk II (not so happy with this one) and EOS 5D Mk III (pleased again) which I still use sometimes for people photography, but as you can see from my Shotkit photo: there’s not much Canon equipment left today if I go out for landscapes.

During my first trip to Iceland in 2008, I took a photo of famous Gullfoss waterfall that somehow made a difference to me. I took it more or less during the first stop of the trip on the first evening. In June, the midnight sun was still out when I arrived in the late evening, and I enjoyed the waterfall for hours all alone with most beautiful light and did some first experiments with long time exposures using neutral density filters, and since that day I tried to improve my photographic skills (both technical and artistic) a little bit every day.

Having returned to Iceland multiple times every year since 2008 I ultimately ended up in offering my first multi-day photography workshop in Iceland in 2014, and the feedback from my clients encouraged me to offer more workshops every year and also to explore new destinations like Lofoten, Norway.

At some point I felt that speed of innovation declined at Canon, and new players like Fuji and Sony entered the market at high speed. While it was not so easy to switch to another system in the earlier days once you had decided for one of the major players my interest in Sony grew as I learned that I was able to continue to use my Canon glass with the help of an adapter.

Looking at a reduced form factor based on a mirrorless system in combination with a superior sensor was very appealing to me, and I moved over to Sony purchasing a Sony A7R body first which was soon followed by the Sony A7R II which brought some significant enhancements. I was also impressed by the low light monster Sony A7S which I purchased as a solution for videos and astrophotography.

I continued to use my old Canon lenses using a Canon EF Lens to Sony E Mount T Smart Adapter (Mark IV) by Metabones, but as I always preferred prime lenses and was a huge admirer of Zeiss glass I was happy to see the two lens lines Zeiss Batis and Zeiss Loxia being introduced.

For a landscape photographer, there’s another piece of equipment which is essential: the tripod! Having tried a lot I ultimately ended up with a wonderful Gitzo tripod GT3542L which is extremely sturdy and versatile and serves all my needs in combination with the Novoflex Classic Ball 3. As I really enjoy taking long time exposures I also invested in a flexible Lee filter holder system which pleases me a lot. Some of my photos have been published in German print magazines or awarded in photo contests, but my biggest fan base resides in 500px where approximately 115 k photography enthusiasts follow my work.

Hope you enjoy the samples from my portfolio as well as the insights gained by looking into my equipment. Feel free to follow me at facebook (https://www.facebook.com/schieflicht and https://www.facebook.com/goarcticphototours) or drop me a note!

So here is what I use today for landscape photography and what you can find in my backpack:
– Sony A7R Mk II
– Sony A7S
– Venus Optics Laowa 12mm f/2.8
– Zeiss Batis 18mm f/2.8
– Zeiss Batis 25mm f/2.0
– Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8
– Zeiss Loxia 21mm f/2.8
– Zeiss Loxia 35mm f/2.0
– Zeiss Loxia 50mm f/2.0
– Canon EF 16-35mm f/4.0
– Sony SEL 24-70mm f/2.8
– Lee ND filters (0.6, 0.9, 1.8, 3.0, 4.5)
– Lee GND filters (0.3, 0.6, 0.9)
– Lee Circular Polarizer
– Lee filter holder and adapter rings
– Cokin Nuances ND filters (1.5, 2.4, 3.0)
– Terrascape Filter Bag Classic
– Sandisk SD Cards
– Replacement batteries
– Zeiss Lens Wipes
– Business Cards
– JJC Timer control