Julius Koivistoinen is a young Finnish student passioned about photography. He's mostly self taught but has already been working as a photographer for a couple of magazines published not only in Finland but worldwide, and his photos have reached to become the cover shots of those magazines for plenty of times. In addition to commercial work, he loves to work on personal projects and with smaller clients. Currently he's available for assignments near Helsinki and Lahti.
Be sure to visit his portfolio and Flickr page!
A quick shout out on Bike Polo Cup 2010 and its top 3 teams!
Yesterday I was playing this wonderful game again and at the same time witnessing a historical moment when this year’s cup finals were played here in Helsinki.
Here are the finalists!
The winning team in the middle wearing black t-shirts: IHB!
Second place went to the team on left hand side: Nopsat koukut!
The team positioned third is on the right hand side: Mallets of Doom!
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I bet everyone has been aware of the increasing number of single speed bicycles everywhere. But while visiting different cities around Europe I noticed that there were new, even more creative ways to commute around the big metropolises.
Some of them are even landing to the shores of our Northern country.
A unicyclist in Basel, Switzerland
Unicycles
One may think it’s just one of those extreme sports which belong to circus. But when you actually think about it, a unicycle is almost as small as a pogo stick, it gets you around faster than walking and is a great way to improve your balance.
It’s definitely a great way to get more socialized plus fixed gear enthusiasts love you for it too!
A unicycle spotted in a metro in Helsinki!
Even my good ol’ pa decided to give it a try and has started practicing the unicycle. Here’s me packing his unicycle into my courier bag:
Kick scooters and roller skates
These are the devices I loved to ride in my childhood – but then they just disappeared! Luckily they’re now making a comeback a little by little.
The funny thing is though that not just the kids are riding them to school as back then but again, working citizens use them as transportation from home to the market or to work…
Older woman took a stop with her kick scooter in Hamburg
And of course
Single speed bikes with Bianchi bodies in a flea market in Berlin
As I mentioned already the single speed cycles and fixed gear bikes have taken over the streets once and for all. I’ll be writing about it more in depth later though, as the phenomenon is worth an article of its own. 
Fixie riders in Paris
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I visited the annual the Night of the Arts held here in Helsinki but for me it was a bit lame. Ok, I arrived there a bit late but still, it can’t be called the _night_ of whatever if almost all of the program is over by 10 p.m… The thousands of drunk youngsters are not worth promoting either.
So here’s the deal.
Zetod is one of the hottest names in Estonia right now. They’re four just about twenty years old guys, very talented musicians and “selling more records than U2 or Madonna in Estonia”, as they said – and I don’t doubt it even for a sec!
I saw them that evening in the Tennispalatsi’s Kulttuurimuseo for my second time. Their gig went so well they made people almost fall off their chairs – even when playing acoustic only.
If you’re into folk rock at all, be sure you’re there in the front row when they drop by at your place!
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On the August 23rd I at last got to know with a sport which has fascinated me since a friend of mine told me about it many months ago in the army. He too is into fixed gear bikes and in addition has worked as a bike messenger in Helsinki back in the days. (Note: I actually photographed him a while ago riding a busy street on his fixie in Helsinki. See the photo in the end of this post!)
Bicycle Polo is a team sport similar to traditional polo, except that bicycles are used instead of horses. There is 3 players on each team and you may not touch the ground with your feet or you must go and “tap out” by riding to the mid-court and hitting either side of the court with your mallet.
We were playing in a court right next to the centre of Helsinki, in Hietaniemi. There was about 30 persons playing and watching the games in total.
View Helsinki Fixed in a larger map
The fixed gear bikes are ideal for this type of playing by the way, as with them it is very easy to “track stand” in a single position for example. When you’re totally in control of your bike with your feet only it’s a lot easier to concentrate on steering and waving the mallet with your hands.
Jump on this article to see the rest of the huge photos I took that sunny afternoon! (+ the photo of my friend Toni Aikasalo riding his badass fixie) Bike polo photos are taken using a Canon EOS 5D camera and objectives ranging from 50mm to 135mm.
Oh, and if you’re in one of the photos, feel free to share it on your Facebook profile for example, but be sure that the undersign is visible or add a caption “Julius Koivistoinen photograhy – http://www.julious.fi” to the image. And don’t forget to comment or at least hit the Facebook’s like button at the top of this article. Thanks!
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Greetings from Lapland!
We at the Finnish paratroopers have an annual two and a half weeks long Winter Camp training in the North Finland which is one of the most exciting moments of our service… And definitely one of the hardest too.
One day for example we skiid 27 hours in a row and our orienteerers estimated we advanced 55-60 kilometres during that time. It’s no miracle after a week-long military exercise my feet reminded more of two junks of cheese than a pair of feet, I’m telling you.
Well, now the experience is behind us and I gotta say it was everything we wished – and feared for. At times we got to enjoy perfect sunny days but sometimes the nature tried us with freezing cold weather also. I can recall a few nights when we were out training and there was -30°C… One night we saw beautiful northern auroras too.
Still, never again!
*****
Have been studying the bike messenger and fixed gear bike culture quite a lot lately and I have to say it’s swallowing me into itself. Doing what you want the way you want, dedicating fully to it and being aware of everything around you are themes that always rise up when I read books, articles and interviews on the subject. And I have to agree – going fast on two wheels brings a liberating lightening to one’s mind. I just can’t wait for Spring to arrive!
Anyone who’s even a little familiar with the biking cultures I mentioned know that they’re nowadays very related with style, which brings me to my newest purchase worth mentioning: a messenger bag by Chrome. The model is called the Metropolis and I just love the simplicity and functionality of the whole thing.
The bag itself is HUGE but surprisingly slim even when fully packed up because it’s like glued to your back. This makes it possible to dump everything I want into it and still be able to move fluently in a crowd and whatnot. Try the same with a Lowepro bag for example and you’ll lose your sanity – I did!
I have to note that due to the winter still hitting us in our faces I haven’t been using the bag on a bike yet (doh!). But it already made an impact on me which has to be a good thing as I’ve heard it just then gets to its full potential.
It’s true a messenger bag like the Metropolis isn’t the best carrying option if you’re on foot only as it really might stress one’s shoulder. When I went for a portrait photo shoot for an evening with the gear seen above it already felt little uncomfy at times because the bag didn’t rest on my back like when on a bike. And this is from a fellow who’s been regularly carrying backpacks weighting 30-40 kilograms for days.
Overall I’m highly satisfied with the Chrome’s courier bag as it sets me free from having to carry one or more separate bags because I couldn’t get everything (the gear seen above for example) to fit into just one! My thumbs are up.
*****
Hopefully you’re now thinking: “To what photo shoot he might had went?”, because I just thought of revealing it.
Me and Wilhelm Blomberg use to take photos of t-shirts for Threadless.com for fun and free tees… But mainly for fun. Sooo, here are some photos, please eyeball them. Thanks!
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Just a week ago I arrived back from Sweden, Härnösand. There I was working for Softaaja magazine (or Airsoft Soldier as known internationally) on the photo reportage of the biggest airsoft event I have ever attended in.
This event, a four-day-long scenario game called Berget 7, was a very interesting one to cover. I was playing the role of an in-game photographer meaning that I was all the time – day and night – keeping close to others on my side (Separatist Reform Party i.e. SRP, while the other parties were NATO, Milo’s Tigers, Yuri Orlov’s Mercenaries and Civilians) who were mostly Finns too.
And not only did I have to capture some interesting photographs, my mission was to create an in-depth story of the whole trip so that everyone reading the reportage could get the image of being there. Thus staying focused on stories developing around me and writing captions for my photos on the fly were key elements to me.
The game itself was a great success. Our SRP forces outsmarted the others right from the beginning and we got a firm grip on the leading position. In the end SRP and its new allies crushed NATO and escaped to safety.
As I came back home with the huge pile of photos I was thinking to myself: “What a great experience!”, and then: “How in the World can all these photos be packed into a single article?!”
The thing is, I recall being told beforehand that the reportage had six pages reserved from the final magazine issue. Then we at the editorial negotiated afterwards on 10 to 12 pages, and finally, my photo story got overwhelming 14 pages! Seems like I did quite an impression on the people above me.
The photo reportage will be published in the 5th issue of Softaaja and probably in the 5th issue of Airsoft Soldier also so stay tuned and go get them when you can!
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Few weeks ago I was photographing the collerctor’s cover photo for a Finnish airsoft magazine Softaaja. Our models Stefan (on left) and Janne were dressed up as post-apocalyptic scavangers inspired by the Mad Max movies and the Fallout game series. Stefan likes to describe himself as a cat hunter and Janne is a sand warrior.
Post-nuclear war themed photo shoot from Julius Koivistoinen on Vimeo.
Keeping the light simple was a good idea this time as the models were interesting enough in my opinion. One big light source comes with a very natural look while it’s still very pleasing to the eye also.
Even though we shot these in the afternoon it still was quite bright outside. That is why I chose to use a silver reflective umbrella as it’s the most efficient light modificator when used with my small 430EX strobe units. In addition I like the little rougher light coming out of the reflective umbrella compared to a shoot-through brolly as the light doesn’t scatter as much. I had two strobes instead of just one pointing in one umbrella so that I could turn their power a bit down to gain a faster recycling time.
The photo is taken with a Canon EOS 5D camera and a EF 17-40mm f/4L lens which is a combo I love. The strobes were triggered wirelessly using a ST-E2 transmitter.
Here’s three details from the image seen above:
The equipment those guys are wearing is epic. Self-made armor based on a hockey harness, real ammunition boxes and the outsoles of shoes, leather clothing, vintage sunglasses from the 50′s, laser protective goggles, self-made shoulder guard with chainmail and a steel plate protecting the heart (I made that, actually!), self-made pistol holster and the list goes on.
Underneath are two examples on the images that were used as reference while building up those layouts. Just to give you a clue what I’m talking about.
The following photos are random snapshots from the same photo shoot. Just a neat little bonus to all of you hungry for backstage imagery.
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In addition to airsoft guns I’ve been handling real deals for quite a while at work already but just now I got the chance to test out shooting with one.
During this week we were at a shooting range in Helsinki with Jarkko Koskinen from Rekyyli. The firearm I was practicing with was a 9mm pistol CZ-999. The model is used by the Serbian army.
Besides shooting from a standing position from the distances of 5, 10 and 15 meters, my accuracy was put on a test from a distance as great as 25 meters (27 yards) too. Those shots I fired the gun supported as seen in the video below. I shot five to six bullets at a time and I’m prertty proud of my best result: the pattern of six shots could be fitted in my fist.
Here’s some images from the shooting range photographed by Jarkko. The lights were set by me though.
Luckily Jarkko was carrying a video camera with him too. Here’s a short clip from the shooting range. The title is: “Julius uses his head”…
I figured out that the photos of me and my bike I uploaded two weeks ago were so very lousy for not showing the beautiful bicycle in its full potential. So here’s an another try!
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Briefly in english:
Lukion ollessa nyt loppusuoralla ja lakin ollessa oikeastaan jo taskussa on aika ajatella eteenpäin.
Omalla kohdallani tämä merkitsi jatkokoulutukseen pyrkimistä, mitä edelsi linjan valinta ja räpeltäminen ennakkotehtävien parissa. Tietysti on olemassa muutamia konkreettisia esimerkkejä valokuvauksenkin saralla toteutuneista amerikkalaisista unelmista, joissa eräät kouluttamattomat valokuvaajat ovat onnistuneet murtautumaan ammattilaistasolle (esim. Chase Jarvis www.chasejarvis.com ja Joey Lawrence www.joeyl.com), mutta itse koen Suomessa tilanteen olevan enemmän ajatuksen vastainen: paperit on oltava tai töitä ei tipu. Siksi ei muuta kuin nokka kohti koulua.
Lisäksi koulutus varmasti edistäisi kykyäni hahmottaa ammatin asemaa nykyään eli vastaisi kysymyksiin: “Mitä töitä voi tehdä? Miten? Missä? Entä miten töitä voi eksyä tekemään ylipäätänsä?” Parhaimmillaan se jopa myös toimisi mainiona ponnahduslautana maailmalle.
Hain Lahden muotoiluinstituuttiin valokuvauslinjalle jokseenkin riskeeraten: en pyrkinyt muille koulutusohjelmille tai edes toiseen kouluun. Toisaalta täysin syystäkin, sillä valokuvaamisen janoni ohjaa minua tähtäämään ainoastaan huipulle, mutta ymmärtääkseni Taideteollisessa korkeakoulussa tarjottava koulutus onkin liian teoreettinen minulle. Siksi Lahti – varoituksista huolimatta.
Tällä kertaa kyseisen linjan ennakkotehtävät koostuivat seuraavasta neljästä tehtävänannosta, joita vastaavat työt tuli palauttaa 9. päivä huhtikuuta mennessä (lähde). Katso omat työni alla.
1) Aikamme ihmisiä: Ota kolme muotokuvaa, jotka kertovat näkemyksesi tämän ajan ihmisistä.
2) Tosiasia: Tee viiden valokuvan kuvakertomus sinua koskettavasta yhteiskunnallisesta asiasta.
3) Pieni tutkielma luonnosta: Ota kolme valokuvaa, joissa tutkit jotakin luontoon ja ympäristöömme liittyvää asiaa.
4) Parhaat työni: Esittele kymmenen kuvaa, joista vähintään puolet on valokuvia.
(Malleina Mari, Jorma, Marja ja Wilhelm)
Kuvasarja koostuu viidestä omakuvasta, jotka esittävät yhtä kokonaista päivää. Arvaatko aiheen kuvien perusteella? Vastaus niiden alla.
Aiheena on tietysti lama. Menikö oikein?
Parhaita töitäni en ala tässä eritellä, koska ne löytyvät suurimmaksi osin portfoliostani. *wink*
Tältä siis näytti paketti, jonka lähetin matkaan jo aikaa sitten:
Selvästi yksi eksoottisempikin tapaus – piirustus – onnistui puikkelehtimaan parhaiden töitteni joukkoon. Tässä kyseinen kuva ja yksi toinenkin töherrykseni:
Saarnaamiseni ei kuitenkaan lopu vielä tähän, vaan nyt haluaisin kuulla teistä, rakas lukijani! Haitko jatkokoulutukseen tänä vuonna? Minne? Entä minkälaisilla ennakkotehtävillä?
Tarkoitukseni on ylläpitää tässä viestissä listaa kaltaisistani henkilöistä, jotka ovat pyrkineet johonkin korkeamman asteen oppilaitokseen opiskelemaan valokuvausta. Ota siis minuun yhteyttä ja liity joukkoome riemuisaan. Pallo on sinulla!
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I just fell in love with street photography again. I’ve been photographing the streets of Helsinki and went on a trip to Saint Petersburg where I documented the local people with my camera a lot too.
Or it might just be the camera particularly which is creating such a thrill in me.
For a long time I’ve been drooling after the Canon’s EOS 5D especially due to it’s full frame sencor and the advantages brought with it and the camera’s slim body also. So I finally took the plunge and got that camera body of my dreams!
Some of you might be thinking why didn’t I invest on the new 5D mark II instead, but I just don’t need all the features it has, so it would have been waste of money to me. I’ve been using the old 5D at work for a long time already so I knew what was the perfect choice for me.
One more thing before I let you to jump on the photos taken in St. Petersburg. I want to address my love towards the Canon EOS 5D + 50 mm prime lens combo by showing the following three images of one photograph. The images don’t just come out outstandingly sharp, but the focal length is just right on a full frame sencor. It is not too tight nor too wide, just perfect!
Ok, here they are (click the photo below). Please enjoy the gallery and maybe even leave a comment considering them here. Thanks!
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