Rider’s Lens: A Photographic Journey with Stefan Haehnel

Words and photos by Stefan Haehnel

Guten Tag. I’m Stefan Haehnel, a professional photographer and amateur cyclist living in Berlin. I was born and raised in the middle of Saxony, GDR, when Germany was still divided into two countries. I have lived in Berlin for almost two decades now, but I love to explore nature—wherever it is—whether with a camera, a bike, or, most often, both.

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I bought my first point-and-shoot cameras as a teenager in the late 1990s. Since then, I have been hooked on photography. But as I grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere, I didn’t have a clue, or the right influences, on how to become a professional photographer. However, my childhood surroundings were a great playground for a debutant photographer. Back in those days, the abandoned GDR industry buildings and surrounding nature were my first subjects of interest.

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I educated myself with books about photography, analog cameras, and various films, as digital was not there yet. Then, I went to a school for graphic design and made my first steps in a photography studio. I followed this by studying print and media technologies, where I tried to squeeze some photo content out, which was semi-successful.

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Around that time, I was deeply interested in exploring my urban surroundings, and graffiti was a part of that game. As a young man growing up in a small rural village, I wanted to find the keys to the big city to discover the urban landscapes. I felt a real urge to look under the surface, literally. And to capture those findings to make them stay.

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In my late 20s, I had to admit to myself that I didn’t want photography just to be a sidekick in my life. That’s why I applied at the Ostkreuzschule for Photography in Berlin. Just a few months later, I was a very happy photography student. I learned a lot during those years, but after the final exam, I left the art school with more questions about myself and my relation to professional photography than answers.

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A bit earlier, I started working as a mechanic in a local bike workshop during my photography studies. It was that simple how I felt into the world of cycling. For some reason, after digging and climbing through the city, the need for nature came up slowly, almost unnoticeable. Maybe it’s because I was raised with a lot of nature around and felt a need to go back to the roots. The bike was the perfect tool to leave the city behind for hours, days, or weeks. So, long after meeting my first lifelong friend, photography, my second buddy stepped into my life: cycling. We became a quite harmonious ménage à trois.

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The three of us have had the chance to travel the world and still want to wander around the planet together, to go on and off the saddle, from hot to cold, and from high to low. Sometimes, the bike (such as a race or a holiday plan) provokes the trip, and sometimes the camera (such as professional collaborations and assignments) does. Whatever the reason, this still most often feels like a never-ending honeymoon.

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Our trio, for instance, discovered the beauty of Oman’s oases (personal trip, 2019, published in the third issue of The Bikepacking Journal), traveled through Europe to capture Fixed Gear Races (Milano, Barcelona, London, Berlin), got lost in translation in Japan (for Shimano in 2019), the immensity of the Moroccan desert and mountains (with 8bar Bikes in 2015 and for the Atlas Mountain Race in 2020), the rocky climbs of Gran Canaria (professional commission in 2022), the stunning mountains of Kyrgyzstan (Silk Road Mountain Race in 2022), or the picturesque villages of French Brittany (Paris-Brest-Paris in 2019 and 2023). In the selection shared here today, you can see mainly unpublished and personal photography, and you can find more of my commercial work on my website.

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Documenting my cycling adventures has always been kind of obvious to me. When you love observing the wild and the people around you, what better traveling companion is there than a camera? So, just like my GPS or headlight, my camera is almost always invited to join me for my rides. When I cycle, I usually use a small digital Ricoh GR IIIx or an analog camera (Contax T2) stored in a stem bag, where it’s easy to reach and ready to shoot anytime, anywhere. If I feel the need to bring a larger format (Fuji GW690 or Mamiya 645) or when I’m on an assignment (Sony α7R III), I store the camera in a hip bag.

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When I ride, I like to snap the silence and quietness of nature without disturbing it. I like to picture the faces and bodies I encounter and try to understand what’s hidden behind them. I like to photograph my fellow cyclists, whether they are struggling in a hard climb or enjoying the beginning of sunset. The bike is merely the tool to reach those great moments, not the subject.

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Cycling and photography didn’t just allow me to explore the broader reaches of our planet. They also—and maybe firstly—led me to see the unknown surroundings of Berlin and to get lost in Brandenburg. In this way, I realized how rich and interesting crossing the street, or the field, can be. And that’s also why I love my two precious partners: thanks to them, the camera and the bike, I opened a lot of doors close by, I met new people, and got to interact with them, which is a real luxury in a world ruled by digital and social networks.

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My current photo work is not only about cycling or nature. I often collaborate with various artists to capture their art, their workplaces, and their universes. I love to shoot reportages and portraits too. To me, photography is an entry to different worlds that facilitates telling stories with and about people. Of course, getting lost and lonely in the wild with a camera is also an extraordinary way of learning about yourself, and I look forward to much more of it to come.

Further Reading

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