Iver Schøyen Paulsberg

Norway

Iver is a passionate travel photographer living in Norway. He is often on the move, wanting to see and capture moments from different cultures and destinations around the world. After working as a full-time musician for several years, in 2017 he decided to take a break and booked himself a one-way ticket to the Philippines. With him in his backpack was a tired Iphone, a borrowed Gopro and a second-hand drone. 6 years later, he has worked with a number of brands, hotels and travel companies. He has lots of followers on social media, where his photos have been seen and shared by millions around the world. You can see some of his pictures on the cover of Geo Saison, and he is a Photographer for companies such as The Tourist department of Thailand, Thai Airways, Insta360, Dji, Haglöfs and many many more.

Q&A

How did you start with photo/video?

After working in the music industry for almost a decade, I decided I wanted a change! I booked myself a oneway ticket to southeast Asia. I needed some peace of mind and was looking for crystal clear blue water and palm trees to relax under. That was my goal. I wanted to find a relaxing paradise! I also wanted to somehow document my journey. I then decided to buy myself a GoPro 4 session and a Dji Mavic Pro to play around with.
After a long journey I arrived on the island of Palawan and was greeted by the bluest water I had ever seen. I sent my drone up in the air and I was instantly hooked. After one month in the Philippines I could not believe the content I was able to create with my drone! The photos and the videos coming out of this little thing, wow! I had the best time of my life! And like every other young fool, I fell in love with an exotic girl I meet along the road. She was an absolute photo addict and had over 300 000 people following her on her Instagram account. She saw my talent and I quickly became her photographer. We travelled the world for the next 6 months while I captured almost every moments. I learned so much about myself but also about photography!

Once I got back home, I got a call from Haglöfs who wanted me to come and shoot. At that time I was still stuck with shooting on my GoPro. Session 4. To seem more «professional» I bought myself my first real camera, a Sony a6300… and from there it is all history!
How would you describe your style?

I like to create photos where the viewers can dream themselves away. I look for interesting motives where I can place a subject and give the viewer a feeling of «that could be me» or «that could have been us». With my photography I hope to inspire people to go out and see and experience the world we live in.
What inspires you?

Now days there are just so much talent out there! But at the moment I think there is one photographer who stands out from the rest. Quin Schrock @everchanginghorizon on IG.
This guy takes stunning photos from around the world and I also love he’s way of travel, often road tripping around on he’s own.
What is your dream shoot or project?

I think being able to join a project with National Geographic would have been awesome for sure. Being able to travel the world while shooting content I like in the moment and being able to make a living out of that is of course a dream. Add a good team with fun people and I don't think it could get any better.
What is your best advice to others that want to develop as photographers?

There are though plenty of tips and trick to help you get better, but I think if you already have a passion for photography then the right answer would be «Just go out and shoot! Don't be afraid to say yes, if you never try you never learn».
Also a good and fun way of learning a new skillset would be to try your best and copy a photo you have seen. This might give you a taste of what the original photographer was thinking of while composing the specific image you are trying to recreate. Maybe you also learn a thing or two during the post processing part of the image.