Hi Florian! Thank you so much for sharing your photography with the Common Climber audience!
 
Thank you for having me. I am proud to be this month's featured photographer, as the common climber philosophy very much aligns with my philosophy and approach to climbing photography. I exclusively work with common climbers, as opposed to world-class athletes. My type of fun is to make everyone look like they are Alex Megos or Margo Hayes, even as  they just lead their first 5b (5.8/16).     

You live in Mannheim, Germany, is this your hometown or where you are from originally? Tell us a little bit about your background.
 
Mannheim is my adopted home and the place where the bicycle, car, tractor and the Spaghetti-Eis (German ice cream dish made to look like a plate of spaghetti) were invented. I was born and raised in the Free State of Thuringia located in Central Germany. During my biology studies, I moved to the Netherlands to pursue my passion for applied microbiology and water technology. What was planned as half-year internship, turned into a 10-year endeavor. Having virtually zero climbable mountains, I decided to move back from the Netherlands to Germany. Mannheim is where I found love and it is located just outside some amazing climbing areas like the infamous Palatinate (Pfalz), where one can find lots of sandstone rock reminiscent of mushrooms and undoubtedly the best German wine, too.

Kamila Nalewaj on "Rolf" (UIAA7/5.10d/21) at Bad Dürkheim, Germany. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

Do you have a favorite area to climb? Why?
 
Short answer is no. Long answer could be followed by a long monologue on how I forced myself out of being a picky climber.

With the climbing community growing rapidly, lots of crags are getting overly crowded, causing access issues in the long term. I think it is important to value all crags equally - to do my part to protect what we have and divert some traffic to the less well-known crags by making them shine like a diamond. Of course, there are climbing areas that are more impressive than others, but my goal as a photographer is to make each and every crag look like “your next must-climb destination.”

Lately, I tend to prefer crags with an approach time of more than just a couple of minutes, as they are simply more quiet. With this in mind, one of the most memorable experiences has been my trip to Yangshuo, China. What made this trip so memorable extends beyond the climbing. It was my first time climbing outside of Europe. Climbing on big 3-D structures fits my style, but recently I forced myself to share some love for the tiny crimps, too.  

Heather Lightfoot on "Over the Moon" (UIAA7b+/5.11a/22) in Yangshuo, China. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

​Tell us about your photography history. How long have you been doing it? Do you have a certain style you’ve developed? Is photography a hobby or do you do it for income?
 
I bought my first DSLR more than 10 years ago and started to take meaningless images of pretty much everything. I guess this is how the story starts for most of us. At this time, we also started to get somewhat serious with slacklining, which became the most frequent topic of my images. From slacklining in the park, we naturally transitioned into highlining and climbing. The style of my images recently started to noticeably change and my images are now less saturated than they used to be. Not sure where this journey will take me, but I invite all of you to follow along.
​ 
I was never interested in making a living from photography. However, I occasionally take photographs in exchange for gear, free entry to the gym, and some free drinks at the gyms bar. With this approach I can keep all my artistic freedom, without feeling like the guy that owns a professional camera taking images for free.

Fontainebleau, France. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

​How does the slacklining / highlining photography compare to climbing photography?
 
I started with highline photography and later transitioned towards climbing photography. I quickly and painfully noticed that climbing photography is way more demanding for the photographer, something I now can appreciate more when I see other great climbing shots.

Climbing is vertical and highlining horizontal, which sets both disciplines apart. For highlining photography, you have some time to stage your image. It’s rather obvious where the athlete will be at a given time during their walk. You try to find a good spot to blend the highline and the athlete into the landscape and basically wait until they pass by. It is more comparable to landscape photography with a tough approach at times.

For me, climbing photography is way more challenging. If you have not perfected your butt-shot skills, you often invest a lot of energy to get installed on the rock. How many times did I seemingly choose the perfect spot, just to find out that the athlete does some grotesque moves while working through the crux, covering their face with a palm, arm, torso or leg?

​In addition, shooting from a rope is always a compromise between comfort and freedom of movement. If you are into things like: sitting in a harness until your legs go numb; having your kidneys squeezed into your ribs; or jumaring ropes instead of becoming a better climber, climbing photography might be something for you!   

Tom Peek on "M.f.M.A" (UIAA8/5.11c/24) Bochumer Bruch, Germany. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

​I understand you are developing a crag. Tell us about that.
 
There is this little abandoned sandstone quarry, which now belongs to the Palatinate Forest Association, a forest and hiking association. This quarry is the only place nearby where we can practice highlining (slacklining in height) legally. The association is not a climbing association, but they support us - the young savages – with doing our thing.

In 2008, they decided to develop the quarry for climbing, because they thought this was cool and can add to the local community. We have a lot of fun climbing and highlining there. There is a toilette, a fridge, and a BBQ – it’s basically our outdoor gym where we have anything we need for a short escape after work during weekdays. The earlier work on the crag has not been developed by what would be considered experienced bolters, many features are chopped and some of the lower-offs are of questionable design and shape. However, there is still quite a bit of potential for new routes.

For us there are many good reasons to invest some energy in this quarry. Not only because it has become our backyard, but also to give back to the community – make this a place where one can get into outdoor climbing in a safe environment, before heading out to the iconic crags in the Pfalz, where climbing ethics are particular and bolts are scarce. We made a plan for renovating what is already there and also to develop the crag further, which, it turns out, is much more difficult than I thought.

Kamila Nalewaj on "FraSeb" (UIAA7+/5.11a/22) in Bad Dürkheim, Germany. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

Your Instagram handle is Lepyruvate_outdoor_photography. What does Lepyruvate mean or stand for?
 
I have a very generic combination of first and family name. Florian Beyer is kind of the German equivalent of John Smith. Therefore, I decided more than 10 years ago for an extravagant artist name (Lepyruvate), which I still stick to although, unfortunately, even most of my close friends do not manage to remember. Lepyruvate actually comes from “le pyruvate” which is French and stands for “the pyruvate”.

Pyruvate (/paɪˈruːveɪt/) is the conjugate base of pyruvic acid (CH3COCOOH), the simplest of the alpha-keto acids. Pyruvate occupies a central position at the intersections of key metabolic pathways that are crucial for providing the energy to maintain life and for the synthesis of cellular material. For example, pyruvate can be created from glucose through glycolysis or converted into carbohydrates, fatty acids, lactic acid, or the amino acid alanine. In short, pyruvate is a very simple, yet extremely powerful and important molecule that is crucial to sustaining life.

Lepyruvate (Florian Beyer) himself at a Slackline/Parcour event on the Dutch Island Ameland.

Soraya Schultz Nannai climbing at home in Ulassai, Sardegna

You have a PhD in Microbiology. Tell us more.
 
I have a very strong passion for water. With H2O being virtually one of the simplest molecules, the challenges we are facing around it are complex, numerous and very serious. Listing those challenges alone could probably fill the Common Climber magazine for years.

I did my PhD in the field of desalination, thus turning seawater into drinking water. This is not as easy as it may sound and there are some microbiological challenges associated with it such as blockage of filters by microbial slimes. I am constantly hovering somewhere in between microbiology and process engineering, as I believe that this is where I can help to solve some of the challenges from a technical point of view.

I am currently working in the water treatment industry, helping water-intensive industries reduce their impact on water usage and pollution by things like water recycling. However, technology is just a (minor) part of the solution. Politicians, lawmakers, and every individual has to do their job, too. I believe a good start would be to adhere to the 2010 United Nation's resolution declaring safe access to water and sanitation as a human right and act accordingly.

Tom Peek on "MichFlor" (UIAA8+/5.11d/25) at Bad Dürkheim, Germany. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

Any last words for our readers?
 
Always wear a helmet. Do not underestimate the female world of climbing. Stick to the local climbing ethics and rules. Support your local bolting heroes and crags. Don’t just consume, but also give back. And, most importantly, enjoy climbing and share this love with others!

Kamila Nalewaj on "MichFlor" (UIAA8+/5.11d/25) in Bad Dürkheim, Germany. Photo Credit: Florian Beyer (Lepyruvate Photography)

Follow or Contact Florian Beyer

Website: http://lepyruvate.com/
Instagram: @lepyruvate_outdoor_photography
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lepyruvate​