TITLE: Parkour

Parkour athlete Alex Schauer in mid air in Vienna, Austria.

AUTHOR: Ben Franke (United States)

Ben Franke is a New York-based photographer and director. Raised in Germany but living in New York since 2006, he’s photographed parkour athletes who have jumped over 17 ft roof gaps, ridden his bike on the FDR photographing bike riders, and worked with extreme pogo jumpers who can clear a 12 ft tall hurdle. He’s also shot portraits of the number 1 ranked blitz chess player in the world.



He loves capturing different subcultures of people and interesting characters, usually ones based around movement but also around a shared passion or vision. He loves collaborations that help elevate a project especially on motion shoots.



His work has appeared in the annual American Photography book, in the Communication Arts Photo Annual, in multiple International Motion Awards, and was a medal finalist for the Society of Publication Designers.



When not shooting he can be found at concerts around New York, going on bike rides around Brooklyn and watching Arsenal and Germany play soccer.