Arriving at the summit of an active volcano just as the sun crests the eastern horizon would be an entry fitting for any bucket list. Fortunately for Dennis Schmelz it’s one that he’s already ticked off. “We were so close to Volcán de Fuego that morning, I could already feel the pressure of its eruption on my chest,” he remembers of the visit. “That feeling was probably one of my most intense travel experiences, because not only had I waited for years to do it, but because I’d never felt the power of nature like that before.”

Part of the Sierra Madre mountain range, Volcán de Fuego is one of the most active volcanoes in South America with major eruptions as frequent as every 15 minutes. It squats angrily some 16 kilometres from the town of Antigua, itself one of Guatemala's most famous tourist destinations. That proximity shouldn’t give the impression it’s easy to get to though. This is a reward that needs to be earned.

“There’s no cable car to the top or anything like that,” Dennis laughs, “which means you need to climb almost 4000 metres to the viewpoint. That was the toughest hike I've ever done, because at that altitude you can feel every step, and even when you get close, you need to descend another 600m valley and ascend the other side to get there. We started at 2am and arrived at 5.30am, which was brutal, but when you’re standing there, you forget all the efforts and just drink in the splendour of nature in front of you. That’s what a travel photographer and filmmaker like me lives for. And because it’s not easy, it’s even more special.”

Memories like this deserve to be savoured and Dennis did so in style, creating a superb travel film which captures not only his visit to Volcán de Fuego, but also gives a wider flavour of Guatemala. And he did it all with the Sony Xperia 1 VI. “We travelled through the country for one week,” he explains, “drinking in the countryside, the small villages and meeting local people. But I also wanted a visual motif for the film that communicated the vibrancy of the culture, so I enlisted a local performer to perform traditional spiritual dances in many of the locations.”

The dynamic movements of the dancer were a great fit with Dennis’s usual style of filmmaking, one that relies on effervescent energy and motion. “The Xperia 1 VI was perfect for the job. There was nothing scripted and we just recorded whatever we experienced. Because of the nature of using a camera phone it felt very freestyle, too. I felt I could be inquisitive and flexible, like a tourist, and while I like to use small cameras for that reason anyway, shooting on a camera phone also meant the local people I met were more comfortable with being filmed. With a smartphone, you get easy access to everything, so that's probably one of its biggest advantages.”

“Another great thing about shooting video on a phone is that you can work completely handheld and react instantly because it’s always in your pocket. No big gimbals, no lenses to change, and it’s lightweight, which was amazing for the hike to the volcano where every gram can feel like it’s being multiplied.”

Backed up by the Xperia 1 VI’s excellent stabilisation, Dennis also felt free to experiment with high and low angles, moving the camera all the time to keep the flow of the film going and even achieving some brilliant aerial shots. “The stabilisation is so good that it can deal with all sorts of movements and vibrations, keeping things ultra-smooth through all sorts of pushes and pans,” he explains, “and even when we attached it to a very bumpy racing drone. The only time we didn’t fly the camera was over the volcano. It was very windy and definitely not the sort of place you want to crash!”

Dennis was also impressed by the Xperia 1 VI’s lens options. “A travel film like this one really benefits from texture in its compositions,” he explains, “and that’s easy when you have everything from an ultra-wide 16mm, through a more regular 24mm option, and finally a true optical 85-170mm telephoto zoom with macro settings, too. While other devices lose quality in their digital zoom, the Xperia 1 VI gives great results throughout.”

Looking back on his trip, Dennis feels that the movie perfectly captures his experience. “When you go to these places, it’s a once in a lifetime experience and something you want to document with quality,” he finishes. “For me, the most important thing about my phone is the camera on it and the filmmaking options. The world is an incredible place, and I want to be able to capture everything I experience. The Xperia 1 VI is definitely the best smartphone for that.”