photo heart connection august

these two images represent my most inspiring and exciting event in august.

after meeting at one of Kat Sloma's classes last year, Elsie and i started a collaborative photoblog. 

on the 30th of august we met each other in person for the very first time in Utrecht.

we had an amazing day together.

this is not a wedding     

my november photo-heart connection

this photograph is part of my 'exposing the layers of life' project, a collection of multi-layered images that reflect different realities converging in one single moment in time. 

i always shoot RAW and then post-process in Lightroom. i love 'exposing' the different layers by playing around with the tools in the develop module, trying to coax the hidden story out of the RAW material. sometimes the result is so stunning it takes my breath away

i especially love this shot because it reminds me of the paintings of Rene Magritte (hence the title)

night time is the right time    
joining the photo-heart-connection

two weeks ago i started my advanced photography class in the city center
on my way back i took a couple of night shots of the shop windows and the street lights

this one is my absolute favorite, and therefore my contribution to the photo-heart-connection.
the image gives me a feeling of emptiness and desolation, because of the alien green fluorescence that is repeated throughout the frame. i love the intense shiny blackness of the chairs and drawers, all lined up neatly, waiting for customers to bring liveliness and color into the sterile looking scene. most of all i love the curved woodgrain-finish board with its eerie green shine (just off the top-center). it makes a perfect transition to the dark grainy wall on the right

here's a shot with a completely different atmosphere. the abundant colors of the flowers and plants are enhanced by the warm yellow shop lights and the bright aqua of the big painting in the back. 

a typical night town street view: trees forming a wide green roof of leaves above, lots of bicycles parked in front and around the tree trunks, the antique streetlamps providing soft star-like points of light and the red taillights of a car leaving its parking space providing a bit of contrast and a sense of movement

and of course i couldn't pass this shop window without taking a picture.... especially when the name of the shop is so beautifully accentuated by the light of the street lamp and the lush and luminous colors of the displayed objects

brass     

a musical encounter at the beach

last sunday my dad & i went to Kijkduin for lunch. when we got out of the car we heard the sound of brass music coming from the shopping mall along the boulevard. we went over to have a look and a listen and of course i grabbed my camera....

a color symphony in blue, white and gold with the long shiny slides of the brass trombones lining up beautifully

the white helmets have gold shields and chains, and are topped with a bunch of blue and gold plumes

mellophones, trumpets and sousaphones all make their unique contribution to the sound of the band

the huge bells of the sousaphone overshadow the band players 

the band has a great youth section with lots of dedicated young musicians

even between performances they appear very focused and serious

sometimes almost contemplative....:-()

exploring point of view part 2    
letting your lens do the work
shooting from a fixed viewpoint 


A telezoom is a great tool for shooting a subject from different angles and perspectives without having to move around much. When your mobility is limited for whatever reasons this can be a real blessing...!

My dad lives in a beautiful apartment complex that was designed by Ricardo Bofill. It was built in a crescent shape. Sitting on his terrace on the ground floor, looking up,  i can almost see the whole building. I love looking at the rows of windows, glass rectangles that gather and reflect everything at the opposite side of the building's half-circle. Above are some shots taken at 150mm with my Olympus PEN P3 (which means a 300mm focal length on a full frame camera) while leaning back in my chair. For the second shot i turned my camera to the left and upwards, providing a slightly different view and perspective, with brighter and more detailed reflections. I've added a small pink spot to indicate where the shots overlap: the window in the top left of the first shot is situated below the top right in the second one.

Here i've changed my perspective by zooming out. First to a focal length of 85 mm, showing some of the layers of grey concrete framing the rows of windows, then to a focal length of 40 mm, providing more contextual information about the shape and size of the building.  The pink spots again indicate the orientation, on both shots the spot is somewhere near the left middle of the frame.

exploring point of view part 1     
letting your subject do the work     
an exercise in waiting


While i like shooting my subjects from different angles and perspectives, my disabilities have made it very hard and painful for me to sit or lie down, climb on top of fences and chairs or walk down slopes and rough terrain. So in order to still get enough interesting points of view i have had to adapt and be creative. 

Here are some shots i took of a heron standing on the border of the pond near my father's house. I noticed the sharp dark shadow on the light concrete and was fascinated by the contrast and its changing shape. While sitting in the sun on my dad's terrace i got out my camera, zoomed in and just waited patiently for the heron to change its position and posture (which can take a while with herons....), meanwhile sipping my coffee and chatting with my dad. The heron took its time to prance around and i took the time to take shots whenever i liked what i saw. Very comfortable way of shooting...!

a sense of Scheveningen     
exploring a new place   

Last week my dad and i visited Scheveningen village to look at an apartment. I know Scheveningen beach, but have never been to the village center. In the afternoon we walked through the main shopping street, Keizerstraat, and i took some shots, trying to capture the atmosphere.

The Keizerstraat is one of the oldest shopping streets in the Netherlands, and stretches from the village center right up to the beach. In the afternoon the sunlight splits the street down the middle into light and shadowed halves.

Due to Scheveningen's international appeal, the flags of many foreign countries are hanging above the street, which has been closed off to motorized vehicles. Brightly colored clothes are put out in front of the shops to attract buyers. The football season has started and many shops sell clothing and gadgets in our national orange color.

Policemen and city guards patrol the street in a casual and friendly way

Most of the merchandise is on display in front of the shops, saturated colors everywhere you look....

People have put chairs and benches in front of their houses to sit and chat, read or study

You can see interesting reflections of street life in all the shop windows

Of course the street is filled with bicycles, most of them carrying a plastic crate or basket in front

Many people use their bikes to make personal statements.....

People who are born in Scheveningen tend to stay there their whole life, and Scheveningen cherishes its senior inhabitants. You can see many elderly people moving about in electric scooters.

Contrary to what's written on the scooter, people are taking all the time in the world to shop, have a chat, or sit in the sun watching the constant flow of pedestrians.

Not all vehicles in Scheveningen are slow...there are loads of scooters and motorbikes standing along the Keizerstraat, and there are some shops that sell or repair them. 

The bright orange one caught my eye when i was siting down on a terrace to have a drink, especially because of its royal color!

Everywhere you can see people sitting down on a bench, a chair or a terrace, having a drink or a snack

Crossing a side street under the watchful eyes of two fishermen's wives in traditional outfits.