How it all started

Born and raised close to the famous Hallerbos and its bluebells, nature played an important role from a young age in life. While exploring alone and with friends, this relatively small forest had a massive impact on how I perceived nature and everything around me. It was also the place where I tested my first point and shoot camera at the age of 18 and although the results weren’t good at all, the combination of nature and photography immediately triggered me. Little did I know back then that it would be the beginning of a long lasting adventure.

Philosophy

Throughout the years, photography always has been mainly an excuse to get out and spend time in nature. The world is spinning fast and being able to focus on the beauty around me, while slowing down as much as possible, is a form of meditation. Above that, the feeling when witnessing a beautiful sunrise while everybody is still asleep or other special conditions is something that never gets old. It’s probably the most important reason why I love to get out in the first place.

As a consequence, I will always put nature first. If it’s not possible to shoot a scene without compromising it, I will turn away and not shoot it rather than doing everything it takes to get ‘the’ shot.

Belgium is not the country known for its grand vistas and impressive views, yet it has a lot to offer. Although I love to travel, more and more I try to focus on details in the landscapes close to home. It’s a search for more intimate images and simple compositions, a way of going back to basics. Accompanying this transition, I switched from digital photography only to a mix of digital and medium and large format film photography.

The ultimate goal: to enjoy and share nature and photography in its purest form and to stay triggered by the small things around me in the same way as I did when I was that little kid playing in the forest.