this project is very close to my heart.

the people I photographed here have a special place in my life and heart. not because I know them well.

but because they were very gracious and opened up their hearts and shared lot’s of very precious moments with me.

I  had one question for them. I did not tell them the question beforehand.

I asked after they had sat down and settled in.

“what would you consider to be the essence of a good life?”

“to reach my fullest potential, to be in my heart space, working towards the completion of my karmic cycle, sweetness, free choice to be what I want”,

were among the many answers I got.

In my approach I aim to show them in a state of contented peacefulness, creating in the viewer the wish to one day get into a similar state of mind.

the posing includes their hands and I aim to recreate gestures that have commonly recognizable meaning.

this project is not finished, I am currently working towards a book…

for more pictures please go here

or up to gallery/a good life

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This was the proposal for my major project for L6 2011 at Christchurch Polytechnic Institute:

<The project shall be Still Lifes photographed on tabletop.

They shall be of  collections of items that are linked together by a theme like origin or place, time and age, trades or professions.

The lighting shall vary between classic rembrandt lighting (45degr.) and sidelighting, simulating natural light.

The tableaus shall include one prop that is out of place but not instantly recognizable and that shall disturb in some way either by being out of context or creepy or even alive.

They’re going to be treated in a way to make them look painterly and be on the edge off being recognizable as photographs.

I will strive to present them in printed versions.>

now you can probably only see those strange ingredients, when you look at the big versions here

or in the gallery/still lifes

when I had them printed on matte paper and matted and exhibited, some people actually thought that they were paintings…nice.

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In this project I’m striving to get to the essence of the flowers I’ve chosen. By isolating them and putting them under very classical lighting, these small beauties are given the chance to shine and show their uniqueness.

In flower photography, as well as in portraiture, it is crucial to capture the right moment. My subjects are not only at the peak of their energy, but at the pinnacle of their life. The combination of the moment that is conserved photographically and the painterly look those pictures are developed towards enables me to get a timeless elegance which honours those petalled bloomers, that are overlooked so often.

to see more of those pictures

look here

or go up to gallery/flowers

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this picture was made on assignment for a company called <Music is the Language>, a wellington company that organizes workshops for german-learning students all over the world. usually there’s a couple of rappers, freestylers and/or musicians, who perform and invite students to practise their language skills by writing their own lyrics or poetry and performing them in front of the class. this evokes lots of excitement and joy and provides a wonderful learning experience. at the shows, i was fortunate to perform and photograph more or less at the same time, and in addition to that, got to travel Togo, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire and Senegal.

thanks Werner, David, Roger und Sarah

to see more of those pictures

please look here

or go up to the gallery/africa

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