After a divorce, and the passing away of my mum and one of my sisters, my pleasure and passion for photography disappeared. It took me about two years before that passion slowly returned. I carefully started taking pictures again, first with my iPhone and began to find more joy in it. At the end of 2019, I decided to buy a new camera to motivate myself and pick up photography again. A few months later the pandemic hit.

Taking lunch breaks, while working from home, I enjoyed the enormous quietness and peace I found in the streets and in nature. This aspect of the pandemic came as a big relief to me after a very difficult time, and I was drawn to nature. All the worries and sadness somehow motivated me to be creative and express myself. In my spare time, and on the weekends, I started focusing on black and white photography. At that time I also felt the need to say what was on my mind through writing and discovered the Haiku poem. The simple 17 syllables (5, 7, 5) rule spoke to me big-time:

Photography gave me a reason to go outdoors, observe and be silent, listen to the wind and the birds and enjoy the sun and the clouds. I met a whole bunch of wildlife in nature, especially deer, sometimes literally eye to eye. I enjoyed all the butterflies that accompanied me while I was strolling around and I saw nature change from day to day. I could walk for hours and never meet a living soul. It was just me, my camera, and a lot of thoughts.

I loved being in nature and just standing still. Literally. Just stop, stand there, and look. After a while, the birds came out of the trees and didn’t seem to notice me. It was almost like a disappearing act. It was also a very good exercise to get better at observing and seeing images and compositions. When you’re always hunting for images and pushing forward, you also miss a lot. The difference between walking and riding a bike is already huge. Sometimes you just have to stop and take a good look and become more aware.

Years and years earlier I used to love doing street photography. Photographing people doing their casual thing and making a good candid shot, is one of the hardest forms of photography in my opinion. It is challenging. It also takes courage to take a picture of a stranger. The chances of taking a good street photo are rare. The city equals a lot of stimuli. During the pandemic, the streets were a lot quieter. I didn’t mind that at all but still, I avoided the city. At times I decided to go to the city but found myself heading for nature on my way there. I must say, lately the city is pulling on me and I enjoy taking street photos again.

I am happy to have encountered so much beauty on my journey over the last couple of years. Even happier that I could capture a little bit of it with my camera.

Despite being away for a while, my love for photography never left me. That says it all, I guess. Sometimes you have to let things go, be patient, and go with the flow. What you love will present itself to you somehow and then you can feed it with your passion. It can lead to beautiful things. Just observe.