Red Cathedral

This morning's goal was to upload the 1st images from the MOD cosplay event I visited yesterday.. yet suddenly I realised that I had completely forgotten to share some pictures from the O-Parade earlier this month. Blame it on work ( tradefairs , Pairi Daiza photowalks , videoclips , webinars , shoots ,.. life is back to normal and I need to get used to it again )! Before I always thought the O-Parade in Genk and the Zinneke Parade in Brussels were about the same age. A big mistake from my side. Zinneke started in 2000, and the O-parade is apparantly already 67 years "Old".. Maybe that's what the "O" stands for? Luckily the acts, the costumes and the massive public interest make it feel everything except old. Going from steampunk & giant balloon art, over the mesmerizing Queens of May and inspiration to support our bees, butterflies and flowers, to scifi-imagery reminding me of Star Wars and Mad Max. . I think next year I won't be planning any

Do you think everything is silent & calm on May 1st?  It's a national holiday.. and it's a day of celebration in the city of Genk. Kermis ( carnival fair ), jaarmarkt ( fair ), fireworks and my favorite: a street parade named O-Parade. . . . Last year I visited it almost by accident: Some photos & video This year however I was there on purpose & on time. ( and fearing for rain ) And there were some awe-inspiring creations ranging from balloon candy and a army of sea-creatures, to a giant locust & life-size whale. Eventhough all participating streetartists come from different places in Europe they all have 1 thing in common: the urge to entertain their public. and they did ! All 150 photos will be HERE on Flickr A short video is on  Clapper & maybe later on Instagram For updates on my progress you can check Facebook . . . Yes, there is a short VIDEO with the dance of Gruppo Folkloristico Pavullese And for now I'll hav

Every May 1st, a national holiday in Belgium, Genk becomes a city of colour, of fantasy and of cheering people. 55000 cheering people in 2024 to be exact. Because that many people lined the road for the O-parade. Luckily at the same time it's kermis ( carnival fair ), jaarmarkt ( market ), fireworks, and hundreds of stalls to drink & eat.. a grand total of 130000 visitors for 1 day is a lot for a city with only 63000 inhabitants. These are some impressions from the editions in 2022 & 2023 .  Eventhough 2024 has had an extremely rainy, stormy and dreary Spring, the weather shifted for a few days and the parade enjoyed the sun and a decent 26°Fahrenheit. The day after it rained again and was 14 degrees colder. So a big thanks to all the witches who made sure Beltane would be a great day . . . Let's provide you a few links: ▷ All photos can always be found on/downloaded from my Flickr and here ! ▷ A " How to download stills from Flickr " tutoria

Since I was still processing the images from the O-Parade , I really did not go to Ciao Tongeren to make photos. I did however take the tiny Sony FX3 cinema camera because I had to test a reported audio-issue.. if I had the time, because my focus would lie 100% on enjoying nice wine and tasty food. Normally all music during this event is: old Italian chanson. But what did I suddenly hear while having a limoncello at Ambishop? Music to my taste? Rock à la Willy Radio ? The concrete minds ! A bunch of promising young hounds with the rock 'n roll attitude of old wolves playing gritty hits at The Pub.. I always say: support you local artists . So I had to make a few shots. Luckily this FX3 cinema camera also shoots stills. And luckily The Pub served some rather decent wine to make me even happier. A short video of the band performing: on Clapper To the people who posed for the camera at Buonissimo & Olio Vino: the images are in the gallery.. and the fruity rosé was delicious!

This is by far the busiest period since last october ( mostly events+fairs for work & for fun ) so I'm running behind with the processing of pictures & videos once again. Still.. if you can go out on a wonderful Spring day and dress a model like a fantasy barbarian, then you should do it without hesitation. It will take a while before I get to processing more shots from this shoot, luckily model Kristof & MUA B are patient persons. Results will be on Flickr . Behind the scene videos is on Clapper .. Maybe something on Instagram ? The tickets for Castlefest have been purchased, we're hesitating over Elftopia & Elfia Arcen. What else might be interesting? This reminds me that I should urgently get some more images done from Pairi Daiza & the O-Parade. Namaste. A link to a video on Clapper Dit bericht op Instagram bekijken Een bericht gedeeld door Red Cathedral (@redcathedral)