Red Cathedral

This was the reaction of the barbarian faun to the notification that Castlefest 2021 has been cancelled. We can only hope the best for Elftopia, now that Trolls-et-Legendes has postponed it's fair to 2022.  Actually.. such events have been so long that I don't even remember which kind words I should use to convince the beautifully costumed creatures from the fantasy fairs into posing for my camera. Should I Zoom or Facetime them? " Hi, you on the other side of the path.. would you mind if I took a picture of your gorgeous creation? " My fear is that I'm not the only one with these questions rushing through the head and while I will try to talk to the costumed humans, some other photographers might resort to sniping from afar with 200mm to 600mm telelenses and refuel that silly <Cosplayer/Photog> feud because some not-cleary-thinking photogs caught some cosplayers unaware .. or even worse: snapped them while taking a huge bite of a sandwich. Not the most el

A Flemish models photographer ( but only during the weekends ) sent me a PM telling me that as long as i continued to make images with strange costumes, weird headpieces and " other bizarre items " no serious and self-respecting model would even consider working with me because such images simply don't belong in a model's portfolio. And he got me thinking.. because.. he is probably right. And I do make pictures without the things he pointed out.. BUT If a model (m/v/+) takes everything so seriously that they would never consider shoots with fantasy/scifi/historical/horror/.. elements then maybe a collab might simply not be a good idea. I like having fun and doing strange stuff when i feel like it. It’s always good to take a step back and look at your life through a different perspective. O-well, maybe he meant it well and he simply wasn't very skilled in the Fine Arts of Constructive Criticism and Basic Grammar?  So I went to check out his pictures: 70x model in

 Just admit that this combination works well..   Seen on Flickr

Honestly: I have never seen so many poppies in the fields as this June.  Evidently there is a perfectly scientific explanation for it ( poppies are more resistant than other wild flowers and so they thrive while the other flowers have perished during the hot summers of the last years ) On a strictly artistic level I just had to make some poppy shots. This is the first, more will follow on Flickr .   You saw this image first on Instagram

  Tumuli are Gallo-Roman burial mounts and in my region there are plenty to find ( even 2 in my own village ).  In this article on Wikipedia you find a map and you can see how concentrated they are. You should overlay this map with a map of the major Roman roads through the empire and the important regional cities of the era (1st till 3rd century). These tumuli are not only great landmarks to photograph, they are also excellent hiking targets. But please do show some respect, you wouldn't want screaming children climbing on top of your tomb. And littering in the landscape should be a mortal sin everywhere. More images from Haspengouw

This article is about using (vintage) Minolta/Sigma/Sony/Tamron/.. A-mount lenses on contemporary Sony E-mount cameras. Since the Sony LA-EA5 adapter has been released I have been answering dozens of the same questions about compatibility issues from both retailers and end-users. Some questions & personal experiences with the different adapters were special, so I have tested some combinations and made a small list of my findings. Yes, at first -back in 2021- I wanted to make this into a Youtube video.. alas I don't like looking at myself so I stopped editing it. And then in 2023 I glued some of those old clips together into: https://youtu.be/-VLe6eBQpME 1. Sample images are in this Flickr folder ( always making more sample images) 2. Gear Used : 2.1. Adapters : LA-EA3, LA-EA4, LA-EA5 2.2. E-mount cameras cat1: A1, A7SIII, A7IV, A7RV, FX30, ZV-E1 2.3. E-mount cameras cat2: A9II, A7III, A7RIV, A7C, A6600, A6400, ZV-E10 ( also goes for A7RIII, A9, A6100 ) 2.4. E-

Everybody has the right to make a wise and educated choice for themselves. And I accept their choices as long as their choices      * do not endanger/hurt, the Planet, the animals, my few loved ones or myself,      * do not limit or inhibit my right and ability to make my own free choices.        * And they accept the consequences of their choices. Freedom means having the choice to be free.. or not. More from this series on Flickr

 Even after a few years of steelwoolspinning in several places, this spin remains one of my favorites. If you know a nice urbex location that would be perfect for some firespinpictures, then don't hesitate to contact me. And the same goes for models who aren't affraid to pose amongst the firesparks. More fire for all pyrojunkies on Flickr

We made a Spring themed picture on Easter day. Too Kitsch? At least I'm trying to make more seasonal images than a few years back when only Halloween received some attention. Yes, I have once again inspiration for shoots.. now this inspiration needs to outlast the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown situation. More images from April are on Flickr

For long after the human race is gone, Red Cathedral will shine in the skies, for now Red Cathedral is officially a star in the Taurus constellation. Just look up at night towards the astronomical position of Right Ascension 4h5m41.61s and Declination 16°55'38.12".. the perfect location to shine on all campfires in the abandoned mountain regions & remote forests. A star for all creative adventurers running away from human society.    A giant hug to Nijntje for this wonderful gift!

For us Europeans February 12 2021 was a palindrome date. (12022021.. Just look at the beauty of those numbers, so I just had to make a picture on that day.) And eventhough i´m living in it.. 2021 still sounds like pure scifi to me. But i can´t seem to choose between a #cyberpunk scifi like Shadowrun or a purely #dystopian world as projected in the Purge and something way more #postapocalyptic . I guess we´ll wait and see. Namaste. And there is an Instagram version More on Flickr

 There was snow and a church, so we made a photo of Fire & Ice. On this 1st image I added a bit of fantasy atmosphere. Subtle enough? There's a video with a look behind the scenes. Evidently there is more on Flickr Or do you prefer the Instagram version ? _____________________ Reading between the lines (aka Het Doorkijkkerkje van Borgloon ) is an artwork by the architect duo Gijs Van Vaerenbergh _____________________ Explaining the title : Burning Churches by Me and that Man That night I saw the flames flicker on the television set The vicar's tears fell as he faced the camera men And my mother grabbed her crucifix And drew in her breath It's suspected arson the newsreader said My life was reborn into that incendiary darkness It brought to mind the great writers of satanic verses From that truth my eyes glowed with unholy illumination From the matchstick spark until the final glowing embers I'm called by the light Of burning churches Saved by the li

The Romans adapted the Greek term  βάρβαρος in order to refer to anything that was non-Roman. The Romans indiscriminately characterized the various Germanic tribes , the settled Gauls , and even the raiding Huns as barbarians. For the Romans, and subsequently for all following generations up until today, a barbarian is a human who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive (such as a tribal society). Any barbarian was looked upon with disdain. Still those Barbarian hordes conquered the mighty and civilized Rome. The laughing barbarian is on Flickr

We wish you a very Apocalyptic 2021! Before you whimper and whine because you couldn't party on New Year’s Eve or celebrate it with friends & family: think of all the elderly, the poor, the sick, the homeless and the disabled people who spend EVERY NYE all alone. Think of all those people who work every time while you celebrate. For you it was 1 year of abstinence, for them a lifetime. Maybe next year you’ll invite a poor, disabled or elderly family member or friend to your NYE party. And in that case 202021 has taught us all something. Namaste Greetings from Winter-ish Haspengouw

Having a holiday during the 2nd lockdown of 2020 was a great opportunity to play a bit around with tape on skin (combining BDSM with Body Art, as we brainstormed about for the PVIN/PAIN magazine). After the pandemic there will be hopefully some more taped images and plenty of tattoo pictures. Inked ladies who are interested in creating images (can be boudoir, costume, fine art nude, kinky & Dark Fantasy) with their pretty tattoos are welcome to contact us for collabs in 2021. Originally posted on Flickr and the Instagram version . A selection of Tape and Ink - images on The Dark Cathedral  

 Enjoy my favorite holiday of the year. The full set is on Flickr Link to the Instagram version

How about some easy reading while you wait for the second lockdown of 2020? Would these subjects & cover stir up your interest.. And still be artful/tasty enough to leave it casually lying on the side table when suspected kinksters are visiting? Yes, we are brainstorming about a new magazine that combines bodyart, kinks, art & BDSM (online + print). The question is of course whether there are interested viewers/readers,  models (mf+), photographers, tattoo + other artists, bodypiercers, copywriters and sponsors/advertisers in Belgium to realize a magazine like that. But hey, we've already got the 1st cover. Looks promising , doesn't it? More PVIN on The Dark Cathedral

You can't imagine how many chapels are hidden in Haspengouw / Hesbaye. And some are truly special.. This one is called "The floating chapel" and I easily can imagine it combined with a model in a regal fantasy costume featuring a very long gown floating in the wind. As always: more on Flickr

During training with the Sony A7SIII a common question I get is: since you can't use Super 35 mode in 4k video,  can you still use APS-C lenses to film with? It's logical that you can't use Super 35 mode (= APS-C sized video mode) in 4k since the A7SIII films 4.2k in full sensor readout. Hence you can only use the Super 35 mode in FHD (1080p). In Sony full frame mirrorless cameras you can always switch between using the camera full frame or in APS-C. For photo you always sacrifice megapixels. The A9/A9II/A7II/A7III's 24MP becomes 10MP in APS-C, A7RIII's 42MP becomes a usuable 18MP in APS-C, A7RIV's 61MP becomes a very decent 26MP in APS-C. The advantage for photo is that you can turn a 600mm lens into a 900mm lens without teleconvertor. All info about this feature in this article + video The A7S-series have a 12MP sensor ( to be used as a lowlight behemoth with those giant-sized photocytes in the sensor - factcheck: https://www.digicamdb.com/specs/sony_a7s-iii/

You can do crazy videothings with the new videocentric A7SIII camera without it overheating and I hope to be able to test several of those (Yes, including making a vertical TikTok or IG video in 4k 120fps or FHD 240fps.. speaking about overkill for those platforms 😇)  But my main focus is photography and while some say 12MP " just isn't enough to be considered as a pro photocamera ",  I still remember days when we were whowed by 8MP pro photocameras. Times have changed.. but if you want you can still make a picture that doesn't need cropping. Depends on the chosen subject and the in-camera framing. Just don't expect to be making large prints (I mean: larger than A3 chemical prints) and then the 12MP covers it perfectly. I'm off now, trying to get the most out of the crazy fast autofocus (even at EV -6), the nearly limitless RAW-buffer (+1000pix buffer with the CFExpress A), the 15+ stops of dynamic range and best of all: the ISO 40 to ISO 409600 (yes, you r