I have very consciously chosen my own path in recent years. No big exhibitions, no competitions, no rush. Instead: helping people look better. With books, workshops, lectures, podcast.
And then suddenly you get a phone call: whether you want to collaborate as an expert on The Perfect Picture on Tour. Whether I would like to give some tips on street photography - for an episode set in Naples. It was ITV Studios / RTL 4. Friend Evely had tipped off the editors about me.
On Valentine's Day this year, I received an app:
"Um, they were looking for a street photographer for The Perfect Picture. I tipped you off." From Evely. Evely had previously (2019) competed in the Perfect Picture. Soon after, Aimée from ITV Studios called. I was immediately excited, of course!
From Hilversum to Naples
My contribution was pre-recorded at the ITV Studios in Hilversum. So in the episode itself, you won't see me on the streets of Italy - but my head, my voice, my vision, my enthusiasm is in it. On the iPad. As my wife said: "You used to watch Irene Moors, now Irene Moors watches you." Unreal, mind you.
The assignment for the candidates: take a spontaneous, unposed street photo that captures Italian coffee culture. An assignment that made me very happy. Because as cliché as it sounds: that is exactly what street photography is about for me. Real life. Unfiltered. Without manipulating it.
While shooting in the studio, I got to record explanations for the photographers on how to go about it: street photography in an unfamiliar city, full of stimuli, people and opportunities. With a camera crew in your wake. Nice and inconspicuous.
What do you pay attention to? How do you see the extraordinary in the ordinary? And how do you capture that in one image, without it feeling manufactured? Questions I deal with every day, and which I constantly return to in my workshops and books.
A culmination of past years' toil
Being asked to do this feels like a great crowning achievement for the brand and work I have been painstakingly building over the past few years.
I have already shown my face in quite a few places, with The Observer, The Law of the Street, the Straatfotobijbel and of course 30 Minutes Shutter speed. If you want something in photography, you have to get in front of the camera yourself, I think.
I believe that what I do has value - precisely because it is about attention, about seeing what is already there, about slowing down and deepening. And it is extraordinary to notice that this approach seems to get noticed. Even in places where you don't necessarily expect it.
The collaboration with the team of The Perfect Picture was also incredibly pleasant. Everyone is committed, enthusiastic and professional. The programme is made with so much love, I experienced that up close. And that made it extra fun to participate.
Thank you, Aimée and Pien from ITV Studios, and William Rutten, for that nice note after the recording day. I really appreciate it!
Photography off-camera
What I find special about this moment is that it brings so much together. My love of street photography. My belief that anyone can learn to look. My need to share knowledge. Not just with a camera, but also through words.
That, of course, already came together in the podcast I make with Niels. 30 Minutes Shutter speed is a place for conversations about photography that go beyond settings, gear and pixels. It's about making choices. About doubt. About developing yourself. And yes, sometimes also about street photography.
The great thing is: this RTL adventure does not feel like something separate to me. On the contrary, it fits seamlessly into the line I am following. It is not a distraction, but a broadening. A great gift. A way to reach even more people who might also be thinking, "I'd like to do that too, just take pictures on the street, but I don't dare very well." For all those people, this is hopefully a small push.
Besides, it is an intermediate stage. I am thinking about yet-to-be-conceived adventures after the summer. New highlights, or finally getting that longer project off the ground. But first, enjoy this highlight, 100%.
Look, wait, click
What I also said to the candidates - and actually always say - is simple: street photography doesn't have to be complicated. You don't have to force anything. Use simple settings. You don't have to wait for the perfect light or the ideal scene. Go outside. Look. Wait. Click. Sometimes it's a second, sometimes an hour. But it always starts with looking. Honest looking. Curious looking.
And sometimes, just sometimes, you look around you and realise that you yourself are also seen. That others also look at what you do, and appreciate it. That's what this broadcast gave me. And I am grateful for that.
Want to see it?
The Perfect Picture on Tour aired Wednesday night 18 June at 20:30 on RTL 4. You can watch the episode back via Videoland.
And who knows, you might see something in it that inspires you to go out with your camera again yourself.
If that happens, my mission will be accomplished.