Every year I’m asked to photograph the Mr. T. Triathlon in Gent. These images show the Fun group entering the water at Blaarmeersen—photographed right at water level, just as the calm turned into a wall of spray.

As every year, I was asked to photograph the Mr. T Triathlon in Gent. It's always a long and busy day, but also a very enjoyable event to photograph.
These three images are from the Team wave, as the athletes came out of the water. Different participants, different expressions, but all moving towards the next part of their race.

I took this photograph from an upper level of Antwerp Central Station. While people hurried across the station concourse, one man stood still and watched them pass, with his dog quietly beside him.

A busy afternoon on the Meir in Antwerp. In the middle of the passing crowd, an older man pulled down his hat as the wind swept through the street. Around him, everyone seemed absorbed in their own small moment.

I took this photograph in the modern extension of Antwerp Central Station, near Mercatorstraat. The enormous clock dominates the space, while the woman, her trolley, and the little dog provide a sense of scale.

​I took this photograph at the Albert I Monument in Nieuwpoort. While framing the equestrian statue of King Albert I between the brick columns, a visitor appeared at the top and raised a phone to take a picture.

That small figure brought a touch of humor to an otherwise formal scene. It also made the composition more forgiving of the fact that it is not completely symmetrical—and ultimately made the photograph much more interesting.

I took this photograph from the top of the Albert I Monument, looking down at the statue of King Albert I while two visitors walked away between the columns. The two small figures gave the monument scale and completed the composition.

I went to Westfront Nieuwpoort to see the Bieke Depoorter exhibition, which brings together three of her projects: The Line, Blinked Myself Awake, and The Beds I Slept In. The exhibition was very good, but I became just as fascinated by the museum and the monument itself.

Westfront tells the story of the Ganzepoot and the flooding of the Yser plain during the First World War. By opening the sluices in October 1914, they flooded a large area, stopping the German advance. It explains why this place played such an important role during the war.

When you visit a museum like this, it is difficult to understand why history keeps repeating itself. We supposedly learned from two world wars, but Korea, Vietnam, and the many conflicts that followed showed how quickly those lessons were forgotten. Today, we are again watching wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Yemen, while some world leaders continue to use language that divides people and encourages confrontation rather than peace. Different periods and different circumstances, of course, but often the same dangerous patterns. Perhaps that is exactly why places such as Westfront remain so important.

​I took this photograph at Sonop Farm during a trip through Namibia. The landscape is dominated by enormous granite boulders, but among them, this small tree had managed to find enough space to grow. Its fragile shape contrasted with the weight and solidity of the surrounding rocks. Black and white helped me concentrate on that contrast, as well as on the shapes and textures of the landscape.

I took this photograph a few years ago during a trip through Namibia. 

At Sonop Farm, an extraordinary nature reserve on the southern edge of the Namib Desert in the Karas Region, I came across this zebra carcass. Against the vast and empty landscape, it showed how beautiful and, at the same time, unforgiving life in the desert can be. Black and white felt like the natural choice, bringing out the zebra's stripes and the rough textures of the land.

I took this photograph at the Rijksmuseum while visiting Ed van der Elsken. Up Close.

Van der Elsken was never a distant observer. He moved close, made contact, and often became part of the situation he was photographing. His photographs and films are direct, energetic and very personal, documenting the people he met in Amsterdam, Paris, Japan and elsewhere. The exhibition also includes contact sheets, notes and experiments that offer an interesting look at how he worked.

The exhibition runs at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam until 13 September 2026. If you are in Amsterdam before then, I can highly recommend a visit.