It has been a great year for my photography I am happy to say. It started with a trip to New York that left me very impressed. All about that city is just on a different scale, love it or hate it, New York will surely never leave anybody indifferent. The only thing was that freezing temperatures of down to -18C made it quite a challenge to stand outdoors for long periods of time.

On my way back to Luxembourg I started the new year with some great concerts and by early February we had our own cold spell. Snow brings beauty and quietness to the city of Luxembourg, making it even more attractive than it usually is.

2018 has been the year I finally made the transition to a mirrorless camera system. For those unsure what that really means, it’s the final step on the digital transformation of photography. Mirrorless cameras do not have the pentaprism and the mirror to produce an image in the viewfinder. The light travels through the lens directly to the digital sensor and from there it is either shown in the rear LCD screen or in the electronic viewfinder.

There are many advantages of mirrorless over DSLR cameras but for me one that made me take the plunge was the ability to shoot 100% silently. Since most of my work as a photographer is for the Philharmonie of Luxembourg I was often in situations where making any noise whatsoever was not allowed. Now I can shoot and keep one of the premises of a good concert photographer; go unnoticed.

My Sony cameras have allowed me to work in some concert halls in Europe where previously photographers could not take pictures during the concerts. One such case that I am very proud of was at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris. Apparently I was the very first photographer to be allowed in the hall during a concert. You can read more about this experience in my previous blog post breaking the sound barrier.

I consider myself very fortunate to be able to do something with my working life that feels like I’m not working at all. My work for the Philharmonie in Luxembourg allows me to combine two passions of mine, music and photography. I also have found a love for architecture photography and I am very happy that led to the production of a 2019 calendar for the main costumers, press and patrons of the Philharmonie.

Landscape photography was and still is something that brings me much joy. I am also very lucky to be able to work for the National Tourist Office of Luxembourg. I also got into a great collaboration with fellow and friend photographer Christophe Van Biesen to run together landscape photography workshops. It has been a great pleasure to work together with Christophe and meet so many enthusiastic photographers.

I also traveled to beautiful Slovenia with a group of friend photographers and had great fun photographing the area around Triglav National Park. Slovenia is an amazing country for nature activities of any type and it is not getting the hordes of tourists other countries get. I sincerely hope it stays like that.

Ireland and Northern Spain were two other great destinations where I enjoyed the landscapes as well as the local culture and their people.

The year is coming to an end and I hope 2019 is at least as good as 2018 was. Me and my family stayed in Luxembourg for the end of the year holidays and despite the lack of snow we got the rather unusual freezing fog which brings to the otherwise dull Winter landscape a beautiful touch of brightness and contrast.

I sincerely hope 2019 brings plenty of good things to everyone. Some recent sociopolitical, economic and ecological developments have not been promising anything good so my efforts and hopes will go towards a kinder, more understanding, fairer world.

I wish you all the very best for 2019. Take good care and enjoy!

As I was laying on bed with a terrible flu during my stay in Ireland over the Christmas holidays I got an email entitled "crazy idea".

I was feeling awful but this email made me almost jump out of bed. Someone I work for had organised a last minute event in New York City and was asking me if I could come to photograph it. It took me two milliseconds to make my mind up.

The prospect of going to the Big Apple for the first time in my life was very appealing. Moreover, my dear childhood friend Alfonso from Seville also lives there, so the appeal was even bigger. The coincidence was quite big since the event I had to photograph and my friend's place were 10min walking distance from each other. I could not have asked for a more exciting experience and it was being offered to me.

So after my return to Luxembourg I got ready for my trip to NY. After a long flight and a special first evening with my friend and his family I woke up early in the morning and headed for the streets. I wanted to check a well know photography shop in New York called B&H and walked from the hotel to get a feeling of the streets. Rather than using public transport I just walked everywhere and my average walking distance was 25km a day.

It is difficult to describe how overwhelming everything is in this city the first time you visit it. The sheer size of the buildings, the roar of the streets, the smells, the numerous characters you come across. It is quite an experience and it is very extreme in different ways. Not only the architecture offer huge contrasts but also life in the streets. It is the essence of capitalism.

Being more of a landscape than a street photographer I wanted to explore and photograph some of the amazing views New York has to offer. I was told I was very lucky with the weather conditions I found on my arrival. It seems only a day or two earlier New Yorkers had to endure many days of freezing temperatures around -18ºC. Me on the other hand "only" had -8ºC and a wind chill that felt like -15º...lucky me. I had forgotten how horrible it is to feel intense pain in my hands and ears due to very low temperatures, however, I could not miss the chance to get out there and photograph this amazing city.

Musically, my trip was also superb. Not only I saw my friend Alfonso play live one of his gigs but I also saw a few really amazing gigs around Manhattan. My friend Alfonso is a flamenco singer and flute player and is involved in many projects. Perhaps his pet project is The New York Bojaira Project, a very special mix of jazz and flamenco with some excellent musicians that I absolutely love.

From the other other gigs I saw, perhaps the one that stood out for me was the one at 11th Street Bar. The man playing the alto saxophone in this short video is Bob Mover. It seems he used to play with trumpeter Chet Baker, who had a very unhealthy relationship with drugs and so it seems was the case for Bob Mover. At least Bob is still alive, unlike Chet Baker, but the price he had to pay is a severe lung emphysema. He was playing hooked to an oxygen machine but nevertheless was able to pull out of that saxophone some beautiful solos. It is quite possible his profound love for music and his instrument keeps him alive.

These pictures are a selection of the many I took over the time I spend in NYC. I had a couple of days of heavy rain and two days of work. The rest of my time I spent walking the city, taking pictures, seeing my friend Alfonso, eating great food and listening to some great music. I could not have had a better trip to New York and I am already thinking about coming back with my family to enjoy together this outstanding place.

2018, a year in images

Crazy idea