Author Archives: Bea

ICC Mediation Competition

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I recently spent a week shooting the 7th International Mediation Competition organised by the International Chamber of Commerce. Over 500 students and mediation professionals from around the world converged in Paris to participate in this massive competition. Throughout, university students faced international business problems, which they attempted to resolve by mediation. Occasionally, the photographer has the best job – in this case, it meant being the only person who could sneak in and out of the rooms and follow many sessions at once. All in all, a fun week with lots of great faces, encounters, chats and champagne! The full sets are here. To all my Paris friends, I apologise for not having a second to see you.

Bald

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Whenever I sit behind a bald head, I have an overwhelming urge to touch it. I don’t know why… I don’t particularly like the look. I do hate hair though. I didn’t use to but I’m fairly certain I could never again live with someone who had long hair. I don’t specifically mind it on somebody’s head but anywhere else makes me shiver. Hair in the drain being the most obvious pet peeve… anyone who stays with me often knows to remove it asap post shower! I should probably seek help.

Imagine Huy

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The 2012 Imagine Competition (all styles music competition for Belgian youth) semi finals kicked off yesterday in Huy. I documented the 2011 competition as a collaboration with the JMI Foundation which led to an exhibition at the Botanique – With the freedom to pick my angle, I focused mostly on the backstage energy, shooting only very little of the actual performances. I was invited back this year as a ‘worker’ – my brief being to shoot mainly stage action. Quite nice to actually watch the whole event! The lighting was crap, the stage set up was very deep and the stage way too high… but you have to go with the flow (thank you 5DMarkII)! The deserved winners of this semi-final: Salad Bar (this is not a photo of them, here’s one :p)

Open Space @ The HUB

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The HUB Brussels is an amazing, innovative co working space right around the corner from me. I’m often tempted to grab myself a desk there but can’t quite justify it … a lot of my editing is done later at night and I have a perfectly good space at home. It’s always nice to have an excuse to spend some time there though, which is what MediatEUr‘s open space event offered me on Friday. So two posts in one really – some open space action and some HUB vibe. Here’s the full flickr set

Away game

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Busy, fun weekend. We (rugby team) had an away game in Heusden-Zolder on Saturday -  a small place in the middle of the Limbourg region. As we left Brussels, it was pouring with rain and absolutely freezing meaning none of us were feeling very pumped but the closer we got to Heusden the bluer the skies and it ended up being pretty perfect! I bought my camera along to snap a couple of team shots and then it struck me that it would be fun to shoot all the changing rooms and club houses of the places we play at… they are all fairly unique. I’ve missed half of them this season, so I suppose that means I’m condemned to playing at least another year if I want to catch all of them!
Band shoot with Ziggy today but I haven’t even loaded those yet so that’ll have to wait.

Daytripping in Charleroi

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Most people know of Charleroi as the Brussels “Ryanair airport” (ie – an expensive 45min Ryanair-owned coach ride into town)  …  in fact, Charleroi is the largest Walloon and third largest Belgian city (just over 200,000 inhabitants) but struggles economically (27% of the population earn less than €10 000 a year compared to 17% nationally). The infrastructure desperately needs updating, and the mix of empty rundown buildings and flashy neon lights is pretty grim. It was once a busy mining town which goes some way to explaining all of the above and which also accounts for the hordes of second and third generation Italian families that pepper this area of the country. I headed there last Sunday with Emilie & Ari for a little shooting session… a few more on this flickr set

That building opposite Midi

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I’m guessing everybody in Brussels (or who has ever visited) knows this building – it’s bang opposite the entrance/exit to the Gare du Midi, right by the taxi stand/spot-where-you-smoke-your-last-cigarette-before-boarding (well, not me, not for the past 5 months anyway :) ) … I’m not sure everybody thinks it’s as cool as I do though, so here’s my attempt to convince.