I’m not going to write a new year new me blog. It’s more a new year lets be me blog.
This year has been a crazy ride personally and artistic. Made dreams come to like visiting the McLaren MTC with my dad. I embraced my passion for photography. Made some music and started privet vocal lessons to boost my confidence as a person and artist. Some friendships are hard to see because you know each other from work. Long I hold my photo work and private life separated. Now I realise what they even wanted to show my during my art study: I’am my art. My photography is the way I see the world.
I prefer making pictures in Germany I became a thing for me. It’s not just crossing the border but Germany became an artistic playground for me with people that support my work. Yes I do make pictures in my home country in the Netherlands but the vibe and support is different. Mabe It just help me focus on my work. When I’m in the Netherlands I have my family, daily work, and my opera hobby. But in Germany I have my creative family an then I’m only focus on my art.
So short 2025:
Found friends back. Made new friends. Found people I met long a ago and becaome friends. Let some old friends go.
Just life live the way it suits you. Connect with those you feel comfortable with. Dare to dream and don’t be afraid to realise them.
So 2025 was start dreaming, 2026 will be living the dream!!
November rushed by. Somehow my Novembers are always full of fun but it makes time fly by. I have made new pictures but still didn’t find the time to upload more of my archives. Yes slowly I pick up my camera more and more at as Kids Rally, walks in nature (more in 2026 about that) and concerts. But November to me is always busy with music making pictures at Veljanov in Bochum and I had to sing with the Osse Opera at the Osse Nacht. On social media people asked me to give some insight how I work with concert photography and why I chose certain pictures.
About 20 years ago I started concert photography as a student photographer. During my studies Documentary Photography I worked as a reporter for my own Noize Magazine. Basically my workflow never changed. While most people focused on post- production my focus is on pre-production.
My workflow
– Check the band and how they represent themselves
– Check the fanbase online but also talk with them at the venue. It tells me more about the atmosphere and how they see their favourite band.
– Respect the rules of the venue and band (mostly it’s making pictures a the first three songs).
– Try to find the setting and right angel to captures as much as possible, even when you are standing in a small corner.
– Making the pictures take those full 15 minutes of window you have. That means full in from the first second the lights go on, only to even check te light. I work In raw so it gives me some more editing room. But still it’s a quick eye between finding the shots and settings.
– When the camera is down I just try to enjoy the evening. This also helps me with my post processing.
– Post processing I try to edit as soon as possible. But I’m really selective on the pictures that make the series. Not if they’re technically good but also does it have the right atmosphere and does it fit with the image of the artist.
– And most of my editing is just some balance setting and some cropping. But I my personal way is to make the picture that I have to edit as less as possible. Capture the moment at the moment and don’t create it afterwards.
You make pictures of some artist for 18 years now doesn’t make it a easy routine?
No, basically not because every tour, location is different. For me it’s a challenge to make better pictures every time. Find the rare moments capture them. Every time the feeling is different so you need to find the right expression that tells the story of the evening of that moment. Yes, it’s easier in the post process because you know what kind of images the band/artist likes so it makes it easier so select images but on the other side you look at different details that makes me as a photographer more pickier on the images I choose.
In a split second
In a split second
The first pictures I want to write about is this split second take. I talk about the lower picture of the two. This was within a speed mode series and all the pictures where like the op picture with expression. You can say it was a lucky shot. But most colleague photographers would only pick the top picture. Just because it fits his image a good expression that could sell in a magazine. For me the top picture isn’t special just a typical one. But that little smile just shows more of the relaxed vibe of the evening.
Caught in emotion
Caught in emotion
Yes I love to capture emotion. Every song brings different emotions. This picture was made during the last song of the concert (yes I was allowed to make pictures at the last song this time). It was the song “Dirt” it’s a emotionally heavy song an to be honest it always makes me cry. For me it also a song that they should never stop playing because it’s about pain and war. These kind of emotional moment of Alexander you also see at Deine Lakaien concerts. But it’s mostly on moments when you are not allowed to make pictures or he turns away that you cannot capture the emotion.
For me this picture shows how emotional these concerts are. The visitors also experience the concert as a beautiful flow of emotions. For me this picture is the perfect balance of being in his emotional bubble, captured with respect and with his iconic signature look.
So this is a small look in my photography kitchen. Feel free to send me questions about my edits.
This blog might come over as a slightly arrogant blog. But so many times I hear: oh, you are a photographer so you can make picture…
at my wedding
of my company
for my ID
of my child
of my dog
a funeral
and so on and so on.
And I say NO!
Mostly people are surprised if I say no. Yes I have almost all the degrees in photography (I only miss a master that’s a different thing) so yes I learned all the techniques. My specialisation is concert & documentary photography. That also doesn’t mean I make pictures of every concert with my camera (mostly a snapshot with my iPhone like everyone now days). During my photography studies I didn’t even take all assignments. It’s good to set your borders as an artist in whatever art you make. As a student it’s normal to experiment and discover your interest and talent. But as a photographer here in the Netherlands people expect you do everything. But it’s good to have a specialisation.
So what kind of photography do I do? At the moment I started to pick up my photography as a freelance independent photographer and I only make picture for my own art and on request. So a concert here and there when it fits my agenda. Art project at my own pace.
I feel great the way I can reinvent myself as an artist compared to the pressure of when I was studying. I have control and do what I love work with people I want to work with who fits in my vision. With Noize Magazine I’ve had a great time but now I don’t have big pressure deadline and focus on developing my own style in my own time. So let’s make art!!!
Dare to be arrogant! Now I’m getting older I start to understand artist that seemed arrogant when I was young. Like stories I heard about Corbijn asking outrageous fees to make pictures or the attitude of Erwin Olaf. They are strict in there own rules they made to protect them as an artist. To have control of there own art. So now I don’t see arrogant as a bad thing but just a way to focus on your personal work. The hard thing is the balance between appear arrogant and still be open to new things. Boundaries are hard to set because before you realise you start to build walls instead of bridges.
So yes you can always ask me to make pictures of your wedding/dog whatever. Just accept if I ask a high fee or even say no.
With love, Helene
Helene Smits – Berlin 2005Helene Smits – Berlin 2025
So new blog January is such a dull month finish what’s left of last year but new ideas taking over your mind. So with piles of administration of last year (yes I know I should keep it up better) and a mind full of ideas I write this blog.
And just a note my blogs are my personal perspective on my life and no theatre or concert reviews. But I love to use these shows as a nice threat in my writing.
Now I ended up in a last minute crazy idea to go to Rob Kemps show Hemel op Aarde (Snollebollekes guy you know from Left to right). But instead of an audience of party people but the average age of my opera choir would be a perfect fit and a few couples of my age. So yes no party but a show about the most famous cemetery of Paris. I should have went for a full goth look that would fit the mood (not the audience nor artist) but a sneaky Veljanov’s shirt might already do the trick or test Rob on his knowledge about Brel.
What Rob has with Paris I have with Berlin. I deeply respect Rob and I would love to sit with him one day and talk about music and art. But I don’t know much about Paris. I found my love for the city of Berlin. Every time I see an ICE a nice silver bullet between all those yellow with blue trains my heart makes a jump. I want to board it and hope it will take me to Berlin. Visit places the roots of the art I love the small streets of Kreuzberg the rare non tourist one that reminds me of a time of rebellious art. A sense of ever longing freedom even the wall is gone. Even the city has changed I will always love it. Where Rob told the story of him going to the Bar of the roots of the chassions. I’m proud I can say I have been to the K17 the iconic venue for underground and industrial music. But like Rob told about his meetings an places where his idols have been that he has been there to. I can see I have been on the same stage as he just here in my town Oss. We both have been on the main stage of the Lievekamp no one can take that away from me.
Crowds, one thing I have in common with Rob is that I don’t like crowds. For me that keeps the dream of being on stage to see and feel the crowd but not beeing a number in the mass. Or go with my camera being there in my own bubble with my own personal spaces. Like yesterday I was on the side of row one (number 3 counted from stage) and the couple beside me didn’t show up. And I loved my personal space from left to right no one and even in front of me there was the isle. So I could enjoy the show from inside my own bubble.
But back to my t-shirt. After the show I start talking with a man he made a comment on my t-shirt. He asked me if It was a Jim Morrison shirt but then sees Veljanov on it. So there it it we talked about music he about his love for music from Paris and me about the beauty of the music from Berlin how love for music unites.
And a friend told me it’s oke to groupie now and then. And it’s true we should allow it ourselves and enjoy it. Just for the magic of the moment. Because one day all our inspirations our personal idols will and op in a place like Père Lachaise. So sometimes really just sometimes I will let myself groupie. But also I see the artist sapreated from the person itself.
But one thing if Rob wil go before me and even he will be buried in “just” Best. I will take my grandchild to your grave and make my first true Left to Right. And if I can not do it my self then I hope my grandchild will read this and do it for me. Thats I wish I would love to grant for him.
Well I guess I can say this is part two of my nostalgic blog (here is part one). After making pictures at Deine Lakaien in Planetarium Bochum it was now time to go back to concert venue’s again. The lighting will be completely different just like the crowd. So like the old days let’s go in the photopit!
It’s almost strange to think that it was over a decade that I have been in the photopit. But maybe it was the magic of Bochum still in my head or the nostalgic theme of the Veljanov tour that made that time hasn’t past. There where a lot of trusted faces that also makes it more comfortable to make pictures. Like Marcus Testory was also 2008 when I have had him in front of my camera for a report “a day with Chamber.”
While the concert in Oberhausen felt like just old school with the type of hall and the dancing people. Berlin felt really special to me. Being there thinking of the cd presentation of Porta Macedonia 16 years ago. The interview with Alexander at Summer Darkness festival in Utrecht 15 years. Celebrating 25 years Secrets of the Silver Tongue and this all on the day that 35 years ago the Berlin wall fell.
Berlin was a evening not just being nostalgic but also one of breaking my own walls that I build up. Walls that I build up to hide my grief and lost vision on where the heart takes you. It was like a coming home again. I guess just to pet my ego maybe I felt the “Anton Corbijn” of the evening and Alexander Veljanov is for me like what’s Bono for Anton Corbijn. That one person in front of you camera that somehow works like magic and always let’s you be on your best.
What a great time to be back in Berlin. The first and last time I made concert pictures in Berlin was 2008. It was a 26h visit to Berlin including drive. That was to the cd presentation of Veljanov Porta Macedonia album. So now after to lang ago back to Berlin and nog with was an upgraded trip of 60h or in short words nice weekend away. The atmosphere was great and Die Kammer was a great party again to warm up the venue. The evening was a nice celibration of Veljanov Secrets of the Silver Tongue. This nostalgic tour and specially Berlin really brought me back to 2008.
