Born in Brandenburg in 1985, he graduated in photo design from Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts and now lives in Heilbronn with his wife and four children. In his documentary-subjective free works, he deals primarily with social issues, physical border regions, non-places and the invisible fringes of our time. In his diploma thesis NIKOSIA – the last divided capital, he documented the border region of Cyprus and its inhabitants.

The exciting thing is that companies that ask me want exactly the style of images that they know from my portraits and reports in journalistic magazines. The desire for authentic, individual images is growing – especially in times of AI-generated content. Classic corporate photography (bright, flashed, friendly) certainly still has its place, but it is becoming increasingly interchangeable.

Especially when I photograph CEOs of large corporations for journalistic publications, I often experience how internal PR departments try to impose generic poses such as “person leaning on railing”. It then takes sensitivity, timing and knowledge of human nature to impose my own visual language – without losing sight of respectful interaction.

I basically take the same approach to corporate jobs as I do to editorial jobs. The difference lies more in the framework conditions: The time factor is usually more generous, the shoot more structured. I often show the images directly on the iPad and the client is closely involved. What I don’t do, however, is plan every single motif down to the smallest detail beforehand. I’m not an advertising photographer.

I like to work quickly, intuitively and with an open eye for what’s happening on location. The available light, chance, the moment – these are all creative means that I use consciously. However, the most important factor for me is always respectful, human interaction at eye level. Everything else follows from that.

I was particularly fascinated by the great openness of the city of Heilbronn and the wirDesign agency. They didn’t commit to a specific visual language in advance, but gave me complete freedom. This allowed me to fully engage with the people and their stories without having to constantly think about the final output.

In the second shooting phase, the challenge was to work with very tight time slots: All the protagonists were only available to us for a few minutes. It was precisely this time pressure that added to the appeal – because it forced me to quickly capture empathetic, authentic moments and adapt my approach spontaneously.

I can’t say exactly where this comes from – but I’ve always been interested in the margins of our society. Even as a teenager, I started working on social documentary projects.

I often have the feeling that the topics find me – not the other way around. For example, I’m currently working on a series about people with physical disabilities in a shared flat for wheelchair users. The contact came about through a photographer friend who had asked me for a job.

Sometimes new ideas come about quite unexpectedly in everyday life: my second eldest son has been kickboxing for a few weeks now – and the subject of martial arts grabbed me so much that I took up Muay Thai myself. It’s an incredibly tough, but at the same time very respectful and spiritual sport. Over the next ten years, I plan to photograph on every continent – and especially in Thailand, the country where Thai boxing originated. When the photo book is published in 2035, we’ll be happy to talk about it again.

Sometimes I have the feeling that I’ve already played the “game” a bit in photography. Video, on the other hand, is a completely new playground for me – creatively, technically, conceptually. I had the desire to study film early on, but the organizational and technical production effort was a big hurdle back then. Today, thanks to modern technology, it’s much more accessible, and that’s what makes it so exciting for me.

In film, there is also the dimension of time. It’s not just about image composition, but also about rhythm, dramaturgy and atmosphere. Suddenly frame rates, codecs, music and editing all play a role – it’s complex, challenging and that’s exactly why it’s so fascinating. For me, video is not a substitute, but an extension of my photographic work – with endless possibilities.

Yes, definitely. Video has enormous emotional potential thanks to the additional layer of sound – be it music, atmosphere or original sound. You can use it to create moods very directly, build up tension or create closeness. This makes video an incredibly powerful means of expression, especially when it comes to complex, emotional stories.

At the same time, I believe that photography has its very own power – a form of condensation that often suggests more than it explains. A strong photograph can make you pause, raise questions and offer scope for interpretation.

I find it exciting how both media can complement each other. There are some Magnum photographers who have done just that impressively – they combine still and moving images in a way that opens up new levels of storytelling.

For us as a family, the children have a high priority. That doesn’t mean that everything revolves around them – but we want to have enough time to be aware of their schedules, hobbies and developments.

My wife used to work as a freelance stylist for photo and film productions, but made a conscious decision to take a break from her career. That may sound like a classic role model – but in our case, it brings a lot of calm and balance to everyday life. At the same time, of course, it also means pressure: as the sole breadwinner, I bear full financial responsibility. That doesn’t leave much room for freelance projects, and I have to weigh up carefully whether a project is really worthwhile – both in terms of content and financially.

What helps me: Many editorial jobs, especially in the portrait sector, feel like small freelance projects to me. The picture editors often give me a lot of creative freedom, which suits me very well. The different people I meet and the conversations that arise are a constant source of inspiration. My productivity often comes precisely from the time constraints. I work in a more focused way and have learned to say no sometimes – something I used to find very difficult. Today I know that creativity not only needs space, but also clarity.

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