The concept of putting my whole life and business “on the road”, already exists since a couple years. But let’s get back a few years, to the beginning of my “career” as a photographer in 2007…
After 13 years practicing analogue photography solely as a leisure activity and without any ambition in a professional career, the offer stepping into professional photography came for me proverbial “out of the blue”. With my existing background in the outdoor sports community and a strong network to the whole scene, I decided to assume this chance and become a professional. So far, so good! My shortfalls been not the talent for photography or getting access to the top athletes in outdoor and mountain sports. One of my biggest obstacles was from the very beginning on, a huge lack in my financial base. The other handicap was my deficit in direct marketing. Actually fatal to start a new business, but still – I was motivated and thought I can make it somehow and endure this tough time. After working in sports photography the first couple years, I decided to switch – into photo-journalism specialized in conflicts and social issues around middle east. A decision I never regret from an idealistic point of view and I would do it again, but financially it was a disaster…
working at the Syrian border in Iraq
…within the years my situation got more and more unpromising and some friends started to motivate me to keep on going and supported me with loans. For me this was on one hand a new perspective to reach my goal, but on the other, it gave me sleepless nights and an enormous strain. An other point why I never reached that goal, was the fact that I’v been always short in needed equipment. At least this was a matter of fact, I used to develop my skills and get the maximum out of the existing gear and situation…
traffic jam before a military check point in the desert of Iraq
…over 12 years I’v been struggling with existential fears, being broke all the time, not knowing at the end of the month, I’m able to pay the rent. And the fact I wasn’t even able to effort the dues for the health insurance or social security fees over all those years – I actually don’t wanna talk about…
So in 2020 I was forced to decide quitting my passion, my dream, my love and my life…
Over those years I was not just struggling with my financial problems, now I was also downhearted with loosing my last anchor in life. After a while I thought I’m able to make it without photography and live a “normal” life, like all people doing and I tried. I really tried hard! But going back to regular life, after so many years of independency, traveling, creativity and deciding by your self, how do live your life – is a very difficult re-adjustment. With my increasing depressions and yet another burnout, I was looking for professional help. For me this was the first step to a diagnosis explained at the end a lot – but this is another story I’ll write about in one of my upcoming blog-posts…
boarding at Incheon airport to our flight from Seoul to Vienna
…but now back to topic and the whole traveling issue. During those 12 years working as a photographer and traveling a lot, mostly by plane, one thing caused the most expenses – plane tickets and accommodation! Supplemented with a lot of expenses in local transportation, going for food to restaurants and so on. Also the fact that I was tied to a flight back date, cost me a lot of good stories and pictures over those years. Every time flying somewhere and be financially able just booking for 2 to 3 weeks – during the last week or even days, the great connections to people came up and I had to leave. Bummer! How to gain independency in sojourn time? How to cut down expenses for flights, local transportation and expensive restaurants? With putting my business on the road!
on the road to Romania with Petzl “Roc Trip” in 2014
With coming back from Iraq in 2014 I got the chance to join the Petzl “Roc Trip” tour across the Balkans. A journey with a VW Van and our tents through Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania to Macedonia and through Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to Croatia along the coast back to Austria. It was the first time as a photographer working over a few weeks with a “mobile home” and I’v really seen the advantage to traveling by plane. Even when we had to stick on a time table with coming along the Petzl caravan, it gave me a new kind of flexibility in working on a reportage.
on the road in Iraq in summer 2014
Over the last years of my career I’v been working on a solution to get back on the road, but my situation was already so fucked-up, that I lost pretty much everything. Without a flat anymore I decided at the end of January 2016, to join a group of white water paddlers coming along to Corsica for a couple weeks. This couple weeks turned into a whole year being on the road with the worlds craziest paddlers. One year without a home, accept my tent and a van. A whole year just cooking on a fire place. From Corsica, to the polar circle in Norway, trough Italy and France down to Greece. For me a dream came true. At least for a short time. At the end of that year with the huge disadvantage, that I ‘m not able to make my basic income with white water photography…
cooking our meals on a camp fire in Norway
After that year I was that broke – that the decision quitting my passion was very close. Still I kept on and tried one last defiant struggle to turn everything around. An attempt ended after a few months in homelessness (again)… The point when i was forced to quit. Over the last years I’ been working in various jobs. From sales clerk in a local hardware store, guide on the Hintertux glacier and a job as team leader in industrial climbing for an advertising company, to my last job in a sports store. At least the industrial climbing job gave me the possibility to learn something useful, but also brought me an other burnout and heavy depressions. At the end from my last job in the sports store, I been so fucking down, that I have to decide to change my life again. So my dog lady “Moidl” came into my life and saved it actually. She really brought back the last spark to my life! Now she is almost 2 years old and motivates me every day keep me going and do what I do best – photography…
on the road with my dog “Moidl”
Last year I got chance through an investor who believed in me, to invest in camera gear and my long time desire – film equipment. With that completely new situation I tried to find a concept, fitting best to my life, my attitude and demands. After a few months working in the region around Zillertal I figured out, that I have to expand my field of operations to be able make my living out of photography. After many sleepless nights the idea of “photographic nomads” came up…
Now the first steps are done and my new homepage is online – so let’s see whats next!
If you wanna support me fetching my dream, you can book me as photographer
or buying one of my pictures as a high quality print on photographic paper.
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