What I Saw When There Was Nothing to See
The Condroz may be my favourite region in Belgium. I’ve been coming here since I was a child, and even though it may not be the most spectacular landscape, I always found a quiet kind of magic in it. And there always seem to be another little corner that I haven’t explored yet.
This trip was meant to be simple: rest, slow mornings, some time in nature. And secretly, I hoped to make a few strong images. Maybe something for So 50 (the project I’ve been working on since my 50th birthday) or some landscapes.
But the weather had a different plan. For four days we lived under a blanket of “nothing-weather”: grey, flat and light that never really went anywhere.
Slowness & Unspectacular Beauty
We booked a tiny house tucked between the trees.
Minimal, compact, simple. The kind of space that instantly slows you down.
Daily life often feels cluttered, so living in a place where everything has a purpose felt refreshing.
Our home for a couple of days: everything we needed and nothing more.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/400 - ISO 160
The view from the tiny house skylight — a perfect summary of the weather that followed us all week.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/400 - ISO 100
Being a minimalist at heart, I’ve always been drawn to Tiny Houses.
SL2-S with Simera 28mm F1.4 - (probably) F1.4 - 1/125 - ISO 1600
Long cosy evenings became the standard
SL2-S with Simera 28mm F1.4 - (probably) F1.4 - 1/160 - ISO 800
Bath with a view
SL2-S with Simera 28mm F1.4 - (probably) F1.4 - 1/320 - ISO 1600
Nothing-Weather & Attempting Slow Photography
I brought the GFX100RF, hoping for slow, minimal landscapes and spaces.
But “nothing-weather” is stubborn. Not moody grey. Not stormy grey.
Just… nothing.
Still, I tried.
I can never resist old graveyards: time, nature and silence intertwined.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/125 - ISO 320
Under this weather the landscape didn’t offer drama, but it did offer a sense of stillness.
Unspectacular landscapes, something that I’m learning to appreciate.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/100 - ISO 200
For just a second, a tiny bit of light filtered through.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/250 - ISO 100
The landscapes are definitely there but without light, they aren’t easy to photograph.
When a big pile of shit becomes your subject, you know the conditions aren't great.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/250 - ISO 200
Then there was the picture below, esthetically I found it one of the better (or less bad) ones of the trip.
The black & white version with “snow”
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/160 - ISO 800
It looks like there’s snow but it’s basically just the result of the black and white conversion. When I’m shooting for clients it’s my job to makes things look as interesting as possible but when I shoot for myself I need the pictures to be authentic. And I’m not sure if I find the black & white version authentic. Check the colour version below to see how much difference it makes.
The colour version is way less spectacular.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/160 - ISO 800
Hiking & Geocaching
We walked a lot, did some geocaching, discovered new corners of the area.
I started geocaching when the kids were small. When a walk became a treasure hunt, their short legs suddenly became a lot more powerful. These days actually finding a geocache matters very little but they are usually placed by people who know the area really well so they can lead you to nice spots.
A quiet moment along the trail. Photo by Kim.
X100V - F2 - 1/1800 - ISO 160
We also passed a deserted basketball court. Basketball shaped my teenage years, so it still pulls me in.
Whenever I see a court, it still pulls me in.
GFX100RF - F5.6 - 1/100 - ISO 200
From Kim’s angle, it looked like this.
X100V - F2 - 1/450 - ISO 160
A few rural details added their own meaning:
Hunting has been part of me for over a decade. I’m still conflicted about it, but it connects me deeply to nature.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/250 - ISO 125
And on one of the few sunny moments, even the smallest things became beautiful.
Not the landscapes I expected, but sometimes the smallest scenes feel the most honest.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/320 - ISO 160
By the evenings, we settled back into the tiny house, ending each day quietly and slowly.
SL2-S with Simera 28mm F1.4 - (probably) F1.4 - 1/100 - ISO 1600
Two Citadels
By the third day our calves were stiff and the weather was only getting worse. So we changed direction and leaned into a theme: citadels
We both had vague childhood memories of the citadel of Dinant so we had to check how accurate those memories were and making some new memories by visiting the citadel of Namur.
Grey, wet and quiet — the citadel of Dinant felt exactly like our week.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/500 - ISO 400
The red-lit tunnels made for the most dramatic light of the entire trip.
The most dramatic light of the entire trip was underground.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/100 - ISO 2500
Then there were the displays straight out of Allo Allo.
Some parts of the citadel haven’t changed since I visited as a kid. And I wouldn’t want them to.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/60 - ISO 800
And my personal favourite:
the garden hose in the antique weapons vitrine.
Someone even put a piece of garden hose in the weapons display. Not sure anyone has opened that vitrine in decades.
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/60 - ISO 1600
Kim also caught me at the height of glamour:
I guess citadels are not built for people my size.
X100V - F2 - 1/160 - ISO 200
On our last day, we continued the citadel-theme and visited the one in Namur. It turned out to be much bigger, much more professionally run … and new to the both of us.
The view from the citadel of Namur
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/400 - ISO 125
Mirror selfie
GFX100RF - F4 - 1/125 - ISO 400
What the Trip Really Was
Photographically, this wasn’t a big success.
No spectacular light.
No dramatic landscapes.
No breakthrough series.
But that wasn’t the point.
We rested.
We walked.
We talked.
We hid from rain.
We revisited old places and discovered new ones.
We laughed at Belgian museum quirks.
And we slowed down.
There’s nothing wrong with snapshots of good memories.
Sometimes photography isn’t about the masterpiece you hoped for, it’s about being present enough to see what’s actually there.