About me

Hello! I'm Bart, a hobby photographer with a passion for nature, light microscopy and imaging techniques. I started with photography through bird watching in 2024, when I purchased my first DSLR camera. It changes the way you look at nature, with the constant excitement of looming wildlife encounters and the challenge of capturing it on camera. Moreover, it makes you more aware of habitats, seasons and animal behavior, which adds another dimension to being out in nature.

My physics background in microscopy has left me with a soft spot for the technical side of photography. I regularly browse websites like The Digital Picture, DXOMark, and PhotonsToPhotos to compare cameras and lenses, read up on image processing and watch videos on getting the most sharpness out of a shot. There is a large supply of second hand equipment, which makes it easy to lose oneself in this hobby. After buying my first few pieces of equipment, I decided to prioritize working on my technique before upgrading further. Understanding how to use the available light and perspective can be even more important than having that prime lens or camera and can bring out great colors and contrast in a photo.

At home I also have an old Olympus microscope from the '80s that I 'modernized' using an arduino, 3D printed parts and basic electronic components. It is now equiped with darkfield illumination, a LED array, a full frame digital camera and a motorized focusing stage to take focus stacks and extend the depth of field. Here also I find it fun to work on the technical side. Now that my imaging pipeline is complete, it's time to find specimen, which in general I find challenging. When zoomed in there is so much uninteresting stuff too!

On this website I collect the photograhs and microscope images I have taken over the years. The collection helps me memorize the places I have visited and to track how my photography evolves over time. Hopefully it also passes along a bit of enthusiasm for nature, bird watching, photography and microscopy to anyone who browses this website. If you are interested in the technical aspects of photography, check out the blog where I will share the insights, platforms and tools that I have greatly benefitted from while expanding this hobby. And of course feel free to reach out with any questions.

Equipment

Camera

• Canon EOS 7D Mark II
• Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM
• Canon Extender EF 1.4× II

Microscope

• Olympus BH metallurgical microscope
• FK 2.5X eyepiece
• Canon EOS 5D Mark III (mounted for imaging)
• Brightfield illumination
• Darkfield LED ring illuminator
• Backlit LED array