Craftsmen

• Photographer
  Henk Bijl, Netherlands
• Studio
  Henk Bijl Photography
• Website
  https://henkbijl.com

My dad was a craftsman in a factory for mattresses; I was impressed watching him during his work. I admired and adored him; he was my hero. Unfortunately, dad deceased when I was thirteen years old. Now when I pass by factories, I remember my father. In my opinion, we undervalue workers in today's digital world - they deserve esteem and a statue. These portraits show skilled workers at a shipyard, proud of their daily job. They have their lifestyle which is to some extent visible in their eyes and faces. Hopefully, they as well have loving and caring people backstage, proud of their hero.

In daily life, I am a medical doctor but when possible in leisure a genuine photographer. In 2017, I re-entered analogue photography with a 4x5" large format camera. The main reasons to start with large format photography is the calmness it creates for the portrayed and myself. The preferences for black and white films are the timeless atmosphere and the emphasis of contours, lights and shadows. In my opinion, these characteristics attract the viewer's attention more, longer and repetitively and therefore it is the perfect medium to convey my interpretation of objects.