In search of a silent night
The aftershocks of Black Friday and Thanksgiving are still in the air, and yet it feels like Christmas is just around the corner. Early December. A twelfth of the year still lies ahead of us, and yet the days seem numbered. Children sing of peace on earth and silent nights, but where do you find time for contemplation in all the hustle and bustle?
In these short winter days, I chase after every ray of sunlight - always on the lookout for the perfect moment, the perfect angle, the perfect reflection of light on a façade. The tight time frames of the short days tighten the work rhythm; efficiency becomes the currency of the season.
But as soon as the red ball of fire sinks behind the horizon, a different pace sets in. No light, no calls, no commitments - just a camera in my hand, running towards the darkness. Again and again, this silence draws me out, long after the hour when I should actually be home. The world settles under the black shroud of night - unagitated, unobtrusive, almost relieved to finally be able to breathe a sigh of relief.
Many of my favorite pictures of the year 2025 were taken during these hours - moments in which silence sharpens the gaze and cities reveal the quiet poetry that they hide so well during the day.
Let's immerse ourselves in this silence together for a moment.
Into a moment of our very own silent night.
Indoor swimming pool, Kamenz - On the way to my photo shoot, I noticed the beautifully curved slide at the side of the road. However, I didn't have time to take the photo until 22:00, after the last pictures of a large logistics center were taken at blue hour in the summer.
Hulk Hogan's wrestling store, Orlando - I actually wanted to shoot the largest McDonalds branch in the world that evening, but the red brick façade framed by the tropical greenery of Florida just wouldn't let me go. Like a time capsule, the building tells of fame and glory - the American dream.
Victoria Ensemble, Cologne - For years, I've been keeping a bucket list of buildings around the world that I want to photograph. Before every trip, I look at this map and try to include a detour to these places of longing.
Greenline petrol station, Wilschdorf - What would this post about night walks be without a picture of a petrol station? My ongoing project "Midnight Refuel" once again extended the icy return journey after a day in Saxon Switzerland by a few hours. A petrol station has stood here, lonely in the forest, for almost a hundred years. The petrol station attendant's house still glows green in the background. In the meantime, the filling station has been converted into a self-serve station. Petrol is now pumped 24/7, but without personal contact.
Köhlandbrücke, Hamburg - Oh man, once a thought has implanted itself in my head, it stays there. I glimpsed this view of Hamburg's most famous bridge from the car and my mind was blown. Luckily, I was on my way to an interior photo shoot and finished the production early enough before sunset. So off I went in the car, back to Hamburg, found a parking space and walked for 20 minutes along the highway - always looking for the perfect arrangement of the individual picture elements. In the end, I decided on the boat dock and the lock in the foreground, exactly at the point where the overland power line is framed by the bridge pillars. There is definitely nothing accidental about the composition here. And then it was just a matter of waiting for the perfect balance between artificial light and fading daylight. At 100MP resolution, you can really lose yourself in the infinite details of the image.
McDonalds, Hamburg - Since we're in town.... During my video production for the Mavic 4 Pro launch, I was recovering from filming and drone flying after work with - of course, photography. That might be one reason why I'm always completely drained after productions. Once in shooting mode, I just can't resist continuing. The golden glowing McDonalds neon sign was just too appealing especially with the framing of the trees and massive bridge pillars of the railroad running above the store.
Century Hotel, Miami - What do you do at 05:00 in the morning in Miami Beach? Exactly, photographing Mid Century Art Deco architecture! At this time of day, Ocean Drive is empty. A moment of silence that belongs only to the busy. The buildings glow in the beam of the streetlights, detached from their surroundings as icons of the past.
Aral petrol station, Leipzig - Oh, fog is gathering outside! It took less than 10 minutes for the children to get their goodnight kiss and for me to get in the car. The list of interesting petrol stations on the passenger seat lay before me for a long night in search of brightly glowing islands in the haze of the night.
