JPhotosessions

01/06/2026

I failed.

At least, that’s what it felt like.

For 25 years, I built a career in corporate marketing.

I worked for great companies. I sat in strategy meetings. Managed campaigns. Built brands. Delivered presentations. Hit targets.

On paper, everything looked successful.

But deep down, there was always a small voice asking a simple question:

“Is this really what you’re meant to do?”

I ignored that voice for years.

Not because I didn’t hear it.

Because I was scared.

Scared of leaving behind a stable career.

Scared of disappointing people.

Scared of giving up a title, a salary, and a version of success that looked perfectly reasonable from the outside.

Following your heart sounds romantic when people talk about it afterwards.

In reality, it feels terrifying when you’re standing at the edge.

There are no guarantees.

No roadmap.

No certainty that it will work.

Just a feeling that you have to try.

So eventually I did.

I left a 25-year corporate career behind and started over.

Not because I had all the answers.

But because I couldn’t ignore the question anymore.

Today I spend my days doing what I genuinely love.

Creating photography that tells stories.

Meeting incredible people.

Helping companies show the human side of their brands.

Combining creativity, technology, AI, marketing and storytelling in ways I never imagined years ago.

Ironically, all those years in corporate marketing weren’t wasted at all.

They became the foundation for everything I do today.

The strategy.

The business understanding.

The ability to connect creativity to commercial goals.

Nothing was lost.

Everything came with me.

Looking back, I didn’t fail.

I simply stopped living according to someone else’s definition of success.

If you’re standing at a crossroads right now, wondering whether it’s too late to change direction, here’s what I’ve learned:

The life you want is often hiding behind the fear you’re avoiding.

And sometimes the bravest thing you can do is trust yourself enough to take the first step.

You don’t need certainty.

You just need courage.

The rest can be figured out along the way.

01/06/2026

Many corporate headshots have a branding problem.

Not because there’s too little branding.

Because there’s too much.

For years, corporate portraits were often about the company first and the person second. Perfect backdrops. Prominent logos. Identical poses. Carefully controlled lighting.

Everything looked professional.

But very little felt human.

One of the reasons I genuinely enjoy working with ING Nederland is their refreshing approach to employee photography.

Instead of asking, “How can we make the brand more visible?”

They ask, “How can we make our people look their best?”

No giant logos in the background.

No artificial studio setup in the middle of an office.

No forcing everyone into the same mould.

Just real people, photographed in natural light, within their own working environment, looking like the best version of themselves.

Ironically, that approach strengthens the brand far more than any logo ever could.

When employees are proud of their portrait, they actually use it. On LinkedIn. In presentations. On internal platforms. In articles. On their own socials.

And every time they do, they’re becoming authentic ambassadors for the organisation.

31/05/2026

Many corporate headshots have a branding problem.

Not because there’s too little branding.

Because there’s too much.

For years, corporate portraits were often about the company first and the person second. Perfect backdrops. Prominent logos. Identical poses. Carefully controlled lighting.

Everything looked professional.

But very little felt human.

One of the reasons I genuinely enjoy working with ING Nederland is their refreshing approach to employee photography.

Instead of asking, “How can we make the brand more visible?”

They ask, “How can we make our people look their best?”

No giant logos in the background.

No artificial studio setup in the middle of an office.

No forcing everyone into the same mould.

Just real people, photographed in natural light, within their own working environment, looking like the best version of themselves.

Ironically, that approach strengthens the brand far more than any logo ever could.

When employees are proud of their portrait, they actually use it. On LinkedIn. In presentations. On internal platforms. In articles. On their own socials.

And every time they do, they’re becoming authentic ambassadors for the organisation.

26/05/2026

Some offices immediately feel different the moment you walk in.

Today and tomorrow I’ll be photographing business portraits at the brand new ING Nederland Hazel office in Leeuwarden, and wow… what a place. Natural light pouring through the building, warm wooden architecture, greenery everywhere, open spaces, and an atmosphere that feels calm, modern, and human.

You can really feel that this office was designed around people, not just desks.

And with the sun shining outside, motivated colleagues walking around, and portraits being created all day, it’s one of those shoots that gives you energy.

Beautiful weather. Beautiful building. Beautiful people.

Looking forward to capturing a lot of authentic faces and stories here over the next two days. 📸

21/05/2026

There was a time when my photography was treated like a “nice little hobby.”

Something you did after work. Something creative. Something people enjoyed… but didn’t really value.

In the corporate world, strategy meetings, spreadsheets, and PowerPoints carried weight. Photography often felt invisible in comparison.

The strange thing is: my eye, my creativity, my ability to connect with people through images, none of that changed.

What changed was the environment.

Today, companies bring me in to photograph hundreds of employees, major events, leadership teams, and brand stories. The same skill that once sat quietly in the background is now seen as a strategic asset. Not because I suddenly became worthy overnight, but because I stepped into spaces where that value was understood.

It reminds me of something simple:

A bottle of water in a supermarket costs almost nothing. That exact same bottle at an airport suddenly becomes expensive.

The water didn’t change. The context did.

I think a lot of people underestimate themselves because they stay too long in environments that only recognize one type of value.

Sometimes the problem isn’t your talent.
It’s the room you’re standing in.

The people around you matter too. Supportive environments stretch your potential. Toxic ones slowly shrink it until you start doubting yourself.

One of the biggest lessons I learned leaving corporate life after 25 years:

Stop trying to convince rooms that refuse to see your value. Find the rooms that already understand it.

19/05/2026

Back at ING Cedar this week for several days of business portraits, and it still makes me smile every time I walk in with my camera. 📸

There’s something special about photographing people in the environment where they actually work, instead of pulling them into a stiff studio setup with forced poses and fake smiles.

Most people arrive saying: “I’m not photogenic.”

Five minutes later they’re looking at the back of the camera thinking: “Wait… is that really me?”

I love that moment, it never gets old.😊

Over the next few days I’ll once again be creating portraits people are actually proud to use on LinkedIn, Teams and beyond.

Natural light. Real people. Real expressions.
No awkward corporate stock-photo energy.

And yes… probably several thousand photos to go through again. 😄

Always grateful for the trust from ING Nederland and the amazing people stepping in front of my lens!

Vamosss!

15/05/2026

You know that feeling when someone takes a photo of you… and you immediately think:

“That’s not really me.”

For years, corporate portraits followed the same formula: Stand still. Look serious. Fake smile. Grey background. Done.

The result? Photos that look “professional”… but don’t feel like the person at all.

I believe business portraits should feel human.

Real expressions. Natural light. Actual environments. A moment instead of a pose.

Because when someone looks at your portrait, they shouldn’t just see your role. They should see you.

That’s why I shoot the way I do. Relaxed conversations instead of stiff instructions.
Warm office light instead of cliché studio setups.
Portraits people are actually proud to use on LinkedIn, company profiles, speaker pages, and internal platforms.

Professional doesn’t have to mean distant.
It can feel natural too.

See some of my work here:
https://jphotosessions.com/business-portraits

15/05/2026

You know that feeling when someone takes a photo of you… and you immediately think:

“That’s not really me.”

For years, corporate portraits followed the same formula: Stand still. Look serious. Fake smile. Grey background. Done.

The result? Photos that look “professional”… but don’t feel like the person at all.

I believe business portraits should feel human.

Real expressions. Natural light. Actual environments. A moment instead of a pose.

Because when someone looks at your portrait, they shouldn’t just see your role. They should see you.

That’s why I shoot the way I do. Relaxed conversations instead of stiff instructions.
Warm office light instead of cliché studio setups.
Portraits people are actually proud to use on LinkedIn, company profiles, speaker pages, and internal platforms.

Professional doesn’t have to mean distant.
It can feel natural too.

See some of my work here:
https://jphotosessions.com/business-portraits

01/05/2026

Take me to church

28/04/2026