My Latest Online Obsession is Lieke Vroomen
A Quick Chat With a New IG Photo Friend :)
Housekeeping
I am writing this to you freshly woken from an afternoon nap off the back of a two day getaway in NSW with my mum that involved a lot of eating, some beach time, photos and lots of long chats. More on that soon in the form of a VLOG that will be aired on my brand new YT channel soon.
I am going to be travelling a bit the next two months for work and I’m excited to have a place to share that and bring you all along on fun hotel stays, visits to the Radical Yes physical store (hopefully) and as per on any trip, some thrifting and finding the best local food!
As 2024 get back into full swing, so do the Love Lucy interviews with creatives from all around. This weeks guest is one of those IG finds that makes you all warm and fuzzy about the internet and think “hmmm social media isn’t all bad!”.
Connecting is at the heart of these social networks, along with an evil agenda to consume your attention… but let’s just focus on the nice part for now and get to know this camera loving, fresh to film, self portrait babe, Lieke Vroomen who I am totally obsessed with right now.
Let’s go!
Hiya Lieke! Thank you for joining us here at Love Lucy. Can you start by telling us the who, what and where of your lovely self please?
Hello Lucy and readers, thank you for having me! My name is Lieke and I’m a 35 year old photographer and content creator from the south of the Netherlands. I’m also a mother, loving partner, a nurse and autistic.
I see you have very recently started shooting film, which I am so excited about. How are you finding this so far in comparison to your Fuji X100V?
Yes, I’m also very excited to explore the world of film photography. My dad used to shot a lot of film back in the day. Sadly he passed away in December last year and I inherited all of his old cameras. So that was actually my motivation to start shooting film! Film is such a different process in comparison to digital… I notice that I’m very careful with my exposures. It’s a much slower process because a roll of film (in my case) isn’t filled within a day… I always loved the look and feel of film so I’m thrilled to see where this will take me!
You not only take beautiful portraits of others but you also shoot stunning pics of yourself often with a beautiful camera in hand in the shoot. Can you talk to us about the creative decisions behind these self portraits and what you feel drawn to about this style of photography?
Thank you so much. I started taking self-portraits in a really vulnerable time of my life: almost three years ago I had a traumatic miscarriage, my dad became sick and my mental health was at a breaking point. I got burned out, went into therapy and in that process found out that I was autistic. Getting that diagnosis was as if someone held a mirror up to me for the first time and said: this is who you are. As if my life suddenly made sense. So in that time I was at home, not working, and I needed something to spark my creativity again. That was when I started taking self-portraits. I used myself as a model and experienced with different light sources, emotions and mirrors. It felt like therapy and I never stopped doing it.
Who are some of your main influences or things in general culture of life that really light you up? There are so many amazing artists these days .
I find lots of inspo through Instagram and Pinterest. But what really inspires me are women (like yourself), who aren’t afraid to show their true selves, woman who use themselves as their art, women who dare to be soft, vulnerable… but also strong and sensual. That’s something I really admire!
I read on IG that you are also a mum like me! I am so fascinated by mothers who are also creative and I would love to know how you balance the two in your busy life?
True! I’m mother goose to my 6 (almost 7) year old son Lennart. To be completely honest I find motherhood beautiful but also very challenging; especially with my autism it can be a tough cookie. But I’m blessed with an amazing partner who is the best dad. He helps a lot with things that are really difficult for me. I managed to create a photography studio at home and as a nurse I only work late shifts that start at 6pm! This gives me all the flexibility I need to get things done!
I would love to hear about some of your goals for 2024 and what you are focusing on in your work + business?
My focus for 2024 are creating more business opportunities for myself as a content creator, I already worked with some amazing brands but I would love to do this more often. Also learning everything about film photography, selling my own prints online and just continue my business as a portrait photographer!
How can people best connect with you and where can they shop your awesome LR presets? I see you also have Patreon too, can you talk us through what you offer over there Lieke?
People can get in touch with me through Instagram or just use my email address. I sell my presets on my business website www.liekevroomen.nl (also in the link in bio on my IG). And yeah, I also have a Patreon page called “Dark Cinema” which is mostly dedicated to my self-portraits, I mainly post larger series of my work there and the community is great. So definitely come have a look!
Connecting with others to get, and stay inspired, is so important as a creative and although I have a lot less time to devote to messages on IG these days I really enjoy keeping up with a small group and feeling motivated to keep doing things when I see others putting themselves out there too.
I am personally loving Pinterest these days and I like that it doesn’t feel as much about the numbers and more about just finding cool images, like Tumblr! Come follow me over there and check out my 2024 vision board for a taste of what I’m channeling this year.
Thanks so much for reading guys and don’t forget to go and give Lieke some love!
See you next week, Love Lucy xx