Page 88 - Puissance Euro 1

86maar naar mijn gevoel niet altijd ten goede. Al te vaak posten mensen berichten en foto’s zonder research. Snelheid primeert voor velen op kwaliteit.U zag natuurlijk ook de ‘paardensport’ veranderen in die dertig jaar.Ook hier is alles veel professioneler geworden. Vroeger heerste er een gemoedelijke, familiale sfeer. Paarden kwamen met kar en tractor naar de wedstrijden waar ook veel ‘gewone mensen’ in het publiek zaten. Sinds enkele jaren organiseren grote evenementenbureaus diners voor zakenmensen. Vaak valt er zoveel te beleven, dat weinigen de kans hebben om de wedstrijden echt te volgen. Wie nu over de parking wandelt bij een jumping ziet geen tractoren meer staan, maar indrukwekkende vrachtwagens met alles erop en eraan.Beroepsmatig reist u heel de wereld rond. Naar welke wedstrijden kijkt u uit?Voor mij zijn Jumping Aken en de wedstrijd in Calgary in Canada de hoogtepunten van het jaar. Omdat ik er al zoveelYou have been around in the sector for more than thirty years now. Which evolution in photography have you noticed?In my dad’s time and when I learnedit from him, we only knew black and white pictures. The first periodicals we delivered pictures to, were only in black and white. Years ago I was the first one to send pictures to the editorial office through a modem instead of printed pictures. My Dutch colleague, Jacob Melissen, and I were the first ones to send digital pictures.How did you actually manage to do that?We dragged our photo lab with us toall events in order to be able to develop the pictures on the spot. We scanned the pictures and sent them to the news- papers through a squeaking and creak- ing modem. It could last up to twenty minutes get one picture through. And while sending the telephone set could not be touched otherwise you could start all over again. (laughs)Hard to imagine nowadays ...After the last European Championship in Aachen/Aix-la-Chapelle the pictures of the Belgian and Dutch riders appeared on my website only a few minutes after the race. That is where my customers can download pictures from. It is hard to go faster, but to some people things can still be improved. Internet and other media have changed a lot in the business, but not always for better as far as I’m concerned. People too often post messages and pictures without research. Speed prevails, which is detri- mental to quality.You have also seen an evolution in equestrianism over the last thirty years, haven’t you?Here too all has grown very profes- sional. There used to be a friendly family atmosphere. Horses were transported to the events by cart and tractor. Many people ‘from all walks of life’ were pre- sent. Since a few years event bureaus