#CAMBODIA #INSTAGRAM
Our latest visual diary scrapbook is a selection of more than 100 of photos posted on Instagram covering Cambodia.
Over the last few years, my Instagram hunger waned; in 2020, the world took a different turn and everything shut down, including cambodiaphotours.com
Now in 2026 we are back in Cambodia and open for photography adventures.
Also check the recent ‘Art for Kep’ residency magazine KEP RAW in the Blurb bookstore.
I felt it was a shame to leave such a colourful collection of high-intensity street photography and spontaneous portraits floating within the digital space.
All images are stored in my archive but the rather eclectic collection on Instagram shows the result of my endeavors, the life and the people in the streets of Phnom Penh between 2013-2020.
We are still active in Cambodia but as we all know things have changed in the world and we just like to remember the good times and the human connections we made with our photography.
Please note that the images here are the result of a western photographer exploring and searching for reality in the Phnom Penh streets. Some pictures might be controversial or even shocking. And I agree. But to look away and just ignore the harsh reality was not an option. Often I just had to put my negative thoughts behind me and take the pictures and reflect on them later. Yes, people criticized me for it, but I know the facts on the ground and what a little help and attention can do for others in moving forward.
Cause, if you are constantly judging yourself and others what’s the point of photography and recording real life.
Remember Cambodia was a very troubled country for decades and some of those nightmares still exist..Poverty! But it’s getting better, one step at a time..and at the same time those rough and beautiful people are what makes Cambodia so special.
A motley collection.
From the Instagram downloads, often only 800x800pix or at best 1080x1080pix, I selected 100 images and brought them to life by increasing the resolution and making them suitable for print in this book.
Due to the layout restrictions within Instagram (square template), many photos have a very tight crop. I find that makes the photos very compact and directly in your face.
It is indeed a motley collection, but I like it!
With Cambodia, especially Phnom Penh, as the common thread in the story.
Of course there is also Angkor Wat, which was a recurrent location we visited and believe the palace never ends to surprise us with amazing photographic possibilities.
The energy, the heat, the chaos, and the constant surprises we experience on the streets. From the sweet scent of incense and grilled meat to the smell of decay and the gutter. From the stoic gaze of the monks to the everyday splendor, pomp, and madness.
At some point, I got the hang of the Phnom Penh and Angkor Wat rhythm, and navigated like a confident adventurer.Often leading with 2 or 4 fellow photographers and world travelers on my photo walks and workshops that I held daily from the former FCC Club-Grand Cafe on the Riverside in Phnom Penh.
Brilliant period of my life.
The Cambodian people are open to foreigners, enjoy photography, and are proud and just generally social—very nice to be around.
In many situations, we also ended up having conversations in half Khmer and English, sometimes a bit of French and hand gestures. Tiring in 35-degree heat, but worth it. People often forget that it is tropically hot in Cambodia, but I can tell you now it is quite a challenge to be active for 4-8 hours a day in the heat.
Cambodians, the Khmer people, are the pearls of Southeast Asia.
That was why I was able to photograph freely. On the streets and markets I got to know the people, in the temples and jungles, I found the real and deeper stillness of Cambodia.
The stillness from within, in a harsh world. Hard and soft are a permanent presence in our lives. In Cambodia, that seems to manifest itself more strongly.
The book is not chronological or organized into categorization; I only distinguish between when a photo speaks to me, black and white and color, taking cultural sensitivities into account.
Authentic storytelling is what I do.
Come join us sometime.