Hi, I’m Yannick.
u k i y o
[u-key-yo] • Japanese
(n.) living in the moment, detached from the bothers of life.
”The Floating World”
Some words about how I accidentally got here.
In Liechtenstein, a country so small that most people don't know it even exists, we tend to assume that we’re of fundamental importance for the whole world, yet we're basically the center of the globe and everybody’s waiting for us. Yes, we are indeed a bit cocky when it comes to self-assessment. This is probably the reason why I always wanted to make a great career and literally build an enormous empire. Basically, I wanted to become the next Bill Gates. For that reason I started to study business at one of the best Universities in the world while getting to the top of politics in Liechtenstein. And darn, I was totally that kind of, high-flying, I’m-super-important type of guy with long, slicked back hair (hard to believe but back then I actually had hair).
But then, all of a sudden photography came into my life and my mindset started to completely shift in a way I’ve never would have expected. Things I’ve always believed to be important – like being recognized as someone uber important and successful in our society and building a great fortune – became pretty much dispensable. Instead things like getting up every morning with a smile on my face, living a happy life in general, having a job that has a real, long term value in this world and doing something good for others became more and more important. That’s the reason why I finally dropped out of University back in 2016 and became a full time wedding photographer. And heck yeah, this was by far the best decision of my life!
My first goal in life:
Doing something that makes me happy.
Wanna get to know me a bit better?
Here are some really important things in my life.
My parents and especially my grandparents.
Being married for over 30 and 60 years, they’re a
huge inspiration and let me believe in love.
Martina. My partner in crime, best friend,
most definitely better half, my personal quality
control and the biggest fan one could ever ask for.
My closest friends. Pretty much made up of a
former couple of mine and some of their wedding
guests, we’ve grown into a pretty good gang.
Our little bunnies. Even though we actually wanted
and still want cats (don’t tell them) our family wouldn’t be complete without them. (photo by Nicole Siemers)
Liechtenstein. Sure, it’s probably the most
boring place on earth, but I was born here and it
belongs to me like my inexistent head of hair.
Nature. I’ve never been a city child and probably
never will be, so having some greenery in walking
distance to my home is pretty much vital for me.
Traveling. Have I mentioned that I live in the most
boring country on earth? That’s why I travel as much
as possible and even wrote an own page for it.
Sports. This would fill a whole page for itself as
it always played a huge role in my life. But currently
I couldn’t survive without Golf and Crossfit.
Gin, representative for all the yummy things in
life. Besides all the work and discipline, I’ve always
been a bon vivant who enjoys life to the fullest.
My second goal in life:
Creating something with a long term value.
Some of the little things I truly love.
I love the smell of fresh coffee in the morning. The first sip when it’s still darned hot. I love listening to music. Singing out loud and dancing around stupidly. I love just running off. Without having a plan and knowing whereto. I love to travel the world and discover new places. To marvel and to ground myself. I love being spontaneous. To venture and experience adventures. I love summer rain. Running through big raindrops and feeling them on my skin. I love being right in the middle of a moment.
Enjoying life without thinking of tomorrow. I love meeting new people. Hearing their stories as well as telling their stories. I love having good talks that let you forget the time. Without even noticing. I love being happy. Having fun and laughing out loud. Together and even more about myself. I love the possibilities of our life. The gifts it makes and the doors it opens. Day by Day. Night by Night. And I love capturing all these moments. Very close and honest. For ever.
My third goal in life:
Being surrounded only by people I like.
Some of my favorite TV series.
Altered Carbon; Blacklist; Blackspot; Criminal Minds; Dark; Der Pass; Dirk Gently’s Hollistic Detective Agency; Elementary; Fargo; Game of Thrones; Gotham; Happy; How I Met Your Mother; Lie To Me; Manhunt Unabomber; Mindhunter; Money Heist; Narcos; Nightflyers; Ozark; Person Of Interest; Sherlock; Sons of Anarchy; Stranger Things; The Alienist; The Expanse; The Sinner; The Walking Dead; Twelve Monkeys; Unbelievable; Westworld; White Collar. If you have suggestions for other TV series, I’m absolutely all ears!
Currently playing on Spotify.
Always Gold Radical Face; Barfuss am Klavier AnnenMayKantereit; Big Bright Sun Will Dailey; Call You Home Kelvin Jones; Chasing Cars Noelle Johnson; Dirty Paws Of Monsters and Men; Hey Ya Obadiah Parker; Home II Dotan; Iffy Caamp; In Case I Fall for You Black Sea Dahu; Let’s Play Birds Fismoll; Piano Man Billy Joel; Rome Wasn’t Build In A Day Morcheeba; Seven Bridges Road Eagles; Slow it Down The Lumineers; Terraform Novo Amor; The Woods Hollow Coves; Wenn ich mal Matze Rossi; Zuhause Fynn Kliemann.
My fourth goal in life:
Getting the absolute most out of it.
Two of my greatest achievements as a photographer.
Since the day I documented my first wedding, I’ve never cared about awards or any kind of fame within the wedding photography industry. All I wanted was to be the best possible photographer in the world for my couples and my couples only. And even tough I was nominated for some of the most prestigious awards in the industry, I’ve never submitted. However, when I got a call from Sony Germany back in 2018 asking if I want to hold a keynote at the Photokina in Cologne, I felt incredibly honored mixed with being frightened as hell. Luckily though, I’ve survived and what followed is still hard to describe. Suddenly it became an awkward reality to stand on stages in front of people holding speeches. And as if this wasn’t already crazy enough, one year later Sony asked me to become an official ambassador, one of less than 100 in whole Europe and one of only a few wedding photographers. And yes, this was pretty much the biggest honor I’ve ever got as a photographer.
Alright, let’s talk about the Bildpoeten. Bildpoeten is German and loosely translated, it means something like photography poets. Basically it’s a small network founded more than 20 years ago that consists of pretty much the best of the best wedding photographers within all the German speaking countries. Needless to say, it was an unforgettable moment back in 2017 when I was asked to become one of only 23 members and furthermore the only one outside of Germany. Since then, I meet all the incredibly talented and experienced members several times a year to exchange views, learn from each other and even organize workshops for wedding photographers together like the Bildpoeten Sessions in November 2019. All in all, I’m extremely thankful to be part of such a precious collective full of amazing artists and human beings, indefinite inspiration, year and years of experience and also great friendship. And I think together is always the best way to do things.
