What if a photograph could bring you back to yourself?

What if a photo could bring you back to yourself ?

The emotional power of photography – beyond just decoration

A quick note for the curious:

In this article, I share the story of a photo I took in Bangkok.
More than just an image, it’s a suspended moment, a memory that moved me deeply.
Through it, I explore the quiet connection between photography and emotion — and how sometimes, a picture can gently bring us back to ourselves.

Out of the tens of thousands of photos in my Lightroom library, taken over the last two years, choosing one wasn’t easy — you can probably imagine.

But I decided to open this blog with this one.

First, because I love it.
I took it from the rooftop pool of the building where I live here in Bangkok, during the first months of 2025.
It’s honestly one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever experienced — always changing, quietly powerful, endlessly inspiring.
I spent hours there. Watching. Thinking. Feeling.
Trying meditations that usually ended in accidental naps (haha).

I also chose it because it’s the photo I gave to a childhood friend for her 40th birthday.
I named it Skyline Reverie, a kind of suspended daydream.
She’s been through a lot. But somehow, she still shines — strong, radiant, luminous.
I wanted to give her an image that felt like her: colorful, warm, and steady.
Something to remind her that even in the middle of storms, some moments stay unshakable, beautiful, comforting.

And then there’s the strange irony of life.

This peaceful photo was taken from the very building where I experienced an earthquake — the only one in over 100 years.
It happened that early afternoon, around 1:25pm.
That’s what my WhatsApp says, anyway, when I tried to call my partner — who was outside — to warn and ask to stay away from any buildings.
No answer.

And the weirdest thing? The first vibrations I felt... I thought they came from inside me.
It felt like something shaking in me.
I honestly thought I was having a panic attack. Or my heart was racing too fast.
(I know, totally unlikely — but I laugh about it now.)

But it got serious really quickly.
The ceiling started to crack, the walls too, and the floor tiles literally lifted under my feet.
My body reacted before my mind caught up.
I thought I was trapped — and I still had twelve floors to go down, on foot.
Others were coming from the 41st, from up there — from the same rooftop pool where I had taken this photo, just a few weeks before, during sunset.

I'm truly grateful to say: a lot of fear, very little damage.
My partner was safe, just out of battery 🙏🏻

Today, I look at this photo.
It hasn’t changed.
It’s still here.
Untouched.
Impeccable.

And that’s probably the most moving part.
This moment I had captured — it’s still solid, quiet, full of light.
Now, with a story attached.

It reminds me that everything can shift — but some moments stay.
They don’t crack.
They become anchors.
Stable on the outside. Full of meaning on the inside.

I’ve often asked myself: what are we really looking for in an image?

Do we look to remember? To slow down? To dream?
Do we hang a photo on a wall just to fill a space — or to create a kind of presence?
Like an echo of something inside us, that we don’t always have words for.

We talk a lot about decoration.
But I believe some photos do more than just “look good.”
They speak to us.
They hold a place, a feeling, a version of ourselves.
And sometimes, they say:
"It’s still there. What you’re looking at is still happening — right now."

So no, I don’t take photos to decorate walls.
I take them hoping they’ll find a wall — or a gaze — that needs them.
Because we all need that, sometimes.
A wall to lean on. A moment to forget ourselves.
Or maybe just something to make us smile.

🎧 The music experience

Sometimes I listen to music while editing my photos — or just looking at them.
One song can completely shift the way an image feels.
It creates a small, personal space.

Here’s an album by Maribou State I’ve been listening to lately.
Feel free to try it while you look at the photo.

Take a moment. Press play. Look.
And ask yourself:
What if this image didn’t just take you somewhere — what if it brought you back to yourself?

📷 A small piece of life to bring home?

If this photo touches you the way it still touches me,
maybe it’s meant to find a place with you too.
It’s made to last.

📦 Explore the “Ready to Frame” version – from €70 and also all other framed versions