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42553 Neviges
42553 Neviges
Norbert Molitor
June 29, 2023
He shows not the slightest weariness if you ask him about photography: blogger and hobby photographer Norbert Molitor heads out day after day with his Leica X, to capture daily life in his homeland. His collection of has now grown to no less than 28,000 images. This perseverance has even earned him a Grimme Online Award, for his blog 42553 Neviges.
LFI: Ever since 2008, you've been taking one photo a day in Neviges. Where did the idea for this routine come from?
Norbert Molitor: It all began when I was tidying away a removal box containing a bunch of old photos and – stupid story – relegated it to the paper recycling container. I wanted to start over with a small, digital Leica, and take pictures of things in places where there's hardly anything to photograph. And: my pictures were finally to be shown. At first, 42553 Neviges was an anonymous project, without imprint and barely noticed.
Your blog gained rapid popularity and was even granted a Grimme Award. Did you expect that? How do you rate this popularity?
The blog has now been accessed 3.4 million times. This is not only due to the motifs photographed consistently in black and white, but also to the short texts, which the Grimme jury saw, and which I hadn't expected. Without the Grimme Online Award, my perspective of Neviges would never have become known. Furthermore, the things that do or do not happen in Neviges, apply to any small town in Germany. Many readers from elsewhere, see their own home reflected in the pictures.
How did the change from R system to X system come about, and how do you find photographing with the Leica X?
The R system was wonderful, the X system was immediately better for my work: the user-friendly menu, the handiness and the prompt familiarity. In the meantime, I am now able to effortlessly take pictures off the bat, without needing to look at the display. And: I always have the camera with me. I don't want to be identified as a photographer, preferring to take pictures discreetly and very quietly. My father, who gave me my first Leica R, always used to say that a Leica is for life.
What motivates you to continue working on this project?
Routine. And fun. I photograph quickly: a thirtieth of a second is nearly always enough; and I write as fast as I can type with one hand. Mostly at three in the morning, when everything in Neviges is as quiet as a mouse. By the way, not everyone likes my blog. That's also wonderful and spurs me on.
Danilo RößgerLFI: Ever since 2008, you've been taking one photo a day in Neviges. Where did the idea for this routine come from?
Norbert Molitor: It all began when I was tidying away a removal box containing a bunch of old photos and – stupid story – relegated it to the paper recycling container. I wanted to start over with a small, digital Leica, and take pictures of things in places where there's hardly anything to photograph. And: my pictures were finally to be shown. At first, 42553 Neviges was an anonymous project, without imprint and barely noticed.
Your blog gained rapid popularity and was even granted a Grimme Award. Did you expect that? How do you rate this popularity?
The blog has now been accessed 3.4 million times. This is not only due to the motifs photographed consistently in black and white, but also to the short texts, which the Grimme jury saw, and which I hadn't expected. Without the Grimme Online Award, my perspective of Neviges would never have become known. Furthermore, the things that do or do not happen in Neviges, apply to any small town in Germany. Many readers from elsewhere, see their own home reflected in the pictures.
How did the change from R system to X system come about, and how do you find photographing with the Leica X?
The R system was wonderful, the X system was immediately better for my work: the user-friendly menu, the handiness and the prompt familiarity. In the meantime, I am now able to effortlessly take pictures off the bat, without needing to look at the display. And: I always have the camera with me. I don't want to be identified as a photographer, preferring to take pictures discreetly and very quietly. My father, who gave me my first Leica R, always used to say that a Leica is for life.
What motivates you to continue working on this project?
Routine. And fun. I photograph quickly: a thirtieth of a second is nearly always enough; and I write as fast as I can type with one hand. Mostly at three in the morning, when everything in Neviges is as quiet as a mouse. By the way, not everyone likes my blog. That's also wonderful and spurs me on.
ALL IMAGES ON THIS PAGE: © Norbert Molitor
EQUIPMENT: Leica X1, Elmarit 24 f/2.8 Asph.; Leica X2. Elmarit 24 f/2.8 Asph.
Norbert Molitor+-
Born in Wuppertal, Molitor is a designer for trade fair and exhibition projects, a book author, a chair draughtsman, a successful village blogger, and lives surrounded by many books, with his Italian partner in a roughly 340-year-old, half-timbered house in Neviges. He says that there are more beautiful places in the world, but few better places to live, as there are very few opportunities to spend money in Neviges. He is currently working on his second book (with pictures) about drinking, titled, Einen trinken wir noch, dann gehen wir nach Hause.$(Let's drink one more and then we'll go home). He has more than enough pictures; but he has been fiddling around with the text for some time. More
