Photography

A Photo a Day: Week 25 of 2026

An attempt to document one moment of every day

One of the five horses at our new workaway in France — photo by author.

June 15th

This was the first day at our new workaway — well, we’ve been here before, so it was not exactly “new”. We did a few chores and reconnected with the residents, like this horse — I forgot its/her/his name.

The fields of Marminiac, France — photo by author.

June 16th

Today we went shopping in Gourdon, the nearest city, twenty kilometers from here. There is obviously a lot to see there, and yet I forgot to take photos — you’d think I’d be used to taking random photos by now; after all, that was the purpose of this story series.

When we returned, we had lunch and then went for a walk with Roxy — one of the resident dogs. Walking through the fields, I remembered I still had to take a photo, and so that is what you see: some of the fields here — most of what you see is part of the property we help to maintain.

The contrast with Malta could not be bigger. The property is next to a regional road and there’s a car passing by three or four times an hour. The closest neighbor is at least half a kilometer away and you hardly hear a sound other than the birds and insects. I love it here and it’s a nice change, but while I could easily live in Malta, I can’t stay here for more than a few months.

Hay bales — photo by author.

June 17th

There was a hay delivery today. Nine bales total, but I remembered to take a photo when there were only two left outside. Another delivery is expected in a few days.

Our trusted van — photo by author.

June 18th

This is our car, but you probably know this already — it appears in several of our travel pictures. I wanted to share this photo because I had just washed it. Malta was dusty and the pigeons used our car for target practice.

Zeta, wondering what the hell I’m doing — photo by author.

June 19th

Meet Zeta. She is the dog of our hostess’ friend, who has to work a few days in a row and since it’s too hot in her place for Zeta to be alone all day, she gets to spend some time here.

Trailer “en panne” — photo by author.

June 20th

There was another hay delivery. The farmer drove onto the property in a rickety tractor with an even more rickety trailer. After unloading, he backed up and something broke, and so he couldn’t pull the trailer anymore. He left it here until he gets a hold of someone who can fix it. Luckily, it didn’t happen on the road.

The feed room door — photo by author.

June 21st

In case it wasn’t obvious yet: we’re in rural France. The peace and quiet are great, but when it comes to photo opportunities, I’m limited to the few buildings on the property, the animals and nature in general. Interesting enough, but not for everyday. On top of that, my favorite lens broke, as you may remember. I didn’t drop it; it just stopped communicating with the camera and that was it. It was a 15–85mm and on a crop sensor, it gave me a good range for everyday use. The alternative is my 28–300mm, but it’s bulky and more suited for a full frame body — the 28mm on a crop sensor is just not wide enough. I have a few prime lenses, but obviously, they all have their limitations. Regardless, I chose to work with my 50mm for the time being, and as a challenge, I will only use that lens, taking pictures without moving too much to get everything in frame. Instead, I’m going to capture the best shot from wherever I’m standing — should be interesting.

The first picture I took was of the feed room, a small attachment of the main stable where our hostess prepares the treats for the horses. I was much too close to get it all in frame, but that’s how it’s going to be for the time being… unless I use my phone — I was really tempted to use the rolling eyes emoji here.

[embed]List: A photo a day | Curated by Iban Van der Zeyp | Medium A photo a day · With this series I try to create a habit of taking more photos. I often miss special moments or places…medium.com