"And so it came to pass that the fair princess entered a fairyland where she found boundless wonders of creatures, colors, and freedoms never imagined before."

Yeah, I'm so back from Burning Man. Decompressed too, albeit against my will. And I spent the whole last week in California, doing a couple of food shoots and spending lots of time with old friends. Good soul-work ... I'm exhausted though. And barely amongst the living again.

For those of you who have been eagerly awaiting images and wordy dispatches from Burning Man - sorry, I think you will be disappointed. You see - my experience this year was vastly different from the one last year. Instead of wandering the playa in breathless, wide-eyed wonder, it was a week of serious introspective self-examination for me. I didn't even pick up my camera until 3 days into the event - and then only out of pure guilt for being on assignment and *so* not feeling like working. That's not to say that I didn't get some cool shots and won't post them here - but it might take a while until I get caught up with the backlog in my Default Life.

A couple of epiphanies that also shaped my attendance at Bman this year, and that I don't necessarily feel like talking about in detail: For one, last year I seemed to have experienced the entire event as a tourist, and seen it almost exclusively through the rectangle of my camera's viewfinder.

One day, bike riding on the playa, I realized I didn't want to repeat either of that - which is why I left my camera mostly at camp this year. I also got more actively involved with a volunteer camp at Burning Man that provided mental health services to participants, and the insights gained were fascinating. Plus, the selfless volunteers from all over the globe were an awesome breed all in themselves, and their company and companionship shaped my time at Burning Man in countless positive and wonderful ways.

The second realization concerned privacy at Burning Man. While I stumbled around in wonder at all the pretty sights, lights, art, and music during my virgin year, I keenly realized for the first time this year that attending a free-spirited event like Burning Man was posing some serious ethical dilemmas for photographers. Sure, that middle-aged hairy guy, wearing a green sparkly bra and a pink wig, looks outrageous and interesting to shoot - but is it really ok to take a photograph of him (even though he might agree to it in the heat of the moment) and post it on the internet for everyone to see?

I had to pause and ask myself - would I myself want to be photographed here at Burning Man? The answer was no. You can never truly be free and radically express yourself if you have to fear that your mother might see you months later by chance on the internet somewhere. And let's be frank: freedom is what Burning Man really is all about.

So I took action and purposely avoided photographing people. Especially since I was registered media and knew that I would have to submit all images to the Burning Man LLC as part of their effort to visually document and archive the event. So, sorry, folks - no naked people pics for you!

On the Bright Side: Trance music totally fucking rules. I can't seem to get enough of it. The louder, the better. And it has to have a truly heart-thumping, core-shaking rythm and bass (DJ Vicious Vic is highly recommended!). It was the soundtrack of Burning Man, and listening to it now totally brings me back every time ...

Oh, and I learnt how to spin Poi at Burning Man! Of course I've admired the local fire performance troupe all summer, but I never thought I could learn it too - and love it so much. Definitely a highlight.

Yay.