Alain Van Hespen followed a traditional photography education from 1973 to 1976 at the Municipal Academy for Fine Arts and Design in Genk. Of the twenty-two pupils in the first year, only         ultimately received their diplomas. This was still the time of analogue photography and reflex cameras were just starting to make an appearance. Alain worked with a Yashica-Mat, a twin-lensed reflex camera a 6x6 image size. The camera did not have a built-in light meter. He used a technical camera in the studio.

During his military service, he was stationed at the headquarters of the Belgian army in Weiden (Germany), where he served as a press photographer. He took care of the photos for the newsreels together with five other photographers (including Michiel Hendrickx). It was a fascinating and instructive time, especially since this type of photography completely                  from the knowledge acquired at the academy.

And then it stopped. Starting a family and taking over the family business were things that brought his photography to a complete standstill, until he discovered digital photography eight years ago. A new world opened up but it felt like coming home to an old friend.

His portfolio is unpretentious. It serves exclusively to share his work with people interested in photography.