192 - Aphantasia, Travel Photography, and Why Companies Started Stealing Photos

Nico Trinkhaus has congenital aphantasia — he can't picture anything in his mind's eye, not a face, not a place, nothing. It's part of why he became a travel and cityscape photographer in the first place, and it's shaped a signature style built on presence, stillness, and timelessness. In this episode, Casey talks with Nico about his 15-year photography career, his "Europe Rising" project born out of Brexit-era negativity, and his upcoming solo exhibition at Lisbon Airport — before the conversation shifts into the very personal story behind PhotoClaim, the company Nico founded after discovering 120 unauthorized commercial uses of his own photos. They dig into why companies have largely "stopped buying photos" in Europe, how U.S. copyright law has more teeth, what the Copyright Claims Board actually offers photographers, and how AI is reshaping — and in some ways worsening — the copyright landscape.

In this episode:

• Nico's background in travel and cityscape photography, and his love of bold, saturated color
• Living with congenital aphantasia and how it shapes his photographic eye
• Why he shoots empty, early-morning scenes and calls his style "timeless travel photography"
• The "Europe Rising" project: using photography to counter Brexit-era negativity about Europe
• Curating his first solo exhibition at Lisbon Airport, and why he's moving toward physical prints and books
• The viral lightning photo that led him to discover 120 unlicensed commercial uses of his work
• How that discovery became PhotoClaim
• Why companies have "stopped buying photos" — and the legal gap between the U.S. and Europe
• The U.S. Copyright Claims Board: what it costs, what it caps, and whether it's worth using
• How PhotoClaim operates across international borders, and the particular headaches of working with stock agencies
• What to do the moment you discover your photo has been used without permission
• How AI image generation is actually increasing copyright infringement cases, and the EU's new AI-disclosure directive
• The backlash against AI-generated headshots, and why some licensing boards now require real photos
• Nico's number one piece of advice for photographers: slow down and observe before you ever set up a shot

Chapters:

• 00:00 – Cold open & show intro
• 03:52 – Welcome, Nico Trinkhaus
• 04:08 – Dice Breaker: best investment in his photography business (the tilt-shift lens)
• 05:31 – Nico's photography background and style
• 06:29 – Congenital aphantasia and memory
• 11:51 – "Timeless travel photography" and shooting empty scenes
• 16:35 – The Europe Rising project
• 24:16 – Solo exhibition at Lisbon Airport; prints vs. social media
• 32:47 – The viral photo that led to discovering 120 copyright infringements
• 39:21 – Why companies "stopped buying photos" (U.S. vs. Europe)
• 43:31 – The U.S. Copyright Claims Board
• 45:25 – How PhotoClaim works across countries, and the trouble with agencies
• 50:56 – What to do when you find your photo stolen
• 56:12 – AI, copyright, and the EU's new AI-disclosure directive
• 59:34 – The backlash against AI-generated headshots
• 1:05:24 – Nico's #1 piece of advice for photographers
• 1:11:39 – Useless Information (Zimbabwe's $100 trillion bill)
• 1:12:46 – Where to find Nico and PhotoClaim

Links:

• Nico's photography and travel guides: sumfinity.com
• PhotoClaim (copyright protection for photographers): photoclaim.com
• Nico's copyright-education videos: search "Nico Trinkhaus" on YouTube
• U.S. Copyright Claims Board: ccb.gov
• Internet Archive (for documenting infringements): web.archive.org
• Archive.today (alternate archiving tool): archive.ph

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About My Guest

Nico Trinkhaus is an award-winning travel photographer celebrated for his atmospheric images of European cities and landscapes.

Born in Berlin, he lives with congenital aphantasia, a rare condition that prevents him from visualising memories. Photography became his way to preserve the beauty he experiences while travelling.

After 15 years of Photography, in 2026 he became the First photographer in Portugal to be recognized with the QEP Qualified European Photographer distinction in the category of Fine Art Photography

Through his platform Sumfinity.com, Nico shares stories that honour both the diversity andcunity of Europe. His work, available as fine art prints, has been featured in exhibitions and publications across Europe.

About The Podcast

The Nerdy Photographer Podcast is written and produced by Casey Fatchett. Casey is a professional photographer in the New York City / Northern New Jersey with more than 20 years of experience. He just wants to help people and make them laugh. You can view Casey's wedding work at https://fatchett.com or his non-wedding work at https://caseyfatchettphotography.com

If you have any questions or comments about this episode or any other episodes, OR if you would like to ask a photography related question or have ideas for a topic for a future episode, please reach out to us at https://nerdyphotographer.com/contact