Finding Magic in the Mundane

A Spanish photographer’s lockdown discovery proves that extraordinary images don’t require exotic locations—just a curious eye and the device in your pocket.

The Rooftop Revolution

When the world shut down in 2021, Dominic Dähncke found himself confined to his building’s rooftop in El Médano, Tenerife. What started as desperate circles for fresh air became something unexpected—a creative awakening. During COVID confinement, he discovered a previously unknown paradise: the rooftop of his building, spending much of the day walking in circles there like a hamster while listening to podcasts.

That mundane space, filled with laundry rooms and cleaning supplies, would become his studio. One day he found himself taking out his phone to snap a picture of his shadow “sitting” on an old plastic chair that had always been there but had never caught his attention until that moment. The image he titled “The presence of absence” sparked a series that continues today.

The Broom That Changed Everything

Sometimes the best photographs happen by accident. Dähncke’s viral broom image—a cleaning tool seemingly defying gravity at a perfect 45-degree angle—wasn’t planned. He’d absent-mindedly propped it against a nail in the wall, then noticed how it stayed suspended. For days, he returned to that spot, waiting for the shadow of the small ceiling to align just right.

“Telekinesis,” he jokes when asked about the physics. But the real magic wasn’t in the impossible angle—it was in recognizing the moment. He considers himself a child photographer, seeking to channel his childish part which only seeks play and fun. That playful curiosity transformed a mundane cleaning tool into art.

The Phone in Your Pocket

While smartphones dominate photography, used by 91% of people compared to 7% for digital cameras, with that share expected to grow to 94% by 2026, Dähncke proves it’s not about the gear. He’s been using an iPhone 8 Plus for three years, editing with VSCO Cam.

Nearly 15% of photographers now mix smartphone photos with shots from regular cameras, up from 5% in 2024. The boundaries between professional and mobile photography continue blurring. For his shadow series, he uses his phone with a neck mount and remote shutter release, keeping both hands free to play with elements in the scene.

Wonder in the Everyday

Dähncke’s philosophy challenges the Instagram travel culture. “Someone has sold us the idea that if you like street photography, you have to travel to New York, London or Paris,” he observes. He always finds inspiration in his closest environment, in his neighborhood of El Médano with 8,000 inhabitants.

The pandemic taught him to appreciate small spaces and moments. He wants to keep forever the capacity for wonder that we all have as children and that gradually fades as we become adults. His shadow photography series, born from lockdown limitations, became a meditation on presence and absence, reality and imagination.

With smartphones capturing 92.5% of all pictures and about 1.8 trillion photos taken annually, the challenge isn’t technical—it’s seeing differently. Dähncke’s work reminds us that the photo we want to take might be closer than we think, often just around the corner.

The Art of Seeing

“It is our responsibility to cultivate a curious gaze like that of a child, the sense of wonder of a tourist visiting our city or town,” Dähncke reflects. His rooftop revelation during lockdown wasn’t just about finding a new subject—it was about rediscovering vision itself.

In an age where vertical photography dominates platforms like Instagram Reels and TikTok, with over 92 million selfies taken daily, Dähncke’s approach feels refreshingly contemplative. He’s not chasing likes or follows—he’s chasing light, shadow, and the magic hiding in plain sight.

The broom photograph serves as a perfect metaphor: sometimes the most extraordinary images require nothing more than noticing what was always there, waiting for the right moment when everything aligns.