Classics for Charity – Classic Car Photo Experience

Classics for Charity grew from a personal story. My mother died from ALS when I was young. She kept painting for as long as her hands allowed her to. Her creativity, perseverance and warmth are still a major source of inspiration for me. Years later, I found my own way of creating through photography and video. Classics for Charity grew from that idea: using classic cars, photography and stories to raise awareness and money for Stichting ALS Nederland.

On Sunday 24 May 2026 we organised the Classics for Charity – Classic Car Photo Experience at the Koekbouw in Veghel. The idea was simple: bring together classic-car owners, photographers, models, makeup artists and volunteers, and let everyone contribute to one bigger purpose through their own passion.

It became a day full of beautiful cars, creative energy and a lot of enthusiastic people. At the same time, one difficult question remained afterwards: financially, did the event achieve what it was meant to achieve? The honest answer is: not yet.

Contents: Classics for Charity

1. Why Classics for Charity?
2. The day itself: cars, people and energy
3. The numbers after the event
4. What the survey tells us
5. Lessons learned
6. What happens next
7. A selection of the images
8. Conclusion

Why Classics for Charity?

After the ALS Car Calendar, I wanted to explore whether the idea could become something bigger. Not just one calendar or one photo shoot, but a day where people could create something together through a shared love of classic cars, images and creativity. The name really says it all: classics as the medium, charity as the reason for doing it.

In my head there was a flywheel behind it. Classic-car owners would bring their cars and stories. Photographers and videographers would create strong content. Models and volunteers would add atmosphere, styling and organisation. Afterwards, the photographs, videos and merchandise would generate attention. That attention would ultimately lead to donations, sponsors and more people wanting to contribute.

The day itself: cars, people and energy

The venue helped enormously. The Koekbouw in Veghel has exactly the raw, industrial atmosphere that works well with classic cars: light, concrete, steel, high spaces and enough different corners to give every car its own setting.

The day started with a welcome and a shared introduction. Then came creative shooting rounds, lunch, networking, free moments and finally a joint closing. What stayed with me most was how quickly people found each other. Photographers began collaborating, models contributed ideas, car owners proudly told stories about their vehicles and small creative teams formed all around the space.

The survey reflected that clearly too. People mentioned the photography, the location, the cars, meeting nice people and coming up with poses together as some of their favourite parts of the day. That is exactly the energy this project was built on.

The numbers after the event

If you only look at the experience, the event was a success. If you look at the goal of raising money, I have to be honest: there is still a lot to improve. The entry contributions raised €220 for Stichting ALS Nederland. There were no additional individual donations or sponsors.

Those numbers essentially tell the whole story. The attention was there, but the step from attention to action was too large. People saw the content, visited the profile and responded positively to the day. That did not automatically translate into donations, merchandise sales or sponsorship.

What the survey tells us

After the event I asked participants how they had experienced the day. Ten people responded. That is not a large study, but it does provide an honest picture of what worked and where the friction was.

I found that contrast interesting. The day itself was experienced positively, but fundraising was not visible or strong enough during and after the event. For five participants the main goal was very clear, for four it was reasonably clear and for one it was not clear at all. In other words, the mission was visible, but it had not yet been translated strongly enough into concrete action.

Several survey answers returned in different forms: people were not sure exactly where they could donate, assumed the entry fee itself was the donation, missed a direct way to order merchandise or felt that the publication of the images took too long. By then, the momentum had disappeared.

Another interesting result: six out of ten participants said they came for a combination of cars, photography, people and the charity. Three came mainly for the cars and one mainly for the cause. There is nothing wrong with that, but it shows that the charity is not automatically everyone’s main motivation. You have to bring that purpose into the programme more actively.

Lessons learned

The easiest thing would be to say that it was a fun day, the photographs look good and we should simply organise another open event. But when the word charity is in the name, I also have to look honestly at what did not work. That is exactly why I have decided not to continue the event in this form.

• Make the donation request more concrete. Do not only say that the event supports ALS. At several moments, literally ask people to donate now, scan this QR code, buy this item or sponsor this print run.
• Make merchandise immediately orderable. An interest form is too non-committal. People need to be able to order at the moment they are enthusiastic.
• Open registration is not automatically the best format. An open event creates a lot of organisation and expectations, but only creates real impact when funding, sales, publication and follow-up have been worked out in advance.
• Arrange publication rights more clearly beforehand. If photographs can only be shared much later, you lose energy. Prior permission and a simple workflow are crucial.
• Turn every participant into a real ambassador. Car owners, photographers, models and volunteers all have reach. But that reach only works when captions, tags, links and agreements are clear.
• Choose quality and focus over scale. The images and encounters were strong. For the future, a compact invitation-only shoot suits the project better than a broad open registration.

What happens next

The most important decision has already been made: we are not continuing this event in the same format. There will be no new open registration and no second edition as a broad sign-up event. That feels a little unfortunate because the day itself was genuinely enjoyable, but it is also the most honest conclusion.

The shoots themselves will continue. The combination of classic cars, photography and personal stories works. I simply want to do it on a smaller scale, with more focus and better preparation. Future Classics for Charity shoots will therefore be by invitation from me only. I will invite car owners, models, photographers or other people involved whenever there is a concrete idea, a suitable location or a strong story.

That gives me more control over atmosphere, planning, publication rights and the charity story. No open registration where everyone has expectations at the same time, but a selected shoot where it is clear beforehand what we are making, what it is for and how the images will be shared.

A selection of the images

Despite the critical lessons, I am proud of what we created visually. The Koekbouw, the cars and the people together produced exactly the atmosphere I had hoped for: raw, classic, creative and personal.

Conclusion

Classics for Charity – Classic Car Photo Experience was a beautiful day. Maybe even better than I expected beforehand. The atmosphere was good, the location worked, the participants were enthusiastic and the images show that the concept has a lot of photographic potential.

But it was also a reality check. The event did not generate the additional donations I had hoped for. That is disappointing, but it is also valuable to say it out loud. That is precisely why I will not continue it as an open event.

For me, Classics for Charity therefore does not feel like a finished project, but it does feel like a project that needs a different form. No more open registrations, but invitation-only shoots. Smaller, more personal and better prepared, with more attention for the story, the images, publication and the question of how the project can genuinely contribute to ALS.

In a way, that also fits why I started it. My mother kept creating for as long as she could. Not because everything had to be perfect immediately, but because creating gives meaning. Classics for Charity keeps that meaning. From now on, I am simply choosing less scale, more focus and more control.