Fabian Beck is one of the new faces of the German aquascaping scene. His work is distinguished by high quality and his special dedication to his creations. He is also extremely present on social networks such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, where he represents the German aquascaping scene admirably. Although he has only been involved with aquascaping for a relatively short time, Fabian has already achieved very good placements in several competitions. He has also already successfully completed his first commissioned works for renowned companies in the aquarium sector.

Aram Schneider (AS) had the opportunity to ask Fabian Beck (FB) a few questions for the Aquasabi Aquascaping Wiki. You can find the complete interview in the following article.

The interview

AS: "What are your influences, where do you get your inspiration and ideas? Which artists have influenced you?"

FB: "The answer is so varied that I have to go into some detail. I got the first idea of designing an aquascape when I stumbled across an Iwagumi-style layout with floating stones on Pinterest. 'How are these stones floating in this aquarium? That looks brilliant.' That was my push to start with the aquarium hobby, since I had to give up my old hobby, badminton, because of my many sports injuries. A lot of inspiration still comes from the internet and social media channels today. Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, but also websites like Flowgrow and the forum of the UK Aquatic Plant Society are a great source. Besides the internet, hikes through the Alps, through Saxon Switzerland and a few bike tours have been very inspiring in particular. I once named individual artists on my blog. But you always forget someone - and these days I appreciate above all the diversity of the creations and of the creators."

Mt. Scapemore – can you find the two alien faces looking at each other here?

AS: "You are very active above all on social networks such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. How important are these platforms to you as an aquascaper nowadays?"

FB: "For exchanging ideas and connecting with others in the hobby, it has become very essential for me by now. The aquarium hobby is something you tend to do at home and therefore alone. Getting help, giving help, encouraging, advising: all of these are aspects I value greatly. By now I am in contact with various aquascapers and companies worldwide. I too discuss my hardscapes and seek advice from experienced people. I always fall in love with an idea quickly and overlook important aspects in the process. Through this exchange I gain experience that I can then take along into the next projects."

AS: "What is your fertilization concept for planted aquariums?"

FB: "Despite all the guides and information, fertilizing aquariums is sometimes still a mystery to me. I use RO water, which already simplifies quite a lot given the hard Berlin tap water. At first I measured water values and tried to adjust the fertilization accordingly. With a full-time job and at times up to 8 scapes in my own four walls, the effort eventually became too much, and I moved on to dosing by feel. I used GH/KH+ and GH+ as remineralizing salt and found that frogspawn algae appear for me almost only in water remineralized with GH+. Even so, I prefer the GH+ salt. I fertilize either with Aqua Rebell Estimative Index or Aqua Rebell NPK and, depending on need, with Spezial Flowgrow or the all-in-one iron fertilizer, and in many aquariums also with additional nitrate. GH Boost N, Makro Basic Nitrat or Spezial N I have all tried and I use whatever is appropriate for the respective tank. I fertilize daily and change 50% of the water weekly. That works well as a rule of thumb, but I can still improve there."

60 x 30 x 36 cm – daily fertilization with 5 ml Estimative Index and 1 ml all-in-one iron fertilizer.

AS: "What is your favorite material, e.g. which types of stone and aquatic plants do you like?"

FB: "There is no favorite, neither among stone nor wood nor aquatic plants. I think you can set up beautiful aquariums with almost any rock. So there are very few things I really don't like at all, and in return I love the variety here too and am glad about the rich selection on the market. There are stones I haven't used yet, but that is down to what's available locally - or simply because I like certain styles very much but don't feel I can implement them well myself. Petrified leaves look great, but so far I lack an idea of how to do something with them. One day I definitely want to make up for that, though. With plants it always depends somewhat on how much energy I can and want to put into maintenance at the moment. Cutting stem plants every week in summer is not that satisfying. Slow-growing anubias and cryptocorynes are more pleasant then. Still, I definitely don't want to do without stem plants."

AS: "How long have you been doing the hobby?"

FB: "I set up my first aquascape on October 29, 2018 – one day before my wedding. Aquariums are pack animals. Watch out, they rarely come alone. Since then the hobby has escalated quite a bit for me. Even though the number of my aquariums is currently somewhat declining due to professional changes, I already have 2 finished hardscapes ready again and, in the medium term, want to fulfill my dream of the 120P."

AS: "What are your greatest successes in competitions?"

FB: "The greatest success for me is my personal development as an aquascaper and the recognition from many other aquascapers whose work I admire. With my first aquascape I immediately won a small prize in the Aquascaping Deutschland Facebook group. That was the catalyst for further projects. With 6th place at EAPLC 2020 in the Nano category, though, I probably achieved my best result in larger competitions. I mainly want to get the 120P so that I can compete in the XL category. There is simply the most creative possibility there."

EAPLC 2020 - Rank 6 Nano category

AS: "You have produced some great videos on YouTube that already have a very cinematic quality. Were you already familiar with film and photo production before taking up aquascaping as a hobby? Or did it go hand in hand?"

FB: "I took photos before aquascaping, but didn't film at all. I also had no idea about video editing. With a technical high school diploma in design and as a trained IT specialist, I of course still benefited from a certain body of knowledge that is helpful for production. The effort for a video is still enormous so far, though."

You can discover how this paludarium was set up on Fabian's YouTube channel.

AS: "If you had to choose between a beautiful stone and a beautiful aquatic plant, which would you take?"

FB: "Honestly, I can't choose between breathing and drinking either. There is no 'or'. Stones, wood and plants: variety!"

AS: "A very diplomatic answer with a lot of truth in it. Thank you very much for the interview!"

Copyright for all photos in the article: Fabian Beck.