Featured Photographer
Dos Winkel
About
I was born in 1947, studied physical therapy, founded the International
Academy of Orthopaedic Medicine, now an organisation, very active in
Europe and the USA that trains physicians and physical therapists in
the field of non-surgical orthopaedics - and finally became an underwater
photographer.
With my wife Bertie (she is a well known photographer specialized
in portraying tribal people), we have travelled the globe (more than
120 expeditions), especially in the tropics, but also Antarctica and
the North Pole.
Bertie and I will be married 40 years in 2009. We have two (beautiful)
daughters and two adorable grand sons. I was brought up with a never
ending love for nature, which helped me a lot becoming a professional
nature photographer.
In order to get (very) close to my subjects, I communicate with them.
Some people think that I am crazy (they are probably right for a small
part), but I really talk to fish and make small movements that make
them curious. This enables me to get really close and take pictures
of their eyes. Fish eyes (to me) are the most beautiful eyes in the
animal kingdom.
Website: www.dos-bertie-winkel.com
Interview
Why nature photography?
My father was and still is (although he is now 92) a nature freak. He
told me about nature even before I could understand anything. When I
was ten years old I knew all the common and Latin names of the plants
that one can find in Holland. During my professional life all our vacations
were in tropical areas with special nature or amazing tribes that live
with nature in a very natural way. Since I am retired as an orthopaedic
physical therapist, I have devoted my life not only to underwater photography,
but also to nature conservation. My book about overfishing, bycatch,
illegal fishery, fish oil and contaminants in sea-food will come out
in September 2008.
What's best about it?
As an underwater photographer I enjoy being one with nature. The silence
of the sea makes diving combined with photography to a unique adventure
and every dive is different. During the ten years that we lived on the
small island of Bonaire in the Dutch Caribbean, I found new animals
during every dive. Underwater photography is completely different from
topsite photography. You cannot use a tripod and during most dives there
is surge and current. Also you move all the time because you have to
breathe. Combine all this with slow shutter speeds and you can tell
that this is Another World indeed.
What's worst about it?
Underwater photography is very risky for the camera, because they are
inside a housing. These housings are full of internal o-rings and there
is always one that is at risk...! So it is not a question of "Will
the housing stay dry...?", but "When will it happen...?".
So it happened to me already a few times. Having the internal o-rings
replaced yearly, does not really change the risk. After every dive I
have to clean and grease the o-rings. This takes me 30-45 minutes.
Favourite species and places in Europe?
As I explained before, I do not travel in Europe other than teaching
Orthopaedic Medicine, but now I am really looking forward to my diving
adventure in the Mediterranian Sea, photographing the sea turtles from
Cyprus.
What's in the bag?
Two housings, three Nikon cameras (two D-200 and one D2XS, but I will
have the D3 in May), one 16 mm lens, two 20 mm lenses, one 12-24 mm
lens, two 105 mm lenses and one 200 mm macrolens. DVD's, USB-sticks,
card readers, rechargeble batteries, spare normal batteries, laptop.
Since I travel with more than 60 kilos, and since I have two items of
most of my equipment, I always try to get as much as possible in my
handluggage in case the other luggage will get lost (which happened
to me alread...).
Your specialties / skills?
My specialty is underwater photography, but within this specialty, I
am really specialized in ultra close-up, like the fish eyes I already
spoke about. I think it is because of my stable hands...
What will you do in your next life?
I hope I can still dive for another 10 years and then... I want to enjoy
live together with my wife Bertie maybe a little bit closer to home
with a lot of animals to take care of.
3 tipps for beginners
1) First of all you need to become a good diver and get perfect buoyancy.
2) Secondly, you need to learn as much as you can about the ecosystem
you dive in.
3) And in the third place you need to learn to be extremely patient
and behave as a fish.
Mission
With sea turtles it is as with fish - you have to become friends.
So my first goal will be to let them feel that I am a "fish"
that they can trust. I have been diving with turtles many times before
and it really works. "Talk" to them, don't exhale when you
are close (as most aquatic animals they don't like bubbles). For the
pictures that I am going to take at night on land, I am happy that I
will get the Nikon D3, because it is not allowed to use flash light
as this my disturb the turtle seriously. I will need to get in touch
with local specialists - people who know where and when to encounter
the turtles.
Best Picture
What's cool about it?
This Yellowmask Angelfish is one of the shyest fish on the coral reef.
It is every underwater photographer’s dream to take a good picture
of this colourful animal. When I started my dive on one of the amazing
reefs of the Raja Ampat in Papua (the former Irian Jaya) I immediately
saw a pair of these elusive fish. They were eating a sponge.
Could it be better?
The only point of critics could be that the eyes could have been a little
bit sharper. But then the teeth in the mouth would not have been so
sharp.
Behind the Scene
I came closer bit by bit and they did not seem to be disturbed. When
I was about 2m away, I stopped breathing, because they don´t like
bubbles. When I was 50cm away, they were still eating the sponge. Than,
suddenly, the bigger male came to have a close look. I had my camera
prepared in advance and took this picture. Not only I took the picture,
but this is the ideal position for a fish portrait. Even if this would
have been the only picture taken, I would have been extremely happy.
Date: May 2007
Location: Raja Ampat, Papua, Indonesia
Gear: Nikon D220 and a 105 mm lens in a HugyFot housing; two
Inon-Z strobes
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