Bertus Hanekom
My love for nature and the outdoors was instilled in me at a young age. As a kid, family holidays were spent camping and traveling through African countries in a Land Rover. It was on one of these trips that I took a photograph of an empty wave that was later published in a local surfing magazine. I remember the feeling of excitement I got as a schoolboy, seeing my image printed in a magazine for the first time. This was still during the film era and although we've seen incredible advances in photographic equipment, seeing an image come to life in print is still as exciting today as it was back then.
Those early experiences sparked my interest in photography, but my landscape photography journey only really began towards the end of 2014. After a short stint working on sailboats in the Caribbean, I was able to save up enough money for my first full frame camera and some gear. Since then I've taken countless online tutorials and trial and error adventures to eventually get more comfortable with my camera.
These days I make a living farming in the Karoo. I also make a point of scheduling regular trips to the coast in search of some waves. A 'double' life of sorts, but being able to photograph both our coastline and the vast open landscapes of the Karoo on a regular basis is a privilege and something I really enjoy doing.
Landscape photography offers me a way to express myself artistically, whilst spending time in nature. I don't think you can really ask for much more than that.