Category Archives: Photography
In Search of the Bird of Athena
With the size of a starling, the little owl is one of the smallest owl species. But what it lacks in size, it makes up for in character. The ancient Greeks were particularly enchanted by it and considered it to be the special bird of Athena, goddess of wisdom. This is likely why we see [...]
It’s Out!
Ten pages of it! Now in newsstands and stores across the Netherlands and Belgium. My first feature story for National Geographic, Passie voor de walvis (Passion for the whale), about my adventures with the Centro de Conservación Cetacea protecting the blue whales of Chile. It’s a very special feeling to hold the first copy in [...]
Panoramic View Point
I just returned from a week’s vacation in the French Alps. My map marked this bench as a “panoramic view point”—how do you like the panorama?
Joris Kijkt: Noor van Schaik
After a brief hiatus while I was on assignment in Chile, my photo feature in Universiteitskrant Groningen is back this week with a photo of Noor van Schaik. As head of student information & administration, she’s responsible for the enrollment of the university’s 28.000 students every year. To symbolize her role as ‘gatekeeper’ I asked [...]
Photo of the Month: European Tree Frog
I’m introducing a new regular feature to the blog, the Photo of the Month. This will be a place to highlight a photo from my archives every now and then that hasn’t seen the blog before. First up is this photo of a European tree frog in the reeds. I made it in 2007 when [...]
Joris Kijkt: Gert van Oortmerssen
For the January issue of my monthly feature in Universiteitskrant Groningen I photographed Gert van Oortmerssen. This work remains a matter of feeling—it can’t be automated. Gert van Oortmerssen is conservator and analyst in the Laboratory for Conservation and Material Studies of the Groningen Institute of Archaeology (GIA). With the greatest care he restores the [...]
The Field Station
“The next post will be from Chile!” Well, barely. It feels like I’ve only just arrived in Chile and yet my time here is already up. I’ll be boarding my plane in a few minutes, so I will leave you with this photo from last night of the cabin under the Milky Way that was [...]
Leaving for Chile
As I write this I’m waiting for the first in a series of flights and ferries that will take me to Isla Grande de Chiloé in Chile. The waters surrounding this island are part of one of the most productive marine ecosystems on the planet, and harbor the largest known aggregation of blue whales on [...]
National Geographic Emerging Nature Photographer
As you may know I was nominated for the National Geographic Emerging Nature Photographer Award 2012 together with Joris De Raedt (Belgium) and Marten van Dijl (the Netherlands). This is a new award in the Netherlands and Belgium for “seriously talented photographers with proven contributions to nature conservation and awareness raising (…) meant to stimulate [...]
Joris Kijkt: Frans van Rijn
For my monthly feature in Universiteitskrant Groningen I like to try and find a subject whose job is often overlooked and put this person in the spotlight. This month, that is literally what I got the chance to do with theater technician Frans van Rijn. What is more wonderful than a place to experiment? Frans [...]
Joris Kijkt: Jan Huizing
For the third installment of ‘Joris Kijkt‘ in Universiteitskrant Groningen, I photographed beadle Jan Huizing. It should stay this way—the way it’s always been. Jan Huizing has guarded over the university since 1980. He started working as a security guard and saw many incidents during those years. Recently he caught two burglars hiding in a [...]
A Wise Little Owl
Dear reader, I’m afraid I have neglected you a bit these past weeks. A lot is going on behind the scenes and I will share it with you as soon as I can. Today, I will just relate the story behind the photo above, and I will follow up with two new photos from my [...]
Joris Kijkt: Maarten Loonen
This is the second installment of ‘Joris Kijkt‘ in Universiteitskrant Groningen, featuring biologist Maarten Loonen. Maarten studies barnacle geese and spends several months a year on the Arctic island of Spitsbergen for his field work. Since a quick round-trip to the Arctic didn’t quite, erhm… fit the budget, I photographed him while practicing another passion [...]
Garden Spider
Autumn has arrived. Large garden spiders (Araneus diadematus) are a common sight throughout the northern hemisphere this time of year, trapping insects like wasps and butterflies in their webs. After mating, a female grows large with eggs inside. She will lay the eggs in a protective sac and guard over them until her death later [...]
Joris Kijkt: Jordan van der Ziel
As of this week I have a returning section in Universiteitskrant Groningen called ‘Joris Kijkt’ (which translates to something like ‘Joris Sees’), for which I portray employees of the University of Groningen. The first installment features Jordan van der Ziel, who is a facility manager and oversees mechanical engineering projects:
Noorderlicht International Photo Festival: Metropolis
I’m particularly joyful today, not in the least because the annual Noorderlicht International Photo Festival has taken off in Groningen this weekend. It’s a visual feast that you do not want to miss if you take an interest in documentary photography. This year’s edition, Metropolis: City Life in the Urban Age, examines the effects of [...]
Russell Lande Receives the Balzan Prize
The International Balzan Prize Foundation just announced that the Prize for Theoretical Biology goes to Russell Lande. Russ is one of the most influential biologists of our time. He has been at the forefront of population genetics and evolutionary theory research. He was also instrumental in the conservation effort to get the northern spotted owl [...]
It’s a Barn Owl Family
Great news: there are little barn owl hatchlings squeaking and hissing from the nest box! Two weeks ago I wondered out loud whether our male had found a new mate. It’s unusually late to start a nest for barn owls in this region. Even second clutches (meaning that the owls start another nest in the [...]
The Fright of the Bell Towers
We share the house here with many animals. I think that’s a nice thing, but we have little say in it anyway. Bats, garden dormice and beech martens are frequent occupants, to name just a few (and of course there’s the wood mouse that lives in the kitchen), but my favorite has always been the [...]
A Night in the Forest
As you may know, I’m in Picardie, France, again after a couple of days in the Netherlands for the opening of my exhibit. I’m visiting my parents. Two local friends, Jacques and Stephane, who have incredible knowledge of the local wildlife, took us to a badger sett nearby. The badgers have lived there for years [...]
Fire Salamander – Take Two
When I was a little kid I had a toy fire salamander. It seemed like the coolest creature ever to walk the earth with its bright colors. I never imagined I’d just stumble upon it on the forest floor in France one day… Last time I went looking for fire salamanders in the middle of [...]
I’m outta here…
…that’s what this Eurasian nuthatch (Sitta europaea) must have thought at the sound of my camera’s mirror moving up. It’s quite remarkable how they’re already on their way out by the time my shutter opens, around 70 milliseconds! Nuthatches are pretty cool birds anyway. Fittingly called ‘boomklever‘ in Dutch, which translates to something like ‘tree [...]
Underwater with Wild Newts
Search for an underwater photo of a newt, and you will find beautiful images of… newts in aquaria. So, last month I set out to fix this and went on a little expedition to the north of France to make a unique underwater photo series of newts in their natural environment.
Cold-blooded Cannibals
Think of a pollinator and the first thing that comes to mind is likely a honey bee. Maybe a hummingbird or a bat. Flowering plants rely on these animals for sexual reproduction, and in return the animals get nectar or fruits. For many years pollination was believed to be limited to insects, birds and mammals, [...]
Scouting Pools for Newts
After an eight-hour drive I arrived in France this afternoon, where my friend Jeremy Upsal has joined me to get some cool photos of newts. The thing with newt photos is they always seem to be set up in an aquarium or on land, so my mission this weekend is to capture several species underwater [...]
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