Bas Meelker Landscape and Wildlife Photography

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It’s the last day of the year and I’m getting sentimental. Looking back, the start of 2011 gave us an epic winter with great light, a lot of snow and some fairytale landscapes. Spring brought us to Marrakesh in Morocco. The narrow streets of the souks in the old city forced me to work in a completely new and different way. Very challenging and great fun. It was definitely one of the highlights of the year for me.

Shelf ice on the Wadden sea - The Netherlands

Summer brought me back to the roots with some classical Tuscan landscapes and gorgeous late afternoon light. Or perhaps doing landscape work with a 500mm super tele lens isn’t that classical after all...

Street life in Marrakesh - Morocco

Finally, autumn in the Mosel region turned out to be a game of patience. With days of bad light it all came down to the very last day. And what a day it was with a spectacular misty sunrise over the hills and valleys. Other highlights have to be my first book being published and the sold out seminars and talks at Foto Konijnenberg en the ZOOM Campus 2011. 2011 also saw record image sales. 

Fields of gold - Tuscany, Italy

So, what’s up for 2012? Well, first of all, 2012 will be my 10-year anniversary as a photographer so we have some special things planned. We start off with a completely new workshop program. With new workshops, new locations and smaller groups. I’m very happy with the new set-up and by the looks of it, you are too. The ‘Winter special’ workshop sold out in a week and reservations for the other workshops are coming in on a daily basis. Great! We already have several new trips planned to great locations. As for seminars and talks, we start off on February 11, when I will be one of the guest speakers at the 6th NVN International Nature Photo Festival in Arnhem, the Netherlands.

Village on fire - Wolf an der Mosel, germany

But in the end, it all comes down to the images and the fun of taking them. And I am stepping into 2012 full of fresh and new ideas which will challenge me artistically in new and different ways I hope to share with you. Happy New Year and have a great 2012!

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Same spot, another day. I just can't resist. This time though, I am not alone. I brought my long time friend and fellow photographer Ron ter Burg with me. He was anxious to try out this location and I did not mind giving it another go. Things are never the same. No matter how many times you visit the same location, you always end up with different pictures. And it is a great way to learn how to make the best out of one location. While waiting for the light we had time to catch up and talk about our favorite subject. Any thoughts...? Yep, photography. What else?

Angry Skies - IJsselmeer, The Netherlands - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8 L II, f11, 75 secounds exposure, 16mm, ISO 100 taken with a Lee ND9 Hard grad filter, tripod and remote control.

One of the things we talked about was how important it is to have the right equipment and to master your photographic techniques. Not in the usual kind of way but in a confidence inspiring way. Having the best gear for the job and knowing you can handle any given situation, means you have a lot less to think about. And having less to think about means there is more room in your head to think about the things that really matter. Things like your vision, your creativity and reading the light. Not being bothered by gear compromises or technique struggles means you can focus on getting the best picture possible. I know great gear isn't cheap. But at least make sure you know your gear inside out. Whatever gear you own. Be a master of your gear, be a master of your technique and great things will happen!

Shifting Sands - IJsselmeer, The Netherlands - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8 L II, f11, 2 secounds exposure, 16mm, ISO 100 taken with a Lee ND9 Hard grad filter, Lee ND9 neutral desity filter, tripod and remote control.

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It is three o'clock in the afternoon when I arrive at my chosen location at the IJsselmeer near Workum. Plenty of time to prepare, to check out the conditions and to find the best spot along the beach. As I park my car and get into my thrusted wellies, I can see kite surfers have taken over 'my' spot. Not to worry. When the light fades, their adrenaline rush will be over and mine begins. For now I can relax and enjoy the show they are giving me. It is great to see that the light is back. Feels like you can breath again. We have had our moments in the last couple of weeks with great foggy conditions but it is nice to see open skies again. As the sun slowly sets, I can see clouds rolling in from the south-west and my adrenaline starts pumping. 

Eternal change - IJsselmeer, The Netherlands - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8 L II, f11, 3.2 secounds exposure, 16mm, ISO 100 taken with a Lee ND9 Hard grad filter, Lee ND9 neutral density grey filters, tripod and remote control.

The kite surfers pack up and leave. It is my turn now. As I make my first test exposures, I can feel it again. It's that funny little feeling you get in your stomach when you know something special is about to happen. The light is good, you're in the right spot and everything just falls into place. During such moments, I hardly think about composition and getting the right exposure. It is just me and the landscape. My feeling takes over and all I have to do is react to the light. Don't get me wrong, I am still aware of getting my technique right. But for me, taking a good image is all about connecting to the landscape and the light. Seeing is not enough. I have to feel it. Smell it. Every photo is different but sometimes photo's are nothing more then summaries of events. It is the event that matters. 

Liquid sunset - IJsselmeer, The Netherlands - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8 L II, f11, 1.3 secounds exposure, 16mm, ISO 100 taken with a Lee ND9 Hard grad filter, Lee ND9 neutral density grey filters, tripod and remote control.

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Well, I am back from a short trip to the Mosel region. Two days of travel, three days of location scouting, sunsets, sunrises, relaxation and wine. It could be worse. Autumn is really picking up it's pace now and the colors were great. So was the wine. On such a short trip, luck plays an important part in getting the right shots. Re-shoots and waiting for better light are mostly out of the question. You have to deal with what's given to you. And on the second day, I thought my luck had run out. The first two days gave us overcast conditions with dull light and colorless sunsets and sunrises. Bring on more wine. But you just have to keep on trying and so on day three there was another early rise to catch the sunrise. 

Village on fire - Wolf, Mosel region, Germany - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8 L at 200mm. F8, 1/800 sec., ISO 100, handheld with -2ev exposure compensation.

This time, luck was on my side with a beautiful fog hanging over the Mosel Valley, and the sun slowly burning it away. The constantly changing scenery was breathtaking. New compositions turned up again and again with the fog clearing and returning, giving us short glimpses of the landscape beneath. For me, this one single morning was worth the entire trip. Yes, I would have liked better light and more shooting opportunities on the first two days, but that's all in the game. As landscape photographers, we just can't set up our lights and scenery. The earth is our studio and the sun and the moon are our lights. In the end mother nature always decides and that's fine by me!

The Climpse - Wolf, Mosel region, Germany - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8 L at 195mm. F8, 1/60 sec., ISO 100, Tripod, remote, +2/3ev exposure compensation.

One more thing. I don't normally talk about equipment a lot but I would like to make an exception this time. I've recently started using Páramo clothing for my outdoors shooting and I must say I'm impressed! For me as a landscape photographer they have nailed it right on the head! It's 100% waterproof, very comfortable and extremely 'breathable'. And best of all, it's very light. You hardly notice it when you're wearing it. We all know that being cold, wet or too warm will affect our shooting. So having the right outdoor gear is important. And now, it's also available in the Netherlands. Check it out! It's got my vote.

The Mosel Valley - Mosel region, Germany - Canon EOS 5D Mark II + Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8 L at 200mm. F8, 1/800 sec., ISO 100, handheld with +2/3ev exposure compensation. 

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De afgelopen weken voelden aan als een grote achtbaan. Veel leuke opdrachten, lezingen, seminars en workshops. September en oktober waren drukke maanden met verschillende hoogtepunten. Één van de hoogtepunten voor mij was de masterclass landschapsfotografie die ik ieder jaar in Zeeland geef. Begin oktober was het weer zover. Helaas zat het weer dit jaar niet echt mee. Toch zijn er ook nu weer prachtige foto's gemaakt, waarvan je er hier een aantal van deelnemers ziet. 

Fotograaf: Joop van Aerts - www.joopvanaerts.nl - Masterclass Landschapsfotografie 2011

Het zijn voor mij niet alleen uitstekend gemaakte foto's, maar ze getuigen ook van het feit waarom het zo belangrijk is dat je er als landschapsfotograaf altijd op uit moet gaan. Ongeacht de voorspellingen. Zeker op zulke dagen biedt de zonsopkomst vaak net even een kleine 'window of opportunity'. Kleine (droge...) momenten met dramatische lichtomstandigheden die je net genoeg tijd geven voor een paar belichtingen. Was je in je bed blijven liggen, dan had je het gemist... Prachtige foto's. Klasse gedaan!

Fotograaf: Ron Buist - www.buist.net - Masterclass Landschapsfotografie 2011

De grote drukte is nu even achter de rug en het is natuurlijk geweldig als er zoveel gebeurd. Maar het gaat af en toe ook ten koste van je 'eigen' fotografie. Niet getreurd, want dat kunnen we de komende weken weer inhalen. De echte herfst moet nog beginnen en ik verheug me nu al op een (hopelijk) strenge winter. Binnenkort geef ik opnieuw een aantal lezingen voor Foto Konijnenberg over de schoonheid van deze seizoenen. Hopelijk kom je ook! Nu zijn de koffers weer gepakt en staan we in de startblokken om een aantal dagen te vertrekken naar Duitsland waar ik het herfstlandschap rond de Moezel ga fotograferen. Ik hoop dat ik ter plekke wat resultaten online kan posten. Anders tot gauw!

Fotograaf: Ton Drijfhamer - www.tondrijfhamerfotografie.nl - Masterclass Landschapsfotografie 2011

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