From documenting big cats in the freezing winter to being repeatedly charged by rhinos in India, award-winning photojournalist Steve Winter has experienced it all.
Call him crazy or a hell of a risk-taker, but for the 'Big Cat legend' and conservation photographer, doing whatever it takes to document these majestic creatures in the wild is all in a day’s work.
Come next week, Steve Winter will be sharing his adventures behind the lens in a not-to-be-missed presentation - 'My Nine Lives with Steve Winter'.
My Nine Lives with Steve Winter
Date: 25 Aug 2015 (Tues)
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: Esplanade Theatres on the Bay, Concert Hall
Ticket Price: From $39
(Purchase your tickets at Sistic)
Steve will share his gripping tales live on stage, from coming face-to-face with tigers in India’s Kaziranga National Park – one of the last places where tigers still share the land with elephants, rhinos, and deer – to capturing nocturnal adventures of a mountain lion in the Hollywood hills.
Steve recently won World Press Photo of the Year for Nature and has been awarded other top photojournalism awards including BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year. His decade-long project to document the world's disappearing tigers recently culminated in his stunning National Geographic book Tigers Forever.
Transcript courtesy of: SPRG
Qn: What is the single most important piece of non-essential gear for you to have in the field, and why?
SW: In the past, my most important piece of non-essential gear was a satellite phone—and it still is if I am in a remote enough area. Now that our world is blanketed by cell coverage, I get a local cell phone and I call home once or twice a day wherever I am.
Qn: Complete this sentence: When I started working with National Geographic, I never thought I would be ....
SW: A wildlife photojournalist. I didn’t photograph an animal until I was 34 years old. Now I photograph big cats!
Qn: What is the most breathtaking view you’ve enjoyed while in the field? Tell us where it is and how you ended up there.
SW: Everywhere I work is breathtaking! The night sky is amazing from Wyoming to the Himalayas. Standing in a jungle and just listening to the symphony of the birds and other creatures while working on Yasuni in Ecuador for National Geographic magazine was special. I really love forests and their sounds throughout the world.
Qn: What is the most treacherous terrain/environment or unpredictable situation you have encountered?
SW: This happens all the time. Snow leopard terrain is steep and at a high altitude so you have certain challenges. Working with wild animals can be a bit dangerous and you need to work with local people that know the area and animals. You need to have a very high level of trust in their abilities, as your life is in their hands.
Getting charged by rhinos was the scariest situation I’ve been in while in the field. Unpredictable animal behaviour is the worst. You simply cannot be prepared, but you just always have to be prepared for that sort of thing- like the boy scout motto! I’m an Eagle Scout.
Qn: Who determines the brief of a project? How much flexibility do you have, as your subject matter can be so unpredictable?
SW: Experience is the best teacher – and know that every problem has a solution. Never give up when you can spend another day – giving yourself another opportunity to be successful.
Qn: What drew you into wildlife photography?
SW: It was quite by accident. I had a commercial shoot in Costa Rica, working with scientists in the rainforest. The forest blew me away with its incredible diversity. And coming from being a photojournalist covering politics and the economy spending my days with passionate and dedicated researchers in the rainforest really excited me.
Also one of the scientists I met told me of a story that had both wildlife and people – about the quetzal – the sacred bird of the Maya, that had never been photographed by NGM – that began my career in wildlife.
I did not take a photograph of an animal until I was 34 years old – while I was on that trip in Costa Rica. It was of a marine turtle coming back into the sea at dawn after laying its eggs under the sand on a beach.
Qn: Do you have a favourite image? Can you share the story behind it?
SW: I don’t even remember taking the picture. It’s like in this magic wonderland of ferns and plants and they are coming down in the frame, and there are just there looking at me for one split second. I couldn’t stop crying.
(Watch the video clip of Steve Winter explaining his favourite photo)
Qn: What is your most memorable wildlife encounter on the job to date?
SW: Every story has a memorable wildlife encounter. Some are scary and others are just amazing. But the most important ones end for me with an amazing image. I was watching a tiger hunting elephant babies one day and he was unsuccessful as the matriarch would not allow him to get close to the young. As he walked away after an hour I took a photograph of why tigers have stripes – camoflague – a tiger walking thru burnt grasses – amazing.
Qn: What message would you like to share with the world about wildlife conservation?
SW: If we save big cats we can save ourselves. The forests in which the big cats live are the lungs of the world and provide 75% of the fresh water we need to live – so if we save the big cats and their homes we can help to save ourselves.
Qn: What is the most important piece of advice for aspiring photographers?
SW: Learn to be a visual storyteller. Learn to tell visual stories close to where you live. If you can find something near you and tell a compelling story close to home you will not need much money and you can put the time into learning about your subjects and understanding their lives.
'My Nine Lives with Steve Winter' takes place next Tuesday (25 Aug) at the Esplanade Concert Hall