25.-27. October 2024
Lecture program
Saturday, 26. October 2024
| 09:30 |
Opening |
| 09:45 |
Felix Heinztenberg |
| 10:20 | Break |
| 11:40 | Rachael Talibart Time and Tide Photographing the Rhythms of the Ocean |
| 12:15 |
Marcus Westberg |
| 12:45 | Lunch break |
| 14:45 | Erik Malm Passion |
| 15:15 | Jaime Rojo Saving the Monarchs |
| 16:00 |
Michael Martin |
| 16:35 | Break |
| 18:00 | Audience award |
| 18:10 |
Changemaker |
| 18:45 |
Bruno D’Amicis, Ugo Mellone und Marco Colombo |
Sunday, 27. October 2024
| 09:30 | Opening |
| 09:40 | GDT Regionalgruppe 10 Wild Elbe Nature's treasures between Giant Mountains and Wadden Sea |
| 10:15 | Terje Kolaas Bird photography The sky is not the limit |
| 10:50 | Break |
| 12:00 | Esther Horvath Stars of the Polar Night |
| 13:05 | Lunch break |
| 14:45 | Jon A. Juarez Finding light in the dark Tales of hope in conservation |
| 15:15 | Mark Littlejohn Reactive versus Creative Teaching an old dog new tricks |
| 15:50 | Last but not least – Festival ending |
Speakers
Felix Heintzenberg (DE/SE)
In the lynx forest - The “Mission Impossible” of nature photography?
Although the lynx is one of Europe's most charismatic animal species, few nature photographers have ever seen this cat in the wild. Sweden is home to a small population of 1200 individuals with territories up to 500 square kilometres in size. Felix Heintzenberg has set himself the challenge of finding these elusive animals.
Felix will present the results of the comprehensive photo project that has developed in the seven years since the idea was initially conceived. Mostly working with camera traps, Felix has also had the pleasure of directly observing lynx in the wild on several occasions. His lecture gives insights into the highs and lows of the photo project.
About Felix Heintzenberg
Born in Lübeck, Felix Heintzenberg has chosen to call Sweden home since 1995. He lives in Lund, is a biologist, and works as a biology teacher. Felix has been taking photographs since the mid-1980s and is the author of several nature books. Both his books and photographs have won prizes. Felix has a penchant for large photography projects.
www.felixheintzenberg.com
Rachael Talibart (UK)
Time and Tide - Photographing the Rhythms of the Ocean
The ocean and the coast it carves are wonderfully dynamic things to photograph but they can also be very challenging subjects. In this talk, specialist fine art coastal photographer, Rachael Talibart, will share her approach, with plenty of practical and creative tips for making the most of coastal locations.About Rachel Talibart
Rachael is a professional seascape and coastal photographer based in the UK. Her critically acclaimed photographs of the ocean and coast have been featured in the press all over the world. Rachael is represented by galleries in UK, Germany and the USA and she is the author of four monographs.
She grew up on the coast in a yachting family and this close connection with the ocean informs her work. Rachael graduated from the University of London with a Masters degree in Literature and Art and her work draws on themes she studied.
Rachael owns f11 Workshops, providing photography day tours and workshops in the South of England and she leads photography tours for international fine art business, Ocean Capture.
www.rachaeltalibart.com
Marcus Westberg (PT)
Heroes and Hope - Conservation Photography in Sub-Saharan Africa
For the last decade, Marcus has been documenting the work of individuals and organisations in various conservation spaces across Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite civil unrest, violent wildlife crime and widespread sociopolitical and economic issues, there are plenty of reasons to hope for a brighter future for the region’s endangered wildlife, and for the people who live alongside it. In Lünen, Marcus will share his experiences of some of these from his years in the field.About Marcus Westberg
Marcus Westberg is a conservation photojournalist, travel photographer and writer, based in Portugal. A scientist by training and a storyteller by choice, he splits his work between conservation organisations -primarily in sub-Saharan Africa and his native Sweden, where he has been documenting the clear-cutting of the country’s native forests since 2020 -and various news, travel, nature and photography publications. His images have won numerous documentary and photojournalism awards, including at the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year. Marcus is a contributor to The Evidence Project and the Remembering Wildlife books, a Senior Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers and a Sony Wildlife Explorer.
www.marcuswestberg.photo
Erik Malm (SE)
Passion
A passion for music, a passion for nature and photography. And a passionate ambition to tell a very special story about existence on our fantastic planet. Erik Malm is dedicated to illustrating these emotions in his very own photographic style. In this lecture, he will try to create music with his images and images from music.
About Erik Malm
Born in Sweden in 1964, Erik Malm turned his first great passion in life, music, into his profession and worked as a symphony musician and conductor. Since childhood, however, he also had a passion for nature and, somewhat later, photography. For more than 20 years, Erik Malm has focussed fully on developing his skills in camera movement photography, now called Intentional Camera Movement or ICM, where images are always created in single exposures.
www.erikmalm.com
Jaime Rojo (ES)
Saving the Monarchs
Few insects have captured our imagination like the Monarch Butterflies. Their migration is one of the most iconic wildlife spectacles in North America. However, their population has declined by 90% in the last four decades due to the loss of breeding habitat caused by industrial agriculture, deforestation in the wintering grounds, and, recently, extreme weather events fueled by climate change. From farmers to indigenous communities, from scientists to volunteer citizens, hundreds of people across North America are working to reverse this alarming trend and create a new future for Monarchs. In these polarizing times, the struggle of these beloved butterflies can be used to revisit our relationship with the natural world, provide hope, and unite three countries under the same goal: to save the Monarchs.About Jaime Rojo
Jaime Rojo is a Spanish photographer with a background in conservation who focuses on environmental stories about wilderness and wildlife and hopes that his images can ultimately become a tool for protecting nature. He studied Environmental Sciences in Madrid and started his professional life in Mexico in 2004, working in a conservation organization. His most recent project is Saving the Monarchs, a cover story for National Geographic Magazine. He frequently collaborates as a photographer, creative director, and communications advisor with environmental organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, and companies worldwide. Jaime is a National Geographic Explorer, Senior Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers and trustee to The WILD Foundation, and his work has been awarded in competitions such as World Press Photo, Wildlife Photographer of the Year and Pictures of the Year International.
www.rojovisuals.com | Instagram: @jaimerojo
Michael Martin (DE)
TERRA – Camera in hand, around the world
TERRA is a photographic and geographic portrait of our planet. Michael Martin travelled around the world, camera in hand, for five years, taking photographs in the Arctic, the Himalayas, the Andes, the South Pacific, Arabia, the Amazon basin, East African savannahs, the Siberian taiga and Central Asian steppes. The resulting ten Faces of the Earth present fascinating landscapes as well as animals, plants and cultures in all climate zones of our planet. For his lecture in Lünen, Michael Martin will focus on the Pacific Ring of Fire.About Michael Martin
Michael Martin is a photographer, lecturer, adventurer and geographer. He has been travelling the world and documenting his travels in lectures, books and television films for 40 years. After visiting the world's deserts, Michael headed to the Arctic and Antarctica, reaching both the North Pole and the South Pole. In 2017, he began travelling for his biggest project to date, TERRA, a portrait of the planet Earth.
Michael Martin has published 30 illustrated books and his works have been translated into nine languages. He has given over 2000 lectures and produced many TV documentaries. His has won numerous awards for his work, including an honorary medal from the Royal Geographic Society. Recently, he received the Gregor Calendar Award and the ITB BookAward for his life's work. GEO magazine dedicated a special GEO extra to Michael Martin.
www.michael-martin.de
Changemaker
CHANGEMAKER - Can we change the world with photography?
For the first time this year, the GDT is introducing an exciting new contribution series aimed at initiating conversations, fostering community, and inspiring creativity and positive change. To this end, we invite bold voices and original thinkers who are actively engaged in creating a better future. Britta Jaschinski will moderate and speak with Marcus Westberg, Jaime Rojo, Klaus Tamm and Benjamin Waldmann in a format designed to increase our awareness that we are not as powerless as we sometimes feel in the face of the current environmental and political world situation!
Simultaneous interpretation to English will be available for this event.
Bruno D’Amicis, Ugo Mellone und Marco Colombo (IT)
Out of the Blue - Revealing the wild side of the Mediterranean
“Mediterranean” is a word which immediately makes people think of crystal-clear sea waters and sandy beaches, historically rich and friendly touristic destinations. For others the same word might be connected instead with the recent dramas of human migration or unsolved conflicts. The Mediterranean remains indeed one of the most exploited parts of the World, and often considered as the cradle of Western civilization and a veritable melting pot of different cultures.
Seldom, if ever, this Region is related to wild nature. Truly, most of its ancient wilderness, facing millennia of exploitation, has stepped aside, but it actually remains one of the Planet’s main biodiversity hotspots, hosting an amazing variety of species often living in surprisingly pristine places. The Mediterranean is a pivot between Europe, Africa and Asia, where it plays both the role of an ecological barrier and an important corridor for many different species, including us humans.
The unique history of the region stands as an example of a millenary coevolution between humans and nature. Sadly, all these aspects are often neglected and there is an urgency to tell the broad public the story of the Mediterranean lingering and fragile wilderness.
About Bruno, Marco und Ugo (The Wild Line)
The Wild Line is a spontaneous collective of three award-winning nature photographers from Italy, who joined forces to document the lingering wilderness of the Mediterranean. Through books, magazine articles, lectures, exhibitions and social media content they want to share their enthusiasm for nature and draw attention to the threats menacing its survival. Bruno, Marco and Ugo share a common academic background in natural history and a lifelong passion for biodiversity and the outdoors. In over fifty years of collective professional experience, the three photographers have traveled across the Globe, obtaining international recognition, although they've never neglected their first love: the biodiversity of Italy and the Mediterranean.
www.the-wildline.com
GDT Regional Group 10 - Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt
Wild Elbe - Nature's treasures between Giant Mountains and Wadden Sea
The source of the river Elbe lies in a raised bog in the Czech Giant Mountains. The small mountain stream grows steadily larger, winding its way through volcanic rocks and sandstone formations. Several hundred kilometres downstream, the Elbe is transformed into a lowland river with wide floodplains and glacial meltwater valleys. Near the river mouth, a vast tidal estuary begins and then extends all the way to the Wadden Sea. With a length of 1,091 kilometres, the Elbe is the third longest river in Western Europe. However, it is not length that makes the Elbe so unique; rather, the fact that, despite its size, the river is mostly free-flowing. The dreadful wall that divided Germany for over 40 years and that partly followed the course of the Elbe effectively protected large parts of the river from development. Over time, these off-limits areas became refugia in which endangered animals and plants could survive. Today, almost no other river in Western Europe is as unspoilt, undeveloped and species-rich as the Elbe.
About the Project
Since the founding of the GDT regional group for Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt (RG10) in 2008, its members have concentrated on developing shared ideas as well as conceptualising and implementing challenging projects. In addition to nature conservation projects such as a Eurasian hoopoe relocation programme, the group initially focussed on regular exhibitions. The next project that truly inspired its members was the exploration of the natural environments between the Harz Mountains in the west and the Ore Mountains in the east - including both beautiful and problematic motifs. The highly regarded audiovisual show entitled Zwischen Granit und Sandstein was presented at several nature photo festivals. Our group met it's biggest challenge when faced with the idea of photographing the Elbe in all its facets, from headwaters to mouth. The final result is the current regional group cooperative project Wild Elbe which has given rise to a coffee table book, a touring exhibition and an audiovisual show. Thirty-two photographers spent two years capturing the endlessly fascinating facets of this imposing river.
www.rg10.gdtfoto.de
Terje Kolaas (NO)
Bird photography - the sky is not the limit
The world has more than 10,000 species of birds, all of which live in their unique environments and niches. In the lecture, the photographer shows how combining knowledge of birds, photography techniques, new technology and a creative mindset can create bird images that stand out from the crowd.
About Terje Kolaas
Terje Kolaas (born 1978) is a renowned Norwegian wildlife photographer specializing in capturing images of birds. He is particularly recognized for his creative, artistic and often minimalistic style of bird photography. His photos have been awarded in some of the biggest photo competitions in the world and his work has graced the covers of national and international magazines. He has also authored and illustrated several books about birds, including an introduction to bird photography.
Birds are also Terje's profession. As well as being a bird guide and teaching bird identification at Nord University, he is a sought-after lecturer and work shop leader both on Norwegian and international stages and festivals for nature photographers.
www.terjekolaas.com
Esther Horvath (HU)
Stars of the Polarnight
In the high Arctic, the darkness of the polar night dominates for more than four months of the year. Despite the harshest environmental conditions, including blizzards and temperatures of minus 30 degrees Celsius, scientists search for insights to better understand how our planet is changing.
The stories in Stars of the Polar Night show the daily life and work behind the scenes of several scientific expeditions in unique polar outposts of humanity. In my talk, I will share what life is like on a research expedition, what life is like in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. I will talk about my journey as a photographer to this magical world, the Arctic, which I consider to be the most beautiful environment on the planet. For me, the stars of the polar night are the scientists, the people who live and work in the Arctic, who provide us as humanity with important information, scientific data about the polar regions and about our future. All the people I work with have one thing in common, their care and love for this fragile environment.
About Esther Horvath
Esther Horvath was born in Hungary. After her study in Economics she moved to New York City - following her passion for photography - to attend the International Center of Photography, where she graduated in documentary and photojournalism. After living in New York City for six years, Esther moved to Germany in 2018, where she is based now.
Since 2015, Esther has dedicated her photography to the polar regions, documenting scientific expeditions in the Arctic and Antarctic, as well as behind-the-scenes science stories. She follows the work of several scientific groups working to better understand the changing polar regions. In addition to highlighting climate change and all scientific efforts through various polar research expeditions, her mission is to highlight women in the Arctic, in order to make visible the crucial role women play in shaping the Arctic's present and future.
Esther Horvath is photographer for the Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, contributor photographer for National Geographic and a Fellow at the International League of Conservation Photographers. Her work focuses on documenting climate research in the polar regions.
In 2019-2020, she documented the MOSAiC expedition in the Central Arctic Ocean, the largest scientific expedition ever undertaken in this region. Her photo documentation of the expedition has been published by Prestel Verlag as Expedition Arktis (German edition) and Into the Arctic Ice (English edition).
Esther's work has been featured in National Geographic, The New York Times, GEO, Stern, TIME, The Guardian and Audubon Magazine among others.
www.estherhorvath.com
Jon A. Juárez (DE, GDT)
Finding light in the dark - Tales of hope in conservation
A degree in biology set things in motion, yet my true passion flourished when I began photographing. In the early years, natural beauty fascinated me and I was always on the hunt for the perfect shot. But then the true power of the camera revealed itself to me: during the time I spent with refugee children from 2016 to 2022, I experienced a radical shift in perception. The camera, initially an aesthetic tool, was transformed into a powerful instrument. This experience brought home the impressive narrative power of images. As a photographer and filmmaker, I am now passionately involved in various projects, including the BioRescue Project to save northern white rhinoceros and the GAIA Initiative for high-tech ecological monitoring. Through my work, I demonstrate how the camera as a tool can build bridges and initiate change.About Jon A. Juárez
A biologist on paper but a photographer at heart, Jon A. Juárez is committed to bringing people closer to nature. His photography and microscopy workshops for children in and around Berlin address difficult issues including pollution, insect conservation and climate change. In recent years, Jon Juárez has shared his passion for nature and wildlife with more than 2,500 youths. Juárez also has a keen interest in social issues and actively participated in various projects for refugee children in the German capital subsequent to the great wave of migration in 2016. A full member of the German Society for Nature Photography (GDT), he has shown his work at exhibitions in Germany and Spain. His images have won awards both in Germany and elsewhere in Europe.
www.jonjuarez.photo | www.highwaysandbyways.de | instagram/jonjuarez.photo | fb/jonjuarez.photo
Mark Littlejohn (UK)
Reactive versus Creative - Teaching an old dog new tricks
When I first started to take photographs of the world around me I lived between the Eden Valley and the Lake District. Two areas of outstanding natural beauty. I just wandered round, pointing my camera in the general direction of all that beauty, pressing the shutter release every now and then. Over a period of time my photography become more well known. And people would call me creative. I always denied this, saying “I’m not a creative. I’m a reactive”. Because I react to the obvious beauty around me. I’ve never had to look for it. Its just there. But four years ago I moved to Wester Ross in the Highlands. A place of even more obvious beauty. But I’m not taking the same pictures. I’m photographing small scenes of reeds and kelp. Have I become a creative. Has it been possible to teach an old dog new tricks.About Mark Littlejohn
Mark Littlejohn came to photography late in life. Nearly half a century had elapsed from the date of his birth until the time he first picked up a camera. And yet, if you asked him, he would be unable to recall a time when he didn’t take photographs. Despite his previous life, where he spent 26 years as a detective (including 10 years as a computer forensic analyst), he is not one for meticulous planning and analysis when it comes to his photography. The camera is the conduit for the love affair between himself and the world that surrounds him. He has no preconceived ideas about what he’s going to photograph at any given moment. He photographs whatever it is that’s unlucky enough to pass in front of his camera at any given instant. He would describe himself as someone who sees with the heart and shoots with the head.
www.facebook.com/markljphotography | www.twitter.com/mark_lj | www.instagram.com/mark_littlejohn
