My Wildlife Photography Story
My love for wildlife photography grew from a lifetime of visiting the bush.
Like most people, I started by simply taking snapshots — memories of animals, places and moments I wanted to take home with me. Over time, though, something changed. I became less interested in simply photographing what I saw and more interested in waiting for those special moments when an animal's behaviour, the light and the surroundings all came together.
A big part of that journey belongs to my brother-in-law, Tom Coetzee, (in the right of the image above), who became not only a great friend, but a brother to me.
Tom shared the same passion for wildlife and photography, and it was really through him that I became hooked. As Head Ranger at Thornybush Game Reserve, bordering the Timbavati, Tom gave me the opportunity to spend time in the bush in a very different way. I visited whenever I could, camera in hand, learning from him and spending countless hours watching, waiting and appreciating everything around us.
Those visits taught me that some of the best moments in the bush happen when you stop rushing.
Sometimes you wait for hours and nothing happens. And sometimes, for just a few seconds, everything comes together.
As the years passed, my love for that stillness grew stronger and stronger. Photography became less about simply getting a picture and more about capturing a moment — an expression, a behaviour, beautiful light, or something completely unexpected.
Today, wherever I travel into the bush, my camera goes with me.
WillemB's Photos is simply my way of sharing some of those moments with you.
My wildlife photography
I’m Willem Bosch, a South African wildlife photography enthusiast with a lifelong love for the African bush.
What started as simply capturing memories during visits to the bush gradually developed into a passion for wildlife photography — enjoying the challenge of waiting for that special moment when light, behaviour and nature come together.
I’m not a professional photographer; I simply love being in the wild with a camera in my hands. WillemB’s Photos is my way of sharing some of the moments I’ve been fortunate enough to experience and capture along the way.
But very little of this story would be complete without my lovely wife, Hester (Peaches), beside me.
She shares my love for the bush and for the simple adventures that come with it. Sometimes that means heading into one of our beautiful game reserves; other times it’s simply taking the first gravel road we come across and seeing where it leads, binoculars and camera ready, looking for birds and enjoying the countryside.
Hester will happily sit beside me in a bird hide for hours while I wait for that one photograph. She never rushes me and never complains about how long I’m taking. Instead, she gives me something incredibly precious — the time and freedom to do what I love most, while simply enjoying being there with me.
She has never asked for much from our adventures together, other than that we spend the time together. And that makes every road travelled, every bird hide, every sighting and every photograph that much more special.
When I think about the places I love most, it isn’t only about the wildlife or the photographs. It’s about being out there, camera in hand, with Hester beside me — wondering what we might find around the next corner.
Philosophy
I try to photograph with respect for the animal and the place - no baiting, no disturbance, and a preference for natural light and honest moments over dramatic effects.
Equipment
- Exif info of my equipment with every photo, and a sturdy old rise bag made by my mom about 19 years ago.