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Inselbergs

In the far north of Mozambique, on the border with Tanzania, the Niassa is famous for its inselbergs, solid granite hills that rise straight out of the flat miombo woodland. Koos saw them on the cover of a magazine and knew he had to go. Because nothing could be seen from inside the forest, he climbed from one inselberg to the next to look out over the land, and here the hills stand alone in the vast landscape, almost like the surface of the moon.

It was such a very isolated image.— Koos van der Lende

Ngorongé | Garden of Giants

Mount Ngorongé rises more than a thousand metres, the giant of the Niassa. Koos climbed a neighbouring mountain the day before and slept rough on the top, with a leopard growling below, to be ready before dawn. The morning came overcast, but the first light broke through onto the mountain itself. The trees below stand six metres and more, which shows just how vast it is.

It simply has more atmosphere.— Koos van der Lende

Aloe Mawii

On a bare rock near Ngorongé, Koos found an Aloe mawii growing on almost nothing, a little soil on the stone. He hoisted every piece of equipment up by rope, cleared the rock for a day, and even lifted one small aloe and replanted it at the back, for the balance of the picture. Then he waited while elephants passed beneath him. The morning failed him, but in the overcast evening he lit the aloe himself, so it glows golden against the cool blue mountains. It is one of his favourite pictures.

God creates, mankind can rearrange.— Koos van der Lende

Coming Storm

At the end of the dry season, as the park was being emptied before the rains, Koos stayed on. The miombo trees were turning from deep red to an intense, bright green, and from a ladder above the bush he watched dark clouds move in, slowly, without a breath of wind. He worked to the last moment, then ran for the car as the storm broke. It is one of his most emotional pictures.

I was like a small child in a sweet shop.— Koos van der Lende

Riverine Forest

Luambe is a small park on the Luangwa River, tucked between North and South Luangwa, unreachable in the rains and hard going even in winter. Koos found this stand of riverine forest on the bank in the late afternoon, with the sun setting behind him and no direct light on the trees, only the soft yellow glow of evening.

The big air roots on the left make wonderful pictures.— Koos van der Lende

Finger Rock

At the Kochas crossing of the Fish River Canyon a finger of rock stands above a side valley that few people ever reach. Koos knew it from years of visiting a friend whose farm ran along the river, long before the park and the tourists came. He waited until after sunset, with a little cloud overhead, so the whole canyon falls into a soft, even evening light.

The whole image is a little softer, which makes it pleasing to look at.— Koos van der Lende

Sunrise

Namaqualand, in the far north west of South Africa, is famous for its flowers and rich in the history of diamonds. Koos spent two months in the Namaqua National Park and came upon this outcrop of granite boulders. He knew from his compass exactly where the sun would rise, set everything up the afternoon before, and was waiting in the dark to meet the first light.

Knowing exactly where the sun will rise makes it easy to set up and be well prepared.— Koos van der Lende

Marula Trees

On a newly formed estate in Limpopo, before a single building went up, Koos went to put the land on film and keep what was there. On an early winter morning, with a stark blue sky over the dead winter grass, he set up reflector boards to throw light back onto the old marula trees in front, so they stand out bright against the bush.

I went there to put it on film, to preserve what was.— Koos van der Lende