Faces of the Deep.
Dos Winkel (1947) has after almost 30 years of underwater and nature photography, numerous exhibitions, prizes and publications such as books, photography, numerous exhibitions, prizes and publications such as books, TV documentaries, calendars and postcards to his name. He publishes worldwide in many magazines, including AQVA, BBC Wildlife, Digital Photo Mapt (Russia), Duiken, National Geographic, Terra and Terre Sauvage. Dos discovered underwater photography when he gave courses in orthopedic medicine in Aruba.'In the period 1993 to 2001, when Bertie and I lived in Bonaire and also ran a dive school there, I gained an awful lot of experience.' By now he has been under water for more than 4,000 hours.
Dos took pictures not only during dives in the waters of the Caribbean, but also during hundreds of dives in the Indian Ocean and the Indo Pacific, around the Galapagos Islands and in Lake Titicaca, high up in the mountains (at almost 12,500 feet). 'That last one was in Peru. Nobody dives Lake Titicaca - the temperature is 4º and there are no diving facilities. But I was looking for a prehistoric frog. And I found it, too. Over time, the animal evolved so that it no longer has to surface in order to breathe.'
The Lake Titicaca anecdote is a perfect counter argument to the view that diving is only done in tropical seas. Dos also takes pictures in swamps, rainforests and cold seas. 'Taking pictures for example of the mangrove forests in Bonaire is amazing: it looks like a rainforest under water. But yes: I usually dive in tropical waters. What I am especially attracted to are the Leafy Sea Dragons that live in the cooler waters south of Australia. They belong to the seahorse family, but they can grow to be 16 inches long and look like seaweed. In the Lembeh Strait (northeast Sulawesi) and in the Raja Ampat (papua - formerly Irian Jaya), I found animal species while diving that have not yet been described by science. It is wonderful to record all of that and to later share it with others.'
By Dos Winkel.
Engelstalig, Duitstalig en Nederlandstalig, kleurenfoto's.
