Bats and Owls

Nature photographer Dietmar Nill sits down with FotoTV to discuss his early career and present position as a filmmaker of nature and wildlife videos.

Nill reflects on his first request from a client to film a water bat as it drinks, as the ideal moment and catalytic spark for him to begin venturing out into video filming of subjects well known to him. Seizing this moment as a perfect opportunity to further develop and hone his style, he began shooting with a digital camera and with a few clicks of the camera’s buttons became a filmmaker. It fascinated him so much that he has slowly began the transition a year ago to become a full time filmmaker, even though he still shots still photos with a camera for time lapse photography, landscape and sunset photos.

Nill had an idea to photograph bats at night so he had a photoelectric sensor built especially for him because there was no available light on his locations and one of the problems he faced was the trigger delay time of the cameras he was using.

So now he always uses a photoelectric sensor for making his photographs of the animals in the wild. In this respect, the animals are literally taking a photo of themselves because they trigger the sensor with their movement, something Nill describes as fascinating.

Nill’s photos start out as an idea and he works toward that idea regardless of how long it takes---even years, until he can actually create the photo, with everything in place, all materials and equipment, he sets out to make the ideal photograph. He was born with a talent, and that talent is he can build a relationship to the animals he photographs, knowing how to act around the animals and how the animals will react to him and what they will do, even before he takes the picture. He has a lot of experience and therefore recognizes their behavior, foreseeing what will take place in the next minute enabling him to be prepared to photograph or film the animal to create stunning images.