Flickr is a place on the web to show your view of the world through your lens and it is very good at this. However its best use is as a sharing forum where people can comment and admire this work but it also it offers an opportunity to inspire others. Piet is undoubtedly a photographer of real quality but more import… Read more

Flickr is a place on the web to show your view of the world through your lens and it is very good at this. However its best use is as a sharing forum where people can comment and admire this work but it also it offers an opportunity to inspire others. Piet is undoubtedly a photographer of real quality but more importantly is someone who takes time to view other's work and then add something of his own. This, to me, is invaluable in the development of the photographic community and where Piet excels by offering his views and comments. Piet has also personally helped me with the information he gladly shares alongside his photos. So thank you Piet, I do hope we get the chance to meet someday.

Piet was one of my first contacts on Flickr. His comments are very positive and he goes the extra mile to explain the names and habitat of the items in the photos I post (e.g. trees, berries, birds,etc). I was very pleased to meet Piet on my recent trip to Kruger Park. He has an amazing knowledge and love of the fl… Read more

Piet was one of my first contacts on Flickr. His comments are very positive and he goes the extra mile to explain the names and habitat of the items in the photos I post (e.g. trees, berries, birds,etc). I was very pleased to meet Piet on my recent trip to Kruger Park. He has an amazing knowledge and love of the flora and fauna of that particular part of South Africa. I feel I can freely ask him for advice on the naming of the many trees, plants and other items I photographed. The photos he posts on Flickr are indicative of his vaste area of knowledge, and are all of great interest to me, and others who are fortunate to see them.

I stumbled upon Piet's pictures in several SA wildlife-related groups, and he immediately stood out for his knowledge of almost every living bit of African nature, be it a mammal, reptile, insect or tree. And that's not the only thing: he takes some marvellous pictures as well! After a couple of months of exchanging… Read more

I stumbled upon Piet's pictures in several SA wildlife-related groups, and he immediately stood out for his knowledge of almost every living bit of African nature, be it a mammal, reptile, insect or tree. And that's not the only thing: he takes some marvellous pictures as well! After a couple of months of exchanging emails and comments on each others' photos, we finally had the pleasure of meeting 'Oom Piet' in real life. We met him in his second living room (Kruger National Park) and talked about his passion for all things living. Even during our meeting, he kept scanning the horizon for wildlife activity; that's not him being rude to us, but me illustrating how African nature is part of Piet's genes... His unique mixture of knowledge and photography skills (and him just being a nice person in general ;-) ) is a great asset to the Flickr community!

Oom Piet is a humble, God-loving person who would give his last penny to help someone in need. He is a man who truly loves his wife; when he speaks about Tannie Lena, or as he would say, his Maatjie, it is as if he speaks in capital letters. I met Oom Piet in 1991 whilst still in school. In 1995 I started working… Read more

Oom Piet is a humble, God-loving person who would give his last penny to help someone in need. He is a man who truly loves his wife; when he speaks about Tannie Lena, or as he would say, his Maatjie, it is as if he speaks in capital letters. I met Oom Piet in 1991 whilst still in school. In 1995 I started working at the same company as Oom Piet and that is where our friendship began. After working together for twelve years, Oom Piet deservingly retired from the company. I have twice visited Mozambique for three weeks with Oom Piet. I treasure the magical memories of those trips. We often go to the Kruger National Park and the surrounding areas where we not only take photos but also laugh, and when I say laugh, I mean laugh. I am yet to meet a person who loves nature as much as Oom Piet does. On one of our visits to Mozambique we went sight-seeing. I had lost count of the number of trees Oom Piet had identified when I picked a small tree and asked him to identify it. In no time Oom Piet said it was a dune jackal-berry and, as he always does, gave the scientific name - Diospyros rotundifolia. To be funny I asked in which book and on what page it could be found, to which oom Piet replied, 'page 182 or 183' and also gave the name of the book which was 'Field Guide to Trees of Southern Africa' by Braam and Piet van Wyk. When we got back to camp I took the book and looked it up and strussBob, on page 182 the description and on page 183 the photo. Need I say more? Oom Piet’s approach to everything is very scientific and mathematical, but this does not make him boring or a know-it-all type of person. Most of the information/comments Oom Piet writes on Flickr are not from books or the internet but from knowledge and experience gained throughout his life. I could tell you that Oom Piet is a qualified game ranger, a qualified teacher and so highly qualified in water that he’s got water on the brain, but I am not going to. I could go on and on but will conclude by saying this: if I could choose a father other than my own, I would choose this man, Oom Piet. I love you Oom Piet!!!

Probably the nicest person on Flickr. He has a way with words that just makes a person love him. His photography is stunning with some awesome captures of subjects like spiders that other people would never even see in their lifetime. His friendliness and constant commenting is an absolute joy and he is just the bes… Read more

Probably the nicest person on Flickr. He has a way with words that just makes a person love him. His photography is stunning with some awesome captures of subjects like spiders that other people would never even see in their lifetime. His friendliness and constant commenting is an absolute joy and he is just the best!!!