"As a kid I was always messing about in the woods and wetlands, looking for bugs under rocks, catching frogs, watching how the leaf-filtered light dappled the ground. This was where I felt most at home," says self-taught photographer Dennis Minty. "When I became an adult, that link with the wild world was nurtured through my various careers. Since age 12 or so, the constant throughout has been photography. For me, nature and photography are inseparable. I immerse myself in nature through photography."
Dennis’ path, from his small island roots in Twillingate, Newfoundland, Canada to his current career as a photographer and eco-tour leader, has taken him through more than three decades of both local and international work. Educated as a wildlife biologist, his first professional job was as the designer/manager of a nature education and wildlife rehabilitation centre. He also worked for about 30 years as an environmental educator in Newfoundland/Labrador, Africa, the Seychelles, and the Caribbean. He has authored seven educational and photographic books, tried his hand at dairy farming and even worked as a polar bear guide in Churchill, Manitoba. He says, “I think that everything we do in life can help shape our vision, ethics, skills and commitments. All of these are ingredients of image-making.”
It wasn’t until age 50 that Dennis decided to make photography his primary means of making a living and he hasn’t looked back since.
Dennis strives to make his work quiet, contemplative, evocative and filled with light. Always he seeks to inspire in the viewer a deeper connection with the natural world. About his photography, Dennis says: “My images reflect my reaction to what I see and what moves me. Rarely are they preconceived and then executed. The primary driving factor is light rather than the subject. My goal in creating an image is, not simply to document, but to inspire an emotional response in the viewer that might echo what I feel when I am making the image. I think that outstanding photography should communicate through the eye to the heart and bring new awareness and respect for our amazing world.”
“I believe that travel provides the best education there is.” As a naturalist, photographer and eco-tour guide Dennis has served many seasons in varied locales around the world including Iceland, Greenland, Canada’s east coast, and perhaps most notably, both ends of the earth - the Arctic and Antarctica. While Dennis has traveled widely, the two places that inspire him most are his home Newfoundland/Labrador and the Arctic. “After half a lifetime of shooting, I am still enchanted by visual richness of Newfoundland and Labrador. Meanwhile the Arctic is a more recent, mysterious and powerful lure where I’m humbled by the awesome, empty landscape.”
His work in both environmental education and photography has been recognized and honoured in a number of ways. In 2010 his photographic work was selected to help represent Canada at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.
Dennis now makes his home in Clarke’s Beach, Newfoundland, where he and his wife own and operate The Human Nature Company
If you would like to know more about their tours and workshops visit The Human Nature Company. Dennis is also available for inspirational talks about photography and nature.
Visit his blog, Shaped by Light.
Hope you enjoy his work.
Dennis’ path, from his small island roots in Twillingate, Newfoundland, Canada to his current career as a photographer and eco-tour leader, has taken him through more than three decades of both local and international work. Educated as a wildlife biologist, his first professional job was as the designer/manager of a nature education and wildlife rehabilitation centre. He also worked for about 30 years as an environmental educator in Newfoundland/Labrador, Africa, the Seychelles, and the Caribbean. He has authored seven educational and photographic books, tried his hand at dairy farming and even worked as a polar bear guide in Churchill, Manitoba. He says, “I think that everything we do in life can help shape our vision, ethics, skills and commitments. All of these are ingredients of image-making.”
It wasn’t until age 50 that Dennis decided to make photography his primary means of making a living and he hasn’t looked back since.
Dennis strives to make his work quiet, contemplative, evocative and filled with light. Always he seeks to inspire in the viewer a deeper connection with the natural world. About his photography, Dennis says: “My images reflect my reaction to what I see and what moves me. Rarely are they preconceived and then executed. The primary driving factor is light rather than the subject. My goal in creating an image is, not simply to document, but to inspire an emotional response in the viewer that might echo what I feel when I am making the image. I think that outstanding photography should communicate through the eye to the heart and bring new awareness and respect for our amazing world.”
“I believe that travel provides the best education there is.” As a naturalist, photographer and eco-tour guide Dennis has served many seasons in varied locales around the world including Iceland, Greenland, Canada’s east coast, and perhaps most notably, both ends of the earth - the Arctic and Antarctica. While Dennis has traveled widely, the two places that inspire him most are his home Newfoundland/Labrador and the Arctic. “After half a lifetime of shooting, I am still enchanted by visual richness of Newfoundland and Labrador. Meanwhile the Arctic is a more recent, mysterious and powerful lure where I’m humbled by the awesome, empty landscape.”
His work in both environmental education and photography has been recognized and honoured in a number of ways. In 2010 his photographic work was selected to help represent Canada at Expo 2010 in Shanghai.
Dennis now makes his home in Clarke’s Beach, Newfoundland, where he and his wife own and operate The Human Nature Company
If you would like to know more about their tours and workshops visit The Human Nature Company. Dennis is also available for inspirational talks about photography and nature.
Visit his blog, Shaped by Light.
Hope you enjoy his work.
© Dennis Minty 2019
