African Wildlife & Environment Issue 78

ECO HERO

Boet van Zyl (Bloemfontein) (Brother-in- law) - I called Petri 'Swaer' (brother-in-law), or 'Gadget man'. Petri, I still remember how during a visit to the Klaserie Game Reserve as a teenager, it was a joint effort between my parents and myself to encourage Zanne to welcome your attentions. Also, how you and Nick Zambatis showed us how you darted lions and made recordings. Your calmness extended to us, even though the lions were a mere few meters away, beyond the light. After several visits in your Datsum 1600 Triple S, you finally popped the question. For Zanne and later your daughters, Carina and Nini, you were their hero. Your love of nature and flying was

me, particularly an enlargement of a zebra. Soon he introduced me to the basic principles of photography. I still remember the magic moment when for the first time I saw a picture emerging from a piece of white paper. Those moments changed my life. As students we always looked for opportunities to make a few cents and I thought it a good idea to get into the game of taking photos of hostel functions, graduations, committees, and teams. At that stage there were other well-established competitors on campus. He saw shortcomings in the oppositions’ photos, so we came up with a

Petri poses for a 'fun photo' in a vintage car

new strategy to get into the market: have a more attractive background, better composition, and more formal poses so that the photos looked more professional. The photos were also printed on a better-quality paper. Our real success was to work through the night to develop and print around 250 photos ready for when the students woke up the morning following the event. From then on, we had the market! We made about 50 cents profit per photo and soon I bought my own Pentax Camera. My first disaster was when I forgot to adjust my new Pentax to synchronize with the flash. When Petri saw the negatives, he went into his panic laugh and it was clear that we had serious issues. Trying various techniques, he managed to save some photos. Petri, we will miss you as a friend, an academic, a scientist, researcher, photographer and above all, your enthusiasm and willingness to learn, explore and help where you could.

Petri photographing a Crowned Eagle nest

contagious. You always had the latest technology and even after you were no longer a pilot, you continued flying RC planes, drones and gliders. And you did it all to perfection. The many countries in which you did your research and work is confirmation of your dedication. Just after marrying Zanne you left for Savuti. My mom always said you and Zanne couldn’t start a family in the bush as the predators would make a meal of them.You then went to the KNP where you started your family. Whenever we used to visit, you were eager to share your knowledge and experiences with us.Then you left for Tanzania.

58 | African Wildlife & Environment | Issue 78 (2021)