Hey, I'm Johan.
I was born and raised in South Africa, which is where my photography journey started. I have been very fortunate to take many amazing animal as well as landscape photos in and around this wonderful country and it will always have a special place in my heart. In 2016 I moved to The Netherlands (yes, for love) and a whole new world opened up to me…
Photography has mostly been a hobby, one which I enjoy to the fullest. In 2021 I decided to turn my hobby into a business and Johan Pienaar Fotografie was born. I want to share my love for photography and I take on fun projects where I have the opportunity to express my creativity.
From grass-roots beginnings.
It all started when my grandfather passed away and I was given his old camera. I was completely fascinated by it and started taking photos of everything. Back then, cameras still used film spools and I remember handing them in to be developed and being utterly disappointed a few days later when most of the photos were blurry, but I kept on at it and had more usable photos every time I had them developed. Unfortunately, this lovely camera came to its demise when I was taking a picture of a rhino and accidentally touched the zoom lens to the electric fence, frying the electronics of the camera. I'm not sure who got the bigger fright, the rhino or myself. The loud pop was followed by the yell of an aspiring photographer who just had shock therapy through the eyebrow, surrounded by a cloud of smoke.
I bought a DSLR camera and loved being able to take as many photos as I wanted and being able to see the photos immediately. Since then, I've been taking as many photos as I can and I keep on improving and learning, without any clouds of smoke.
The adventure continues...