© 2020 Nomadict. All rights reserved.
Introducing Frederikke Hejbøl Jensen
Frederikke won the Nomadict Best of the Week contest twice, both times with a photograph of foxes. Wildlife being her focus, she has shared wonderful photos most of them taken in Denmark, her home country. Her ultimate goal is to make a living with wildlife photography, and being in her early 20’s and studying at the university, she is putting all the time and energy needed to make that dream come true. At the beginning of 2021, she started working with Nikon as one of their Z creators, and being a football lover too, she also shoots some games for the local newspaper and some players.
In this interview, we dive into her experience with wildlife photography in Denmark and the unique encounters she’s had with foxes and other animals. About one photo she says: “I spent 13 hours in total in the hide and I was able to get this photo after about 7 hours of waiting. I definitely think it was worth the wait, I really like how it turned out. The raindrops add so much drama and I really love that.” Unsurprisingly, being patient is essential in wildlife photography. Besides that, Frederikke gives away a few more tips about how to capture wildlife at its best, such as using a hide or checking the direction of the wind.
Frederikke is in particular in love with foxes; in the interview she shares a few photos with their background story, and explains how she approached the edit of one of them. “My favorite tool in Lightroom is definitely the graduated filter, I really love how it allows me to change one part of the photo without affecting the rest”, Frederikke mentioned.
During a virtual coffee we had with Frederikke and when interviewing her, it became clear to us that loving animals profoundly is the most effective strategy to get great photographs: “I love animals with all my heart so I just start smiling like a crazy person when I spot an animal and observe them. Most often it’s because I can’t get over how adorable they are.”
We invite you to read the complete interview below and learn from Frederikke!
Interview
Welcome Frederikke! You have shared two stories with us already, because you won the Best of the Week Contest twice (2020-42 and 2021-14). Let’s dive a little deeper in this interview!
You bought your first camera at the age of 17. Now being 21, you have specialized yourself in wildlife photography. What attracts you that much in this photography genre?
What attracts me to wildlife photography is without a doubt my love for animals and nature. I have always loved animals, spending time with them, and just observing them. Even though it was seeing these incredible landscape photos on Instagram that inspired me to buy a camera, I didn’t have access to anything even remotely similar, so I started photographing what I did have access to: wildlife. And after I photographed a deer for the very first time in my grandparents’ backyard I was hooked on wildlife photography.
Denmark isn’t known for its wildlife, nor for spectacular nature. Nevertheless, most of your photographs are taken in Denmark. How has growing up in Denmark influenced your photography?
I grew up in what felt like the world’s smallest city (pretty sure there were more cows than people) surrounded by forests and nature, so I have always had easy access to nature. I spent a lot of time at my grandparents’ house growing up and their house was right next to the forest, which meant an abundance of wildlife, such as hares, deers, pheasants, and sometimes even foxes would come right into their garden.
"My grandfather, my father, and myself have spent many hours throughout the years observing them through binoculars. They have both taught me a lot about how the different animals behave, which have made photographing them much easier."
You have photographed many different animals, but your photos of foxes are probably the most known among your followers and our audience. Could you share some tips on how to capture these animals the way you achieve to record these special encounters? Whether it is tracking or photographing them, we are sure you developed some strategies and knowledge that allows you to obtain the photos you share with us.
Foxes are such stunning creatures, very photogenic and just absolutely adorable. I love them so much and they are definitely my favorite animal. Unfortunately, they are quite elusive and can be very difficult to photograph. Sometimes, you’ll get lucky and come across an urban fox that’s somewhat used to humans and thus much less shy than their completely wild counterparts. When it comes to photographing the non-urban foxes, these are my tips:
1) This might be a no-brainer but I’d definitely suggest using a long lens; the more mm the better.
2) Either wearing camouflage or using a hide is also very helpful: it will allow you to get much closer to the foxes without disturbing them – which is definitely what you want.
3) If you’re sitting near their den, make sure to check the direction of the wind: if the wind is in the direction of the den, they will smell you and they most likely won’t come out.
4) Patience. I can’t stress this enough. If you don’t have the patience to wait, 9 out of 10 times you won’t see anything. I’m personally still working on it, but being patient is perhaps the most important tip I can give. And yes all of those hours waiting will definitely make you uncomfortable, but moving too much is not an option, because any sudden movements or noises might scare the animals. Feeling uncomfortable is part of the experience. You just gotta suck it up, because in the end the result will be worth it.
5) When it comes to actually finding the foxes, interacting with other photographers is a great way to learn about new places where they might have seen foxes. However, they might not always be too keen on sharing the location, which is completely fair and you gotta respect that.
6) Trailcams are also really useful, if you have found a hole in the ground you think might be inhabited by a fox, set up a trail cam nearby and see if anything comes by. In my case, I’m fortunate enough that my dad also tells me about the different animals he sees and where to find them when he walks our dog. Simply asking people around you if they’re willing to share the location of any of the animals they might encounter on their own outings in nature is also very helpful when it comes to tracking them down.
"So simply asking people around if they can let you know about any animals they encounter on their own outings in nature is also helpful."
Related to the previous question, could you share with us three photos (of any animal) you are really proud of and tell us about the background story? Where did you find the animal, what allowed you to get that shot and portray the animal in the way you did? What makes you proud of these photos in particular?
Image 1
I took this photo back in 2019 when I was in Finland. Two of my Finnish friends had heard rumors about a fox family frequenting a local golf course, so naturally we had to check it out. We walked around the golf course for a while, when my friend suddenly whispered “look” and pointed into the bushes where an older fox cub was sleeping. We took some photos of him while he was still asleep and after a while he woke up. Luckily, he didn’t mind us being there (we of course kept a respectful distance, so he wouldn’t feel threatened). He was so cute and very photogenic. Because he was in the bushes I could use the greenery to frame him. This was my first ever closeup encounter with a fox and I have been obsessed with foxes ever since (which you might be able to tell from my Instagram profile).
Image 2
This was shot in March earlier this year, when I spent the day in my friend’s bird hide. The weather was terrible that day but luckily, terrible weather often result in the most amazing and dramatic photos. I spent 13 hours in total in the hide and I was able to get this photo after about 7 hours of waiting. I definitely think it was worth the wait, I really like how it turned out. The raindrops add so much drama and I really love that.
Image 3
I shot this photo in May last year at the end of the first lockdown in Denmark. My friend and I had heard about a vixen and her 10 cubs living in an area in Northern Denmark so naturally, we had to go check it out. After eight hours of waiting in front of the den, the cubs finally came out and I was lucky enough to capture this moment between two of the cubs. The fact that I managed to wait that long makes me feel proud of this shot, and also because I am really happy with how the edit turned out. Those things just give a feeling of huge satisfaction.
What is that one story, that one encounter, that impacted you deeply? What happened and what is the reason this encounter was so impactful?
In May last year I spent all day in front of a fox den in the hopes I could photograph some of the cubs and after about eight hours of waiting they finally came out and started playing with each other. Unfortunately, they were too far away for me to get a decent photo. But as the hours went by, the cubs got braver. One of them even came right up to me, when he was the closest, he was only 2 meters away and I was able to take these photos at 122mm. Which is crazy and it’s something I will never forget.
"I love animals with all my heart so I just start smiling like a crazy person when I spot an animal and observe them. Most often it's because I can't get over how adorable they are, and it's just amazing to see them so close by."
Can you show us a photo that you feel really represents you, who you are as an artist and person? What made you choose this photo?
I really feel like this photo represents me both as an artist and as a person. I have always loved darker colors and that is usually also the tones and colors I aim for when I edit my photos. I really love how the moody and kind of desaturated colors tell a story. She looks tired in this photo because she had been hunting for at least nine hours that day and I really feel like the dark and desaturated colors help tell that story.
Can you use the photo of the last question to elaborate on your editing style with the help of a before/after? What are your favorite tools and which tools do you think, in general, are important to dominare when it comes to wildlife photography?
As you might have noticed in the before photo the grass is green, but when I edited the photo I decided to completely desaturate the greens because I felt like it really made the gorgeous vixen stand out even more, which is what I wanted since she is the main subject of the photo. My favorite tool in Lightroom is definitely the graduated filter, I really love how it allows me to change one part of the photo without affecting the rest. For instance, in this photo I used the graduated filter to darken the bottom of the photo.
As for the most important tool when it comes to wildlife photography, I would be inclined to say that noise reduction is the most important one; a lot of wild animals are nocturnal, which means (unless you’re very lucky and they come out during the day) that you have to shoot at a very high ISO and a lot of grain can unfortunately ruin even the best photo. So, being able to reduce the noise in post production is really helpful.
To this day, what has been your most significant challenge or project and how did it contribute to your professional development?
Photographing badgers. These peculiar, adorable, and very elusive animals now hold a very special place in my heart. They are such weird and wonderful creatures. Just watching them run around and play with each other is so much fun. I have spent countless hours waiting for them, only for them to come out when it was pitch black and thus impossible to photograph. However, perseverance pays off, and a couple months ago I finally succeeded. I got a couple of photos of one – They might have been shot at ISO 51200 and 40000 but I got them. And I’m actually really happy with how they turned out, especially considering the high ISO.
What is your vision of wildlife photography as a tool in terms of its ultimate goal, its artistic ground, and its emotional or social impact?
Besides having fun with creating and shooting wildlife photos, I think the ultimate goal of wildlife photography should be to encourage people to protect nature and all of its wonderful inhabitants. My hope is that if people see the animals living in nature, whether that be in person or in a photo, they’ll perhaps think twice before they litter, cut down the forest, or do anything else that could harm the animals and further destroy our beautiful nature.
What are your dreams when it comes to your future in the photography industry?
My dream and ultimately my goal is to be able to make a living from wildlife photography. It’s a tough and very competitive field, so if I want to make my dream a reality it’s going to require a lot of hard work, which I’m definitely prepared to do.
Would you like content like this sent to your inbox?
