If there was no forest, lots of animals would be gone

As featured by PEFC International

This April let’s have a closer look at ‘The Blue Carpet’, one of the finalists in our 2020 ‘Experience Forests, Experience PEFC’ photo contest. Photographer Wim de Baets tells us more about his extraordinary image and why you often need luck and patience to take the perfect photo.

How do you feel about forests, both professionally and personally?

The forest gives me peace when I take a walk, good fresh air when I breathe, and lots of subjects to photograph. If there was no forest, lots of animals would be gone.

How did the forest inspire you to take your winning photo?

In my free time, I often walk around in the forest. In Belgium, and nearby my home, we have a beautiful forest called ‘Het Zonienwoud’. There are lots of animals in it that I like to photograph.

I love the sound of the wind blowing through the trees. I’m often lying on a bench or the ground and listen to the sounds of the forest. When I was sitting against a tree, listening to the sounds of the forest, I saw a squirrel running around.

I knew that the flowers were going to bloom soon, and I thought that it would be great if I could photograph the squirrel around or in the flowers. In the following weeks I went many times waiting for the perfect moment.

What do you think about the work that an organisation such as PEFC does to care for forests?

I had not heard of PEFC before the contest, but I start seeing the PEFC logo on more and more different products, and I’ve read about PEFC on its websites. If I owned a forest, I would have it PEFC certified. It’s a good thing that PEFC protects the forest and that I know a product with the PEFC label comes from a sustainable forest.

About the contest

In 2020, we held our ‘Experience Forests, Experience PEFC’ photo contest for the fourth time. Taking place in 12 countries, we received nearly 8000 stunning photos, taking us to the wonderful world of forests. Our top 12 images of the 2020 contest can be seen here.