With over 20 books to his name, you could say Heinrich van den Berg knows a thing or two about nature and travel photography. In the final part of his Canon Series interview, Van den Berg provides some tips for improved wildlife photography and talk about some close encounters out in the bush.

TechSmart: What would be the best piece of advice for someone starting out in wildlife photography, and also for intermediate shooters?

Heinrich van den Berg: For beginners: Light. Beginners underestimate the importance of good light. A mediocre subject can look wonderful in good light, but even a great subject looks bad in bad light.

For intermediate shooters: Light. And story. Don’t try and force your subjects into a box. Look at the wider image and decide what you want to say, rather than just capturing everything you see with a motor drive. Plan your images.

TechSmart: Out in the wild while shooting, have you ever had any close encounters that afterwards you think, "Wow, that could have turned out very badly”?

Heinrich van den Berg: The second worse close encounter I had, was on a canoe trip down the Zambezi when a hippo attacked our canoe from below. It lifted the canoe out of the water, but fortunately it let go again. The worst close encounter I had was with a mosquito...

Find more of Heinrich van den Berg's images on his website, All images courtesy and copyright by Van den Berg. Read Part 1 of his Canon Series here.