About Me
“If what little I know of your work is representative of the whole, then I am in awe of your gift for capturing the human spirit” Ralph William Larsen
My Story
Hi there and welcome!
If you are here, you obviously want to know more about me, the person behind the camera, and the stories. I am Yolanda Saayman – photographer, writer, adventurer, traveller, music fanatic and a lover of the light!
As for photography, I think I was born snap-happy. Photography is many things, but most importantly, a way of documenting life, and writing history in pictures. At first and subconsciously, it was a way to document my life and those in my life with a Kodak Instamatic 76x point-and-shoot camera. Paging through National Geographic magazines as a child, piqued my interest to discover and document our weird and wonderful world.
It is through my travels, enduring very challenging shooting conditions which can seldom be controlled, and the observation of human nature, that I have gained the skills to shoot almost anything from street photography, food, cityscape, landscape, people, festivals, weddings to events and live entertainment.
My photographic style has been described as avant-garde, but to me, it is a fusion of documentary photography, photo journalism and the decisive moment – keeping it natural and real.
I love photographing people in their natural habitat, depicting human nature to the core. I see beauty in simplicity, sincerity, and the sensitivity of mankind.
An ideal world for me would be where my eye is the lens, which with every blink, captures the amazing things I see around me all the time and yet am unable to capture due to the nature of the fleeting moment. Many of those fleeting moments are images in my mind that still haunt me…
Why choose me as your photographer?
I have had the privilege of training with some of the best photographers in the industry including internationally acclaimed wedding and fashion photographers, Brett Florens and Patrick Toselli. According to what others say, I have a gift of making a whole person visible and an affinity for capturing the human spirit.
My Clients
Except for all the one-on-one shoots I have done including family portraits and weddings, I am proud to say that my photography has featured in various magazines and newspapers like The Star, Sunday Times, Times Live, Herald Live, Fair Lady, Vrouekeur, Weg, The Guitarist (South Africa & Australia), Grazia Daily and Calameo.
On-line media publications include Channel24, IOL, Business Live, The Citizen, Team Rock, Jewish Telegraph, Highway Mail, Underground Press, Bluebird Reviews, The South African, Texx and the City, NoblePR (UK), Litnet and websites such as Rhino Africa Asia, Passion for Pipes, Mike De Kock Racing and L’Ormarins King’s Plate.
I have had the privilege of working with various musicians and artists including Prime Circle, Dan Patlansky, Alison Moyet, James Morrison, Stef Bos, Dave Ferguson, Mr. Cat & The Jackal, Ann Jangle, Helena Hettema and Ulrich Riek. As an events photographer I have covered events such as the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, The Loeries Awards, Mnet’s Lifetime Achievement Awards, SPAR Tussen Die Sterre, Cape Town Folk & Acoustic Music Festival, Table Mountain Blues Festival, Up The Creek Music Festival, Afrikaburn and Extreme Fighting Championships (EFC). A few of my corporate clients include Smile904FM, Pioneer Foods, Quando Wines, Redco and Gallo Images. One of my personal highlights was collaborating with American author Ralph William Larsen. The iconic photograph “Legende” features on the cover of his book Doctor of Pipes. Enough about me, I would love to hear from you.
