RUNNER-UP CATEGORY LAGE LANDEN
Johan de Ridder | Green triplets.

Name: Johan de Ridder
Picture title: Green triplets
Category: Lage Landen 
Nationality: Belgium – Oudenaarde
Occupation: I have been a designer for Printed Circuit Boards in a microchip company for more than 28 years now.

Technical information
Camera: Nikon D810
Lens: Tamron 90mm-F2.8 macro
EXIF: 90mm – F4.5 – 1/40 – iso1000

Johan de Ridder​ says:

Several years ago, during a hike in the Flemish region near Ghent, I found a human-made natural pond. This pond was abandoned for years, overgrown, and almost invisible to the eye, never removed by the original owner. When I arrived it was already late and getting dark. Being tired from my long walk I sat down and watched what was going on in this small fascinating world. Suddenly some lights in the pond automatically were being activated. Who put on the lights? These lights were still there, forgotten below the surface, loaded by solar power cells hidden in the overgrown weeds. Suddenly, attracted by the lights, some alpenwatersalamanders (Ichthyosaura alpestris) appeared. At first one, then two, and then lots of them… what a surprise. This gave me an idea and I would be back with my gear, later that week. With only my trusty Nikon, macro lens, and swimming trunks, I went into the pool that was luckily only 50cm deep. Just enough to get my subjects in focus. I always had to wait until it was dark enough, so the lights went on. This took a lot of time, back pain, mosquito bites, and more than 300 shots, resulting in only 5 acceptable pictures. Each time I made a small move, all the animals disappeared for several minutes and I could start all over again. And yet, they always came back. Out of curiosity and also because they are using the light to hunt for small insects, snails, or larvae. A few days later the pond was removed and a new house was built in this location… very sad for these small creatures. Always grasp the opportunity when it comes your way.