Dr. Justin Bender

Justin Bender

Born in 1962 in the small fishing port of Cuxhaven in the north of Germany my first contact with light, landscape and photography came late. During my studies at the University of Stirling in Scotland from 1992 – 1995 friends took me to the Scottish Highlands for hillwalking, that’s where it all began. Soon afterwards I encountered the panoramic images of Scottish landscape photographer Colin Prior and was immediately fascinated by them. But it was only from 2002 onwards, when working as a paramedic on the rescue helicopter Christoph 4, that I began taking pictures to capture the exceptional things you can see while being high up in the air. In 2007 I met Colin Prior in person and since then a deep friendship has developed. Having been on several of his photography courses I benefited enormously from his expertise and teaching skills.

Today I see myself as a photographer who wants to capture and show things with the help of exceptional light, using as little digital reprocessing as possible. Getting the genuine honest image while being out hunting light is what drives me.

Photography is not my profession, I work as a paramedic for St Johns Ambulance Service and teach Business English at various institutions and companies. From 2008 until 2012 I also worked freelance as Medical Editor for the English-language publication 4Rescue, which was a platform for the air ambulance community to exchange information and share experiences.

My equipment: Canon 5D Mark IV; lenses: 24-70mm, 100 – 400mm, 24mm T/S, and RRS ballhead.

If you want to contact me (in English, German, Spanish or French), you can reach me at: info(at)shimoda.de.

Writings and Publications:

The Hunting Motif in the Literature of the United States 1782-1992, unpublished Ph.D. thesis, British Library

Articles:

The Scottish Air Ambulance Service, in 4Rescue, Vol.4, Winter 2008

On the Ropes in Bavaria, 4Rescue, Vol.7, Fall 2009

New Simulator in Hannover, Germany, 4Rescue, Vol.10, Summer 2010

Redningstjeneste in Norway, 4Rescue, Vol.11, Fall 2010

SAR Conference in Aberdeen, 4Rescue, Vol.12, 4-2010

The Aberdeen MRCC, 4Rescue, Vol.12, 4-2010

Airmed 2011 Exchange-Learn-Inspire, Vol.13, 1-2011

Visiting London’s Trauma Team, 4Rescue, Nr 14, , 2-2011