Jan Stria

When Canon Ambassador Jan Stria moved to Ireland for work as an IT professional, little did he know he would fall in love with photography. "The country was so amazing, it was like looking at art," he says. He bought his first camera shortly after his arrival, a Canon EOS 550D.

Jan grew up close to the mountains in northeast Bohemia in the Czech Republic, and although he now lives in Prague, he often returns home to visit his parents. He studied automation technology and then IT and management at university, but when it comes to photography, he is mostly self-taught. After moving to Ireland he instantly fell in love with the landscape and began to consider the endless possibilities offered by photography. "At the end of 2012, after five years in Ireland, I returned home to the Czech Republic and started to focus more seriously on photography," he recalls. "At that time, I didn't have any friends who were photographers, so I attended a few workshops and met like-minded, passionate people and started going on photography trips with them.

Jan seeks to capture easy-to-miss moments in nature – landscapes, wildlife and flora. He has always been captivated by nature and he considers photographing natural beauty to be his true love. It's this passion that has taken him all over the world.

No stranger to hidden worlds that can only be captured through a macro lens, Jan loves photographing all creatures big and small, as well as flowers and mushrooms, and he is always on the lookout for a photographic opportunity. "I carry multiple lenses," he says. "Even if I'm going out to photograph a landscape, I will still carry a macro lens because if the weather isn't right, you could find a tiny landscape within a flower."

With freediving skills that take him into the deep unknown, Jan's photography is not limited to terrestrial creatures. He has captured sea turtles and cuttlefish but photographing them underwater is no mean feat. Freediving – descending on a single breath – requires a lot of training, but Jan loves it so much that he wanted to combine it with his photography. "You are limited by your breath but you're also at an advantage as you don't disturb the animals with the bubbles you exhale when scuba diving, for example," he explains.

Jan's underwater photo of a bluespotted ribbontail ray hunting in Egypt's Red Sea was named Photo of the Year by Czech Nature Photo in 2019, and exploring the ocean's depths has also rewarded him with some memorable moments. "I was freediving in Egypt when my group encountered dolphins," he recalls. "Our trainer told us to just go crazy and do some pirouettes, because dolphins are playful and curious. It paid off – it was just us surrounded by 20 dolphins. It was a life-changing experience."

What drives Jan is the fact that no two animals are alike, and that he is always learning. "I photograph animals because I always learn something new," he says. "If you want to capture an animal in the wild, you need to learn about it – where it lives, its temperament, and the best season and time to photograph it.

"Wildlife photography has taught me so much. I want to share that with others and teach people to care about our planet. We are one with the planet, and through my work, I hope to show people that."

How does your kit choice impact your photos?

"I don't believe you need to have the latest camera to be a good photographer. I have taken some beautiful photos with my EOS 550D and my EOS 80D and they've won awards. It's not all about the gear. It's a cliché but I think it's about being in the right place at the right time. You could have the most expensive camera sitting on your table but if you aren't out in the field with it, what good does it do?"

Have you ever been in danger while photographing an animal?

"I was photographing frogs in Costa Rica and didn't realise one was poisonous. I was with a guide, who knew what to do, but it can be quite dangerous to go to the rainforest alone. You never know what you will find: poisonous frogs, snakes or even pumas."

What has been your proudest career moment so far?

"Becoming a Canon Ambassador. I almost cried when I received my contract because the first paragraph said I was chosen by Canon's highest standards. I was at a loss for words. I still haven't fully comprehended it."

Apart from wildlife, what else do you like to photograph?

"Besides landscapes and wildlife, I love photographing flowers but I'm trying to develop my skills in other genres too. I'm from the home of the 300 Curves of Gustav Havel motorbike race, so I always get a VIP pass for that, which enables me to get some interesting shots. I would also love to venture into the world of F1 photography."

If you could photograph just one animal for the rest of your life, which would it be?

"The red-eyed tree frog, the most common frog in Costa Rica. I think they're amazing. I can even imagine having one as a pet."

"Patience is the most important thing. You could have the best and latest kit but if you lack patience, you're never going to get the desired shot. There was this dream shot I wanted to get from the top of a mountain, but I had to go six or seven times for everything to be perfect. With animals, you need to be patient and quiet. There have been times when I've come so close to giving up and the very next second, the moment has come, and I've got the shot."

Facebook: jan.stria

Instagram: @jan.stria

Website: www.janstria.eu