Born in Germany, Klaus Tiedge’s career as a commercials and fashion photographer saw him shooting in many locations around the world, including New York, London, New Delhi, Tokyo and Sao Paulo. But it was Cape Town that caught his attention in the late 1990s.

In 2001, Klaus and his wife Sandra made South Africa their permanent home. Over the next seven years, travel across southern Africa gave Klaus the opportunity to work with various people in exotic places, and exposed him to the hugely diverse and beautiful landscapes of the region. As a result, he made the move to nature and wildlife photography.

Now one of the continent’s leading stylised wildlife photographers, Klaus consistently produces work that combines the freshness of Africa’s people and animals in their natural environments with his precise Teutonic touch, giving his shots a revitalised cover feel. His signature desaturated colouring perfectly showcases the region’s spectacular natural beauty, whether it’s storm clouds building up over the Okavango or smouldering sunsets over Etosha.

“Nature has a way of being incredibly unpredictable,” he says. “I can sit for hours, sometimes days and even up to weeks at a time, trying to capture that perfect moment in the bush, when an animal’s pose, breathtaking light, a perfectly balanced background and a dramatic setting all come together in one single focus.”

Klaus’s work can be found in some of the world’s finest galleries, including the Marla Kennedy Gallery in New York, the Photographers Gallery in Los Angeles and Saatchi Art online. Locally his art is available from the Martin Osner Gallery in Cape Town and the Imbizo Gallery in Durban.