As I worked on my latest fish eagle painting, my thoughts wandered back nearly forty years to the beginning of my artistic journey. Walking down memory lane, I think of Ilse—who has stood by me, unwavering, through every season of my life and art. From the start of my career, I preferred to work from my own reference photographs whenever possible.
 
 Having always loved fish eagles, I remember vividly that we headed to Lake St Lucia, around 40 years ago,  to capture some fish eagle shots and also at the same time, enjoyed a weekend away! We hired a Parks Board aluminium boat, armed with my Ricoh camera loaded with a 12-exposure film, and a box of frozen sardines. Once aboard, I steered the little boat—which had a top speed of about 3 kilometres per hour—towards the Narrows, passing countless hippos, crocodiles, and birds along the way. Whenever we spotted a fish eagle, Ilse would throw a sardine about 5 metres from the boat while I stood ready with the lens.

 Anyone who knows Ilse knows she absolutely detests the smell of sardines, let alone handling them! But... she did it anyway! 😊 Because I could only afford a 12-exposure roll, there was absolutely no room for error. As the eagle launched from its perch, I was poised like Clint Eastwood. Everything was set for success—but perfect timing only happens in the movies! 

The tiny boat rocked constantly, and I was shaking with pure excitement. After a full day on the water, I was lucky if I walked away with one or two usable images. The rest were completely blurry. Yet, getting just one or two good photos made all the effort worthwhile, especially since we got to also enjoy a wonderful weekend away. Those truly were the days!