For over a decade, Neil Aldridge worked away from the wildlife photography pigeonhole. Now, as he tells Keith Wilson, his conservation photojournalism is more in demand than ever…

Right: With the orange glow of Bristol’s lights colouring the sky beyond, a young fox searches for food on a winter’s night.

© Neil Aldridge

Exposure: 30 secs, f/9, ISO400 Lens: Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM + flash

Wildlife photography is changing. Today, a greater number of photographers are devoting time to covering environmental issues rather than joining the throng of morning commuters on safari game drives. Although wildlife remains their focus, some no longer call themselves wildlife photographers – now, they prefer to be known as conservation photographers.

For Neil Aldridge, this shift in direction is a long-awaited validation of the lonely path he first trod in 2009. That was the year he established his brand by registering the name ‘conservation photojournalism’ with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. “In fact, it probably had its roots back in 2005 when I did my wildlife guide training in Africa, taking a lot of photos, doing a lot of wildlife photography,” he recalls.

Back then, the young South African was photographing conservationists working with endangered African wild dogs. A contract with the Wildlife Trust in the UK followed, and when that finished in 2008 he decided to do a master’s degree in photojournalism.

“I went into photojournalism because I wanted to tell stories about conservation,” he says. “Yes, wildlife was at the heart of that, but I didn’t want to do just the wildlife stuff. I didn’t want to be in that bubble in Africa. I went to London because I wanted to learn how to photograph people. I wanted to learn how to tell stories.”

Have you always been a storyteller at heart?

I don’t know if I have. Ironically, I was doing a talk last week online at a conference, and the past editor of Getawaymagazine, Don Pinnock, was hosting the panel. He was the editor when I was growing up as a teenager, and I wanted to be a photojournalist because I saw the work that the photographers in Getaway were doing, so I had this idea already. I didn’t want to go and just take one picture; I wanted to create magazine features and stories, but in my heart I still love the challenge of wildlife photography, and I would love to do more of it. I just have this idea that I want to make a difference. It sounds so clichéd, but everything that I do is focused on making a difference. If I want someone to understand something then there needs to be a narrative, even if it’s within one picture.