Thomas Nicolon

"I see myself as a journalist," says Canon Ambassador and National Geographic Explorer Thomas Nicolon. "For me, the whole point of doing a photo story is to report on something, to get the images that tell the story and always remain as neutral as possible. I try to understand every side of the story. I'm not an activist, I'm not trying to point fingers at anyone, I'm just trying to show what I see."

Thomas was born and raised in a rural area of Agen, south-west France, and was interested in wildlife from his early childhood. "I've always been fascinated by snakes and birds, mammals, anything I could find," he says. However, his relationship with photography took some time to develop. "I've always known it was my path, my future, but it took a long time for me to really understand how I was going to do it, and make a living from doing it."

Thomas continued working as a journalist in the DRC, but on the side was also shooting photo stories on conservation issues, including forest elephants and indigenous communities. After building his portfolio of photographic work for seven years and developing collaborations with organisations including the Wildlife Conservation Society, he became a full-time conservation photographer. Since then, Thomas has travelled widely, shooting stories on subjects including the bushmeat trade and Africa's snakebite crisis.

Today, he works with publications including National Geographic, Le Monde and GEO magazine, as well as organisations such as the World Wide Fund for Nature and the United Nations. "Ninety-five per cent of my work is around wildlife conservation, but I also work on stories about our relationship with the land and how agriculture is being transformed in this era of climate change," he says.

For Thomas, living for long periods in different countries is both a pleasure and an essential part of getting to grips with the complexity of the issues he is covering – the social dynamics behind conservation as well as the political stakes. "The greatest fortune of my life is spending time with people whose lives are so vastly different from mine," he says. "Being in touch with people who have different lives allows you to be more understanding and less radical.

"Often in the West, I think we have a vision of conservation that's not very realistic. We're focused on iconic species like elephants and gorillas and lions, but on the ground, it's very tough for a lot of people who have to share their space with these species. The more you meet people, the more you understand what they do and why they do it, and the more you realise that things are complicated. Travel really does open the mind."

Do the stories you cover give you reasons to feel optimistic about the future of the natural world?

"I always try to cover stories that have some kind of hope in them, even if the story is negative. Even if I'm covering something like poaching or the bushmeat trade or rebel groups, I always try to show at least one positive dimension and include hope, because I think it's more important than ever."

What advice would you give someone starting out as a conservation photojournalist?

"Try to learn to identify good conservation stories and go out there and shoot, and do it close to home, because then you don't have to spend a lot of money on travel. Then take the story to a magazine. If they don't buy it, it's okay – now at least you have a story you can put on your website. And keep doing this. Pitch to outlets that are maybe not the most prestigious but ones where you'd have a greater chance of publication. Keep shooting those stories, keep pitching and little by little things will work out."

What's the most interesting place you've worked in?

"Definitely the Congo Basin. If someone told me that I was going to spend the rest of my life covering that region, I'd be the happiest man in the world. It's the most beautiful place. It has incredible rainforest with iconic species such as forest elephants, bonobos, gorillas and chimps, as well as local communities – including indigenous people – who share the land with these animals. It's a fascinating region and I love it."

What piece of Canon kit can you not live without, and why?

"The Canon EOS R1, which is wonderful for both photos and video. The most important feature, for me, is low-light performance. Ninety per cent of my work is in the rainforest and anybody who's been in the rainforest knows it's always dark there. I need a camera that can give me very clean and detailed files even at a high ISO and the EOS R1 is just the best. I also need the best level of weather sealing because I'm always in humid conditions. And finally, I think the quality of the raw images I get straight out of the camera is absolutely magnificent."

What else could we discover in your kitbag that helps you elevate your work?

"The Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT really makes a difference in my work. I use it for portraits. If I'm taking photos in harsh daylight, it allows me to lift the shadows and get a cleaner image and also to properly expose both the background and my main subject. I also love walking in the rainforest at night and looking for amphibians and reptiles. These animals are best photographed with my 100mm macro lens and the Speedlite 600EX-RT with a softbox."

"To be a wildlife conservation photographer, passion and curiosity for our natural world is the number one thing. You don't want to just get pretty images; you want to be passionate about what you're photographing and to be happy in what you do. The rest follows. You also have to be good with people, to like socialising and to be open-minded. Finally, you have to be persistent. A lot of photographers give up on this career because you have a lot of tough moments and a lot of rejection. You've got to keep on trying and never give up."

Website: thomasnicolon.com

Instagram: @thomas.nicolon

YouTube: @thomas.nicolon