Chien Lee is a biologist and photographer who lives in Borneo. The majority of his work focuses on the rich variety of fauna and flora found in the Indonesian Archipelago.
- "A bull elephant appeared from the bush. Ambling over to the carcass, the immense creature used his tactile trunk to gently caress the bones of his fallen comrade"
- “Fighting tunnel vision, dizziness and an elevated heart rate, I stumbled back down the trail and narrowly avoided passing out.”
How did your photography career start?
I’ve been a nature geek ever since I was a child growing up in California – chasing insects with my butterfly net and learning everything I could about the natural world.
Photography had been a hobby for years, but really took off when I moved to Borneo, where I found a treasure trove of incredible plants and animals. I took the plunge in 2003 to become a freelance wildlife photographer.
What drew you to Borneo?
I had always wanted to live and work in the tropical rainforest, so when a job opportunity arose on the island just as I was finishing my degree, it was simply too good to pass up. Borneo’s charm is not only in its super-biodiverse rainforests, but the friendliness of its peoples, the culture and the opportunities to truly explore. It’s an amazing place to live.
Which of your shots is most important to you and why?
My favourite shots are those that illustrate special behaviour. One that comes to mind is of a mountain tree shrew using a pitcher plant as a lavatory.
It was the first image to show that these pitcher plants aren’t carnivorous, but have a mutual relationship with mammals to obtain nitrogen. Capturing the image involved camping with my team near a mountain summit for two weeks.
What is the rarest or most unusual species you’ve come across in Borneo?
There are many poorly documented species in Borneo, so it’s not unusual to find that you’ve captured the first-ever image of a particular species.
In 1997, climbing a limestone cliff in Sarawak, I photographed and documented a carnivorous plant (Nepenthes campanulata) that was previously thought extinct. It had eluded previous explorers because it only grows high on vertical cliff-faces.
What’s been your most memorable experience with a wild animal?
Coming face-to-face with a clouded leopard in northern Borneo while on foot in the forest. I had heard the frenzied alarm calls of macaques and hornbills, and decided to investigate, eventually finding this cat perched in a tree, staring at me. I ran to get my group and, surprisingly, the leopard was still there. It allowed us to take a few photos before it disappeared into the forest.
Have you had any hairy moments while out in the field?
Aside from nearly freezing to death on mountains a few times, I’ve not really had any dangerous moments in Borneo. However, on a recent night-hike, a member of my group accidentally disturbed a wasps’ nest. He got stung, went into anaphylaxis and passed out. We had to carry him down the mountain and rush him to hospital.
Any epic fails or mishaps?
I have fails all the time. Some are my own fault, such as the occasion I dropped a 600mm lens into a river; others are down to gear malfunction. Last week, for instance, my drone flew off into the clouds, never to be seen again. I’ve also lost camera-traps to floods, ants and an angry elephant.
What’s the most discomfort you’ve ever experienced on a shoot?
On a lot of our remote expeditions, you simply have to cope with camping in the mud, being wet nearly all the time, and having bugs and leeches crawling on you. As long as you have a proper shelter at night, there isn’t too much to worry about.
However, on one mountain trek, I had brought an expedition hammock that I hadn’t tested. The flysheet couldn’t cope with the ensuing tropical downpour and I had to spend the entire night in a foetal position under some tree roots.
What species would you like to capture that has so far eluded you?
The Bornean bay cat, one of the world’s least known felids; the Dulit partridge, a mystery bird endemic to Borneo; and Friula wallacii, a bizarre spiny spider that hasn’t been seen since Alfred Russel Wallace found it in the 19th century.
See more of Chien's work at chienclee.com.
Discover more incredible wildlife encounters
- “I nearly lost my dive watch and a glove while ‘holding hands’ with an octopus in this way.”
- “The waves were several metres high and I was so sick. I got to know the boat’s ‘puke hole’ very well – but I still got the footage I needed!”
- “I once worked at an elevation of more than 5,000m in Bolivia and it was very difficult to breathe, eat and sleep.”
- “The current was swirling in all directions and my buddy’s bubbles were heading downwards. Not a sight any diver wants to see...”
Top image: Chien in a boat. Credit: Frank Pichardo
