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An interview with Christiaan van Heijst, Pilot & Photographer
Moonlight Cockpit 747 | Image courtesy of Christiaan van Heijst
A Little Background…
Born and raised in the Netherlands, Christiaan was always fascinated with the sky and airplanes. At the ages of two and four, he flew for the first time as a small passenger and this experience laid the foundation for him later in life.
Turkmenistan Sky, Desert and Sea | Image courtesy of Christiaan van Heijst
After graduating from high school in the Netherlands, Christiaan soon worked myself up to flight school and his first job as a pilot on the Fokker 50 Turboprop, flying on contract, all over Europe and in Africa and Afghanistan for about two years. He then flew for a few years for a Dutch holiday charter before being hired as a 747 cargo pilot and flew all over the world in a demanding network of freight operations.
Image courtesy of Christiaan van Heijst
That’s when the photography career came in. Inspired by science fiction, the stars, flying and the moon, Christiaan soon developed his own style of photography from the cockpit, in an attempt to show his deep fascination with the unique views from above. In recent years, his writing also grew parallel with his social media posts and gained a lot of traction as well. So much that it inspired him to write his first short story (to be published soon). Thus, finding a new branch in creative expressions gave him a lot of satisfaction and fulfillment.
Christiaan’s photographic work has been published across the world, including several notable publications from CNN and National Geographic to BBC, and much more. He has also received numerous awards, including the title ‘Special Photographer of the Year’ in the renowned International Photography Awards (IPA) 2019 and the title ‘Architecture Discovery of the Year’ in the Monochrome Photography Awards 2018/2019.
Hong Kong Bedford Garden Architecture | Image courtesy of Christiaan van Heijst
The Questions
1. Can you tell us about yourself?
Having seen the views and landscapes from a little cabin window at a young age, I decided I wanted to become a pilot and managed to get my pilot license even before my driver's license.
Soon after, I was hired by my first company and in the course of years worked myself up from flying turboprop airplanes to the Boeing 737 and eventually the Boeing 747 Freighter that I fly for over nine years now. Parallel to my flying career, my photography has grown just as fast and high. My first coffee-table book Cargopilot was published in 2016 and my work has been featured by CNN, National Geographic, BBC, TIME, and many more. A taste of more to come hopefully.
2. When did you get into photography and why?
Ever since my first flight as a student pilot, I felt a longing to capture the unbelievable beauty we see from that unique perspective and I would carry a camera with me to photograph them. This enabled me to start a second career which grew parallel with my pilot career, and it’s so exciting that my photography has also been growing into a professional business.
3. Where’s your favourite place to photograph?
Alaska for the landscapes and raw nature, Hong Kong for the indescribable vibe and architecture.
4. Where are the next five places on your bucket list?
I want to visit the Moon, my ultimate destination. But closer to home I definitely want to visit Hawaii, Iceland, Australia, and New Zealand.
5. What is something you miss about the Netherlands?
When I'm flying all across the world, I mostly miss my family and sometimes even the dull grey weather. 6. What’s your favourite snack/meal from the Netherlands?
The typical ‘Patatje met’; fries with mayonnaise! 7. Childhood memory?
Flying for the first time as a young boy, and seeing the unbelievable scenes from the world above through my small window.
8. Favourite thing about Hong Kong?
The unique atmosphere in combination with the architecture.
9. Person you look up to (can be a celebrity/person you know).
Elon Musk.
10. What’s something you would like to learn?
Fast-reading—so that I can read more books in a shorter amount of time.
