I’m Peter. I photograph people, pets and the occasional client who insists they’re terrible in front of a camera.
I’m Peter Driessel, the photographer behind Peter Driessel Photography, based in Randpark Ridge, Johannesburg. I’ve spent more than 17 years behind the camera.
Over the years I’ve photographed families, individuals, pets, executives, businesses and events. They may sound like very different subjects, but the job is remarkably similar each time.
Make people comfortable. Pay attention. Find the photograph.
You don’t need to arrive knowing how to pose, where to put your hands or what expression you’re supposed to make. That’s my part of the arrangement.
You really don’t need to know how to pose.
One of the things I hear most often is, “I’m terrible in front of a camera.”
I’ve never quite understood why people think this is something they were supposed to have learnt somewhere. Most of us spend very little time standing in front of professional lights while somebody points a large camera at us.
So I don’t expect you to know what to do.
I’ll guide you through the session, making small adjustments to posture, expression and position as we go. We talk. We experiment. Occasionally I tell a terrible joke. Somewhere along the way the camera usually becomes considerably less important.
That’s often when the photographs start getting interesting.
What do I photograph?
Peter Driessel Photography provides professional pet, portrait, family, maternity, event and corporate photography in Johannesburg. The subject changes. The attention I give it doesn’t.
Pet Photography
Studio pet portraits for dogs, cats and the people they’ve somehow persuaded to organise their lives around them. No modelling experience required from either species.
Explore Pet Photography → 02Portrait & Family Photography
Individual portraits, families and maternity photography created in my Randpark Ridge studio, with enough direction to make the experience easy and enough space for you to still look like yourself.
Explore Portrait Photography → 03Corporate & Event Photography
Professional imagery for businesses, executives, teams and events, from polished corporate portraits to the moments that happen when nobody is looking directly at the camera.
Explore Corporate & Events →Good photographs need good light. Good portraits need somebody comfortable enough to stop thinking about the camera.
A private photography studio in Randpark Ridge, Johannesburg.
My studio is in Randpark Ridge and sessions are by appointment. When you’re here, the studio and my attention are yours.
Some shoots are carefully controlled portraits. Others involve children, several family members, pets and the occasional complete abandonment of the original plan.
That’s fine. Photography involving actual human beings, and particularly actual dogs, has always benefited from a certain amount of flexibility.
The aim is straightforward: create photographs you’ll genuinely want to keep, without making the process feel like hard work.
You can explore the different photography services and galleries on the Peter Driessel Photography homepage .
Wondering what to wear or how to prepare?
That’s normal too. What you wear, whether you need professional hair and makeup, what to bring and how much preparation is actually necessary will depend on the kind of photographs we’re creating.
I’ve put together a practical photoshoot preparation guide covering the things worth thinking about before your session, and quite a few things you probably don’t need to worry about at all.
From wardrobe and grooming to arriving camera ready, a little preparation can make the day considerably easier.
Read the Photoshoot Preparation Guide →You don’t need to have it all worked out.
If you’re looking for a photographer in Johannesburg and have an idea, a question or merely the beginnings of a plan, tell me what you’re thinking. We can work out the rest from there.
Tell Me What You Have in Mind