The Wild Mirror: Suzanne on Nature, Stillness, and Soulful Creation

Name: Suzanne van den Reek

Title/Profession: Photographer, Writer, Nature Intuitive and Nature Connection Guide

Based in: The Netherlands

Instagram: @suusinnature

Known for: Suzanne is known for her intuitive, nature-rooted photography that celebrates the wild beauty of both landscapes and the human spirit

In a world that often moves too fast and urges constant output, there are those who remind us to slow down, listen deeply, and root ourselves back into the earth. One such voice is Suzanne—a photographer whose work is guided by intuition, softness, and reverence for the more-than-human world. Her imagery captures the quiet splendour of wild landscapes, and through her creative process, she invites others to see themselves reflected in nature’s mirror.

In this interview, Suzanne shares the stories and philosophies that shape her life and work—from moments of deep connection with trees, to how she holds space for women to rediscover their own beauty through the lens of the earth.

1. Your journey emphasises the profound connection between humans and nature. Can you share a pivotal moment when you truly felt this oneness?
Yes, I can tell you the exact moment! It was a couple of years back on a surf trip in Java, and the energy of the place was truly something special. During a sunset, when I felt too tired to surf, I decided to just watch my girlfriends from the beach. There were these big trees—I think beech or oak—and the moment I sat down with my back against a tree, an image flashed in front of my eyes of me sitting back-to-back with a friend. I felt this instant peace and calm wash over me, like when you spend time with someone that just gets you and who you can sit in silence with for hours in comfort. Up to that point, I had experienced most human connections as the opposite of that, and this moment of feeling so seen and accepted by another being was very powerful and healing. I will never forget the pure, unconditional love and acceptance that I felt from the tree. It was the first moment of really experiencing the spirit and sentience of the more-than-human world. It was a big experience, but also very subtle in the moment, and it took a few years for me to open up my understanding and perception to really understand what had happened. I have had more of these experiences that sometimes took me days, months or years to grasp and integrate, because in that moment my limited mind was not open enough to understand or believe what was happening.

2. Your Instagram is a poetic blend of texture, light, and wild stillness. What’s your approach to capturing the spirit of nature in your photography?
For me, photography is something purely intuitive. Sometimes when I am out in nature and something catches my eye, my body stops on a reflex, and before I even realise what I am doing, I just know that I have to capture what I am seeing. I believe beauty is an expression of love, and therefore my heart is the one guiding me to capture an image. In my experience, it’s more about receiving the image than taking the image. I don’t pre-plan a shot, I don’t work with a mood board, I don’t think about what I want to shoot at all. I just follow the excitement and impulse in my body in the moment. And that excitement feels like a child about to open their birthday presents, or my heart expanding so much it becomes bigger than my body, and I am just pure bliss and happiness and joy. That’s what guides me to take a shot: presence, excitement, love and joy.

3. Through your “Body of Earth” photography, you visually reconnect people with the wild. What do you think shifts in someone when they see themselves as part of the landscape?
I think it helps people experience that the wildness and beauty they see in nature exists within them too. For women to see their reflection in the natural world helps them to see and recognise themselves in nature—to truly feel they are home with and belong to nature. We get so conditioned by society on ‘what beauty is’ and ‘how we need to look’, but there is this beauty and wildness in nature that doesn’t match those predetermined ideas about beauty. I think—and I hope—that through these shoots, women can let go of those limiting beliefs and false perceptions, return to the true beauty of their own body, and see themselves as unique and perfect, without being concerned about approval from others.

4. Are there certain landscapes, seasons, or moments in nature that consistently draw your lens—and why?
I love blues and soft tones. My first photography account was called At The Beach Photo, because I was only shooting at the beach. I also love the dance between light and shadow, and using natural ‘spotlights’. I actually find it quite hard to photograph when it’s cloudy, as natural light just sparks my excitement and creativity so much. It’s amazing to live in the forest now and watch rays of light come through the branches, putting a piece of moss or a flower in the spotlight—it just instantly looks like heaven to me.

5. In your blog, you discuss the idea that "true beauty is the beauty of your soul." How do you guide individuals to perceive and embrace this inner beauty?
I have a pre-shoot course in my photography container where I share about this topic to help women feel comfortable in front of my lens. It also always comes up during a shoot—how someone feels in front of the camera and their perceptions of themselves. I have had some beautiful and healing conversations in between shots. Yet, I feel that no matter what I say or do, what truly helps them is my own embodiment of seeing the beauty in every expression of the human form, including my own. To truly see divinity and beauty reflected in all beings. I have spent a lot of time and energy going through my own limiting beliefs, judgements, false perceptions and ideas about beauty and how a woman ‘should look’. I believe this integration has a bigger impact than saying all the ‘right things’ while deep down not believing it.

6. What inspires you creatively these days—are there books, places, artists, or daily rituals that feed your inner landscape?
Nature is my one and only source of inspiration. The beauty of this Earth will never stop inspiring me. I do like to follow other artists that share nature photography, just because photos and videos of nature make me happy, but I wouldn’t say I use that as inspiration for my own work. As I said, I don’t ‘think’ much when I am photographing—I sort of get into a zone where everything outside of where I am just falls away and inspiration comes from perceiving the world around me in that moment.

7. If someone feels numb, burned out, or lost, where would you gently suggest they begin to reconnect—with themselves, or with nature?
By connecting with yourself, you connect with nature, and by connecting with nature, you connect with yourself. Humans are part of nature, and the outside world mirrors our own inner world. So there is no wrong place to start. I would suggest going out in nature daily, even if it’s only for five minutes, and focusing on connecting with nature through the senses. Feel the textures of leaves or the bark of a tree, listen to the natural soundscape, dip your feet in the water and notice the sensations. This way there is some sort of ‘activity’ and less focus on the mind. It also helps to ground and come back into the body. Nature is incredibly healing, and just by spending time with nature this way, it can help you let go of heavy or numb feelings. It will also help you connect with your own nature and hear the guidance of your soul (that speaks a lot clearer through your body than through your thoughts) about what the right steps are for you to come more into alignment with yourself and invite joy, ease, health and harmony (back) into your life.

8. What are your boundaries or rituals around digital consumption and creating content consciously?
I don’t really like to spend lots of time on my phone or laptop, so I usually have to ‘push’ myself a bit if I want to share my work online, rather than having to pull myself from my phone. I definitely spend long days behind my laptop when I am working on something, but because I live in the forest and have dogs, I also spend lots of time in nature as well. I try to be mindful of when I use social media as a source of entertainment or to keep myself busy, and then make the conscious choice to go outside and watch the clouds, feel the grass or go for a walk. I don’t want to live my life on my phone—I want to live my life in this beautiful, physical world we are visiting for just a short while.

9. In your view, what is the cost of constant productivity and performance culture on the soul?
I think it keeps us away from going inwards and living in harmony with our own nature: our own ideas, inspiration and natural rhythm. If we keep grinding and pushing based on pressure from external influences, our bodies will become louder and louder in telling us to slow down. There’s really no need to wait for a burnout, anxiety, stress, or any illness to manifest. If we learn to listen to our bodies and trust the wisdom of nature that is flowing through us, we can achieve so much—not from a place of fear, but from a place of wholeness. Flowers don’t grow all year round, and humans too need to spend time to simply be, to get ready for the next season of life to naturally and effortlessly emerge through us.

10. What is one simple, beautiful truth that nature keeps teaching you—again and again?
That I am never alone, and loved, seen and accepted by Earth and all of nature.

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