Freediving
Freediving gave him the sensation of being at one with nature, and he resisted scuba diving, and finally refused it, because he thought he would lose that sensation of freedom of motion under the weight of the gear and tank.
 
The first time Leander saw a shark close-up, he was spearfishing alone in 1968 in the British Virgin Islands, and just as he targeted a fish, a four-metre shark glided by him. He was riveted by the sight of it, and replayed the moment over again and again, trying to keep the enchantment alive. He found the experience so moving that he began to seek sharks out, and tried not only to see them, but to interact with them.
 
Caribbean reef sharks were his favourites. He found them to be the most elegantly designed of sharks, and they accompanied him on his lone spearfishing sojourns. He saw them in many situations, and became increasingly familiar with them and the other sharks on the reef. He had always had an intuitive sensitivity to animals, and knowing their body language, he learned to move with them in harmony with their moods. He soon perceived that they were intelligent animals, and was awed by their capacities to win out in countless situations that developed in their complex environment.
 
Leander was one of the rare individuals who discovered on his own, independently of the rest of human kind, that sharks were nothing like what he had been taught, that they do not behave the way people believe they do, as shark mythology tells us that they do. Once he knew this, he became an avid shark advocate and a leader in the effort to save these maligned fish from extinction.

Sharks in art
Photographing them regularly, he tried to capture their essence in black and white, and followed his own instincts as he had always done, to remain faithful to his old Nikonos V camera long after the world went digital.
 
Leander's photography is straightforward. He describes it as "minimalistic" as he concentrates on what he calls the bare essentials in photography in general: composition, composition, composition, with nothing extraneous to distract from the centre of attention.

He is one of the very few underwater photographers who works with available light only, and he does not use distorting ultra-wide-angle lenses to create special effects. His camera becomes an extension of his eye, literally focussed on his subjects, as he works.

Leander sees himself as a purist when it comes to diving and photography, and his uncanny sense of harmony may be behind his skill in capturing striking images that reflect the supernatural beauty he found in the ocean. He says that he has most images in his head before squeezing the shutter.

With their delicate shadows illuminated by the white sand, Leander's lighted images enhance the clean and graceful silhouettes of sharks in motion. The black and white medium emphasizes the play of light over the streamlined forms of his subjects while his sharp eye captures dramatic compositions that highlight their elegance. His works present the most fragile-looking harmonies of form. (...)