Tico Uses Photography as a Tool To Protect 5% of The World’s Biodiversity in Costa Rica ⋆ The Costa Rica News

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March 9, 2026

On March 9, 2026

Brief Introduction: From the sounds of howler monkeys in the trees of Guanacaste to the classrooms of the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, Lior Berman Fernández’s life has been marked by a deep connection with nature. This talented photographer, who once dreamed of becoming a biologist, has found in his lens the perfect tool to channel his love for biodiversity and conservation. Berman has traveled a path that has led him to merge his analytical discipline with capturing the essence of Costa Rica: from its pristine beaches to its impressive 5% of the world’s biological diversity. In this interview, we discover how his rural upbringing, his eye for detail, and his commitment to the environment define his art and his current mission alongside biologists and communities, which has led him to international stages.

The air of Guanacaste, Costa Rica, laden with the memory of the seasons and the scent of the trees in the area, is Lior’s true studio. Before becoming an international photographer, his mornings did not begin with the click of a camera, but with the howling of monkeys visiting his rural home near Cañas.

“I remember always feeling very connected to nature. I remember that my childhood weekends were spent exploring pastures and pristine beaches with my parents,” he said.

His memories are also strongly marked by the seasons, between the rainy season and the dry season. “Not only did I love the area where we lived, but also the wildlife that surrounded us.”

That early connection planted a seed that, although it took a professional detour, never died.

As a child, he dreamed of becoming a biologist, which is where his love of nature comes from.

He has always been a biologist at heart, and despite taking a different professional path, he is now trying to recapture his dream through photography, which is a conservation issue that biologists are involved in.

The alternative path led him to train as an industrial design engineer, a discipline that nurtures his detailed and analytical approach, but it is the land where he grew up that remains his main muse.

Lior studied at the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, graduating in 2016.

This technical foundation was not a detour, but rather preparation. His initial experience focused mainly on web design, a field that demands precision and clear vision.

The engineer became a bridge, applying the discipline and attention to detail learned in design to capture, with scientific and artistic precision, the fragile Costa Rican ecosystem.

When asked how he would describe himself, the Costa Rican photographer’s answer revealed the precision he applies to his photographs.

“I would describe myself as disciplined, quite analytical, and very curious. I am very consistent, I pay a lot of attention to detail, and I am very organized,” he explained.

However, the photographer acknowledges that these virtues come with their counterpart. Among his flaws are being self-demanding and a perfectionist. Despite this internal demand, he maintains a crucial anchor in his interactions, “at the same time, I try to keep my feet on the ground and be quite friendly with everyone around me.”

His childhood forged his love for the land, and it is the tangible reality of Costa Rica that fuels his art today.

“I am inspired by its biodiversity. The fact that Costa Rica is home to 5% of the world’s diversity, on at least 1% of the planet’s surface, is quite impressive to me,” he said. But his admiration does not stop at the figures; he also admires the culture of the people, their kindness, their warmth and, in his opinion, the friendship that can be felt in the country, which is impressive.

Berman highlighted how this connection translates into everyday life, mentioning cuisine rich in fresh produce, environmental education in schools, and daily coexistence between communities, farmers, and wildlife. “I believe it is a living network of environmental protection. The fact that 25% of the territory is under some category of protection is a reflection of that collective consciousness. I am very inspired by how we Ticos live in such close proximity to nature on a daily basis.”

The official start of Lior Berman’s photography career is as unique as his life, beginning in forced exile during the pandemic. “When I finished my studies at the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, I had the opportunity to do an internship in Japan, so I bought my first camera, hoping to take photos in Japan,” he said. However, fate intervened. Two weeks later, the pandemic began, and everyone was sent home.

Forced to return from Cartago to his native Guanacaste, the reunion with the nature of his childhood was the catalyst. “When I returned to this place and saw so much of the nature that was part of my childhood and remembered those moments, I realized, why not start using this camera to document that journey, those moments of being locked up during the pandemic?”

What began as a personal record became a great passion that was refined over time and with inspiration from other photographers.

Although Berman had no formal training in photography, his background gave him an unexpected advantage. “Having studied design gave me a very important foundation in visual composition, color theory, and other topics related to art,” he added.

Interestingly, the camera was always close by. His grandfather was a photographer and always took a camera with him on family trips to take pictures of the whole family.

He received his first camera as a gift when he was 10 years old, “I took it on family trips to take pictures of everything we saw.”

It was the pandemic, the time available, and the resources obtained that finally allowed Lior, five years ago, to take photography with the professional seriousness it deserved.

Talking with the talented Costa Rican, we asked him how many photos he has taken throughout his professional career. In his response, he emphasized that he has taken more than a million photos. “I’m about to look at the files, and that’s about the number, However, of that million photographs, I would say that perhaps 1% are really good, usable photographs that are now part of my portfolio. But that’s the world of photography. The truth is that it takes a lot of trying and making mistakes, and some will be successful, some won’t, but you have to be very persistent.”

Among his favorite photographs, one stood out: an ocelot crossing a fallen tree in the middle of the dry forest. It is called Night Hunter. “The reason why this is my favorite photograph is because it took a lot of effort, about three months, to identify the walking routes of this animal and learn that it is a nocturnal feline that is very difficult to see, especially in the area where I grew up. Knowing that I managed to take a photograph of these animal behaviors was extremely important to me.”

He added that the fact that the photograph was also taken with a camera trap shows him that his technical level has improved greatly, “and this also shows me that the skills I have developed as a photographer over the years have increased considerably and that I must continue to make a lot of effort and keep working to be able to take more photographs of this quality.”

The first official contest Lior Berman won was the Sagicor contest in Costa Rica, specifically for an insurance company that was looking for nature photographs that represented the country. He won first place in the wildlife and nature photography category.

After that, he was also a finalist representing Costa Rica in the Sony Photography Awards in 2024 with a photograph of El Chalten in Argentina, saying he was “very proud to have represented my country in this prestigious contest.”

And now, with the photograph of the Neotropical Roadrunner, I had the honor of being a finalist in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPY) competition, which, in my opinion, is the most important wildlife photography competition in the world. Apart from that, I have also been published in National Geographic magazine twice, and although that is not a competition, it is also part of my portfolio, which I am quite proud to have achieved.”

As Lior mentioned, he is now competing in the WPY Nuveen People’s Choice Award 2026 competition with a fascinating image, a shot of an elusive red-bellied ground cuckoo. The bird snatches a cicada in the depths of the rainforest in Costa Rica. Silent and sharp-eyed, it follows columns of army ants.

The bird does not want to feed on the ants, but on the insects and small creatures that flee from the swarm. When it catches the cicada, there is a flash of movement: sharp beak striking, tail sweeping. A purple glow flashes from its feathers, momentarily illuminating the forest floor. (According to the contest text).

This secretive predator is rarely seen and even less often photographed.

You, dear reader, can vote for Lior’s excellent work

Lior Berman’s career has come to fruition by putting Costa Rica’s name in one of the most important showcases in the world of nature photography: the Natural History Museum in London. or Berman, this achievement transcends personal recognition.

“Achieving this is very important because, in most cases, photographs of Costa Rica that have made it to these competitions have been taken by foreign photographers,” he said. His success, he says, is a seed of hope for other Costa Rican photographers: “Yes, it can be done, and we Costa Ricans ourselves can demonstrate the natural wealth of our country on an international level.”

Being surrounded by the world’s best photographers validates his years of effort and reaffirms his commitment to conservation.

The contest image is called A Fleeting Moment, in which Lior, through patient hunting, captured the red-bellied cuckoo.

Berman explained that working with this species, documented by Canopy San Luis, required days of waiting. “After waiting around six to eight hours, the bird magically decided to come out in a place where it was quite exposed, and by pure luck we saw it hunting.”

This moment encapsulates the essence of wildlife, as it takes hours or days of waiting to see if something happens, and when everything aligns, an impressive moment occurs.

The technical challenge was considerable. Capturing the moment under the dense canopy of the tropical rainforest, with low light and cloudy weather, required expert handling of photographic parameters to freeze the action without introducing annoying digital noise. The moment captured illustrates the opportunistic symbiotic relationship: the cuckoo taking advantage of the fact that the leafcutter ants scare away other insects so that it can hunt.

For the photographer, the most essential thing this photograph demonstrates about Costa Rica’s unique diversity is that there are species that depend solely on primary forests; this is a species of bird that depends entirely on a healthy ecosystem.

Leafcutter ants are also ants that must travel long distances through the country’s primary forests. “Without them, it would be impossible for these species to exist. It also demonstrates how there is a connection between different animal species, even though ants and birds are so different. And especially the cuckoo, I think it shows the whole world the need to protect these primary forests, the need to protect those spaces that are still untouched by human intervention, since there are many species in our country that are their only home, and if we destroy them, then these species may also disappear.”

Lior hopes that through this photograph, people will understand that there are many species in Costa Rica beyond the most iconic ones. “For example, until recently, there were no records of this bird, but in the last 15 or 20 years, there has been much more study and conservation efforts to protect it.”

Undoubtedly, for the Costa Rican, it is very powerful to influence the world’s general environmental awareness, “so that people understand that not only are efforts to reforest or reintroduce animals in certain areas important, but also that there are many animals that depend entirely on primary forests, which must be pristine and well protected, since many of these species without that home could simply become extinct.”

From Lior Berman’s point of view, the path to the perfect image in wildlife photography can often be fraught with frustration.

“I’ve had moments when I’ve gotten lost in the mountains, when I’ve had to figure out how to get out on my own. I got caught in a pretty heavy downpour, alone with a dead cell phone and no signal,” he said. Added to this are the fruitless trips to another country, spending an entire week trying to find an animal species that never shows up in the end.

For Berman, these episodes of despair are the most valuable lessons. “The biggest lesson I’ve learned from these moments is that you have to be very patient, you have to know how to enjoy the moment, you have to live in the now.”

In his opinion, the result or goal of taking a photograph at the end of the day is something that does not always happen, “but if you enjoy the process and if you enjoy the moment, it will always be a rewarding experience. The real reward is simply being outside, enjoying nature.”

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