Benny Rebel
Benny Rebel, born Bahman Vafaeinejad (born August 13, 1968, in Arak, Iran), is an Iranian-German photographer known for his extreme close-up portraits of dangerous wildlife of Africa by approaching within feet of the animals. In 1987, Rebel immigrated to Hannover, Germany. His interest in wildlife conservation led to his involvement with the environmental advocacy group Greenpeace.
Also recorded as Bahman Vafaeinejad
Benny Rebel
Foto: Bernd Schwabe in Hannover · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Name
- Benny Rebel
- Birth Name
- Bahman Vafaeinejad (بهمن وفائینژاد)
- Born
- 13 August 1968
- Birthplace
- Arak, Imperial State of Iran
- Occupation
- photographer
- Known for
- extreme close-up photographing of wildlife
- Awards
- Trierenberg Super Circuit, two gold medals
- Nationality
- Germany
- Languages
- German
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Documentary summary
Benny Rebel, born Bahman Vafaeinejad (born August 13, 1968, in Arak, Iran), is an Iranian-German photographer known for his extreme close-up portraits of dangerous wildlife of Africa by approaching within feet of the animals. In 1987, Rebel immigrated to Hannover, Germany. His interest in wildlife conservation led to his involvement with the environmental advocacy group Greenpeace.
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Note VALÉORINE
Benny Rebel (born 1968) is a German photographer and writer. The photographer was born in Iran. Benny Rebel lived in Hanover. Languages used include German.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 28 September 2026
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q818071 · wikipedia · Benny Rebel
In this article
Biography
Biography
He has taken adventures in many countries, including South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda, as well as Iran, Turkey, India, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Costa Rica, the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, the United States and some European countries. Awarded two gold medals by Trierenberg Super Circuit of Austria in 2002 and 2003.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Benny Rebel • Birth Name — Bahman Vafaeinejad (بهمن وفائینژاد) • Born — 13 August 1968 • Birthplace — Arak, Imperial State of Iran • Citizenship — German • Occupation — photographer • Known for — extreme close-up photographing of wildlife • Awards — Trierenberg Super Circuit, two gold medals • Website — www.benny-rebel.de/ (German) www.benny-rebel.de/en/ (English)
Exhibitions
Exhibitions
• Zu schön um zu sterben [Too Beautiful to Die] (2000), in Hannover; comprising images of threatened wildlife he encountered mostly in South Africa. • Bedrohte afrikanische Schönheiten [Endangered African Beauties] (2003), at Galerie im Keller in Hannover
TV shows
TV shows
He has appeared in many TV shows of NDR, ARD, Arte, BR, MDR, RBB, RTL, Sat.1, SWR, WDR, ZDF, as well as Iranian channels IR 2 and IRIB Aftab.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1968
Benny Rebel was born on 13 August 1968.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Hanover
Residences
Iran.
Birth place
Books
• Ungezähmt [Untamed] (2006), Munich: Herbig: a book of his images from Africa and the Galápagos Islands; preface of the book is written by Heinz Sielmann. • Die Tiere Afrikas in 3-D [Wildlife of Africa in 3D] (2007), Terra Magica: featured images of African animals captured by using three-dimensional photographic technology. • Mein Abenteuer Wildnis: Erlebnisse eines Tierfotografen [My Wilderness Adventure: Experiences of a Wildlife Photographer] (2010), Terra Magica, 240 pages • Bild-Design [Image Design] (2010): a book of photography tips in 80 pages with 145 photos.
Documentary films
• In Search of the King Cheetah (2006): a 60-minute documentation produced by NDR about Benny Rebel's work in South Africa. • Wild Iran (2007): in 2006, Benny Rebel returned to Iran and produced this documentary about the wildlife of Iran. • In 2007, Benny Rebel produced a documentary film about the extinction of the Bengal tiger in India • In 2012, the German TV chains "ZDF / ARTE" produced two 45-minutes documentary films with Benny Rebel in Iran. This was a coproduction with following TV channels: WDR, BR, ORF and ARD.
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Benny Rebel”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q818071: Benny Rebel
General reference · Wikidata
Awards
• 2002 Trierenberg Super Circuit, Austria, gold medal, Nature category • 2003 Trierenberg Super Circuit, Austria, gold medal, Nature category
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
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References
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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