The man behind Fish & Photo is Frans Maas.
He was born in 1938. He has been interested in nature from his earliest youth. Especially the fascinating world beneath the water surface. He doesn't remember when exactly he acquired his first tank. He still remembers that it contained sticklebacks, tadpoles and water insects.

Since his 16th year he is a passionate aquarist. Besides a tank of 1.30 m in the living room he has six little aquaria for experiments, for breeding fishes, to photograph them or to study their behavior.

 In 1979 he became a judge in the N.B.A.T (Dutch Association of Aquarists). Since 1982 he has been a member of the board of judges at the National Competition of Aquarists.
For several years he has been the secretary of the Commission of Judges. And he still is a member of the colleague which teaches and examines the new judges.  His interest includes the whole world of the aquarium

In 1992 he visited the cichlid exporter Stuart Grant at lake Malawi .
In 1997 he paid a visit of 18 days to the Amazon region with his friends Ton Cooymans of the fish-import company Tropyfish in Beek en Donk and the discus-specialist Bennie Eevers from Belgium

Recently at his not poor surprise but not less proudness he became a honorary member of the well-known Belgian association of aquarists "de Zilverhaai" in Beringen with whom he has good relations ever since it was started. The "pewter parchment" that belongs to that membership has a place of honor in his study and later on 23 February was honored with the pin of honor by the president of the association of aquarists Ticto at Hardinxveld/Giessendam where he gives lectures since 1970.

In 1996 he is elected unanimously president off the Dutch association of aquarists, the N.B.A.T. During three periods in the governing body, until 2006, he remained in office. With his withdraw he was mentioned member of honor of the board. .                                                     
Frans Maas, being a born lecturer, receives requests to lecture in the Netherlands and abroad. All the transparencies he is using during this lectures were made by himself. The result of that photographs is a book about photographing aquaria. He is also the author of extensive series of articles about aquariumkeeping, especially about fish behavior and breeding. Several times he was involved as a lecturer and author in a course about aquaristics in the Netherlands and in Belgium.

About his experience as a photographer he wrote a book about Photographing aquaria and aquariumfishes