September 2024
Wet Tropics, Northern Queensland, Australia
January 2024
Perfect conditions at the Poor Knights…
December 2023
DPV dive at Goat Island…
November 2023
Eddie is a 15 week old Australian Cattle Dog who
enjoys in-water retrievals
July 2023
Queensland, Oz
June 2023
Fiji Islands: Vatu-i-Ra seamounts and pinnacles,
Namena, Wakaya & Makogai
April 2023
Drift diving, Moeraki River, South Westland, South
Island, NZ
March 2023
Longfin eel, Ongarue River, North Island, NZ.
November 2021
For anyone interested in the pursuit of underwater
photography: has the time come to ditch that heavy, expensive,
dedicated underwater camera rig that consumes large amounts of your
time and space in favour of a small rectangular convergent device on
which you can post process, print, publish and capture those images
while maintaining an acceptable level of quality?
Click on the pic to read more...
September 2021
Laser engravings on basswood: during lockdown
I've been busying myself setting up a 3D printer / CNC / laser
engraver. This engraving of the humpback calf image took over 43 hours
to complete! Select each image for back story media...
May 2021
Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park, NZ.
Common dolphins working to round up bait balls with
Australasian gannets diving in for the feast made for a stunning day
out on the Hauraki Gulf.
March 2021
Poor Knights Islands, NZ.
January / Feb 2021
Poor Knights Islands, NZ.
December 2020
Auckland, NZ.
December 2020
Tutukaka, NZ.
November 2020
Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park, NZ.
July 2020
Broad Bay, Otago Peninsula, NZ.
July 2020
Blueskin Bay, Otago, NZ.
July 2020
Pahia, Bay of Islands, NZ.
March 2020
My bubble; my hood.
October 2019
Humpback fest, Moorea, French Polynesia
May 2019
Fiji: Bligh Water to Gau Island
August 2018
The Tuamotus atolls, French Polynesia
That night in Fakarava's Tumakohua pass when we were mobbed by reef
sharks. Video credit with thanks: Trish O'Donnell
April 2018
Moorea's lagoon makes for awesome encounters with
friendly sharks and other animals.
March 2018
The mystical Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia...
November 2017
The outer Hauraki Gulf, NZ at its best.
February 2017
The spectacular vista of Middle and North
Gables, Tutukaka Coast, NZ
September 2016
Moorea, French
Polynesia
March 2016
Southern
Fiordland
June 2015
Dolphin Dream,
Bahamas
Invasive lionfish; scourge of the Caribbean. Due to
the additional baggage volume consumed by my drone, my strobes stayed
at home. A compact 2000 lumen video light acts as stand-in providing
balance to natural light.
August 2014
Ngunguru river
& estuary, Tutukaka Coast, NZ.
May 2014
The call of
Africa: Limpopo / Mapumalanga region, South Africa.
Follow the link to see...
March 2014
NZ's Poor
Knights Islands: summer synopsis. The starry toado (pufferfish)
baitball encounters are rarely captured - these open water visitors
don't last long after being blown in by easterly winds as snapper
quickly decimate them. Rikoriko cave is the worlds largest sea cave -
by volume. Music by: Steve Moase, 'Toots High' (on baritone ukelele).
Follow the link to watch...
Starry toados are open ocean visitors who arrive at
New Zealand's Poor Knights on the warm blue water current. Their stay
however is short-lived as they are consumed by snapper.
Follow the link to watch...
January 2014
One of the most enjoyable live-aboard trips I have
been on to date! Ten days of very hot weather, glass calm seas, a
perfect group dynamic and a great mix of aerial and underwater photo
ops.
January 2014
Sensational summer surf at Sandy Bay, Tutukaka Coast,
NZ
November 2013
This turned out to be a great trip with new gear on a
previously enjoyed route. My first foray into underwater full frame with the
Nikon D800 and the first time mixing aerial photography (quadcopter) and diving on a live aboard boat.
July 2013
A brief winter visit to Dunedin yielded some stunning
coastal Otago scenery. Featuring Lawyers Head, Tavora (Bobbys Head),
Graeme's Prion Fence and Tunnel Beach.
February 2013
Over the past year or so I've spent time photographing
the endangered Pateke, or New Zealand Brown teal in NZ's Tutukaka
Coast region. This is a duck with some non-duck like qualities which
include it's nocturnal terrestrial wanderings. My efforts were
rewarded with some pleasing images, two of which appeared in NZ
Geographic Magazine. Other results
were perhaps not as visually pleasing but have some emotional
attachment considering the time and effort spent. The image below
gives me an opening to place it on this site as it is, turbidity
notwithstanding, an underwater image of a Pateke duckling. For more lucid images
click
here for more.
August 2012
The annual whaleshark aggregation off Isla Mujeres,
Mexico is a relatively newly discovered phenomenon amongst underwater
photographers and offers the opportunity to encounter 200 - 300 whalesharks feeding on krill and bonito eggs in an area the size of a
few football fields. A spectacular time was had with these magnificent
and gentle giants of the ocean.
Click here for more.
May 2012
Leigh Marine Laboratory at Goat Island Marine Reserve
on New Zealand's Hauraki Gulf. A passing visit by sailing catamaran
with aerial views flying over water and freediving glimpses of
friendly snapper.
April 2012
Multirotor chopper at NZ's Poor Knights Islands.
Click here for more aerials.
February 2012
Pleased to see my Kingfish image used for such a
noteworthy cause:
September 2011
Fiji
Islands.
Click here for more.
July 2011
Niue Island revisited: low level aerials plus stunning
underwater opportunities and friendly humpbacks made for a memorable
visit.
Click here for more.
June 2011
Long Bay regional park, New Zealand: a winter's day
June 2011
Palau, Western Micronesia is renowned for spectacular
drop-offs, pristine reefs and unique marine lakes.
Click here for more...
January 2011
Low level aerial panorama of Lake Wanaka, Central
Otago, New Zealand
Low level aerial image of the Tutukaka Coast: Ngunguru
looking south (Canon 550D SLR).
August 2010
While not strictly underwater, low level aerial
photography offers a top down point of view on seascapes and is
providing me with a new set of challenges and opportunities. You may
be wondering why so quiet for the past few months? The answer has a
lot to do with my total immersion in this technically fascinating
approach of hanging a camera in the sky using small remote controlled
multi-rotor aircraft. I am looking forward to combining underwater water imaging with
aerial
perspectives...
31st December 2009
Underwater Photography magazine features my Tumakohua
Pass article; available
online here...
15th December 2009
Bula Me magazine features my article on Fiji diving
online here...
16th
October 2009
Medical Assurance Society's 'HiSociety' magazine
features my 'Underwater World' article including cover shot and other
images in the October 2009 edition (circulation 20K).
15th
October 2009
The BBC Book accompanying the life series currently
running in the UK: 'Life: Extraordinary Animals, Extreme Behaviour';
Martha Holmes & Michael Gunton features my Katuali images on pages 153
through 155.
24th
September 2009
The 'Critters' section of this website has been
revamped and updated. Check out the reworked galleries on Sharks,
Mammals, Reptiles, Seascapes, Fish Portraits, People, Anemonefish,
Rays, Scorpionfish, Eels, Nudibranchs and Jellies.
10th
September 2009
Fakarava in the Tuamotus, French Polynesia is one of
the few places on our planet where it is still possible to see schools
of 200+ grey reef sharks gathered in the underwater pass of the atoll
as tidal flows turn over water in a lagoon, 60km long by 25km wide. Click
here
for more images...
18th
July 2009
SEAFANZ Underwater Photographic Workshop, Ha'apai,
Tonga presented by Glenn Edney, Tobi Bernhard and myself: trip report available
here...
28th
June 2009
My strobe primer article: 'Strobilicious; making a
meal of underwater lighting', published
here...
Photo: courtesy Les Martin
29th
March 2009
New Zealand summer typically offers great diving.
Conditions have been spectacular with blue water and peak
surface temperatures on the Tutukaka Coast allowing for some great photo
opportunities over January, February and March. Click
here
for more images...
Saturday, 6th December 2008,
7:30pm
Bruce Paine's
Lateral Lines CD launch. A one hour
concert with thematic slideshow includes section featuring my images. Large canvas underwater image prints
on display. Bookings essential.
Click here for flyer.
6th October 2008
Shark dives at Beqa, Fiji are an
adrenaline rush but there's more to this venture than giving punters a
thrill; and hopefully more to these images than sensationalizing the
encounter. Shark populations worldwide are in serious decline. With
sharks dying at a rate much faster than they can reproduce, the loss
of apex predators threatens the health of our oceans and our very
existence in the longer term.
Shark feeds are sometimes criticized for apparently influencing the
behavior of wild animals and placing humans in danger. Yet what I took
away from these encounters in my own mind eclipses these ideas and
dispels the myths of sharks as hell bent on attacking humans. It gave
me a greater appreciation for the apex predators which occupy water, a
media which takes up ninety nine percent of the living space on our planet.
Sharks are themselves under serious threat. Click
here
for images...
5th September 2008
The Komodo region of
Indonesia in addition to being home to the Komodo dragon is renowned
for its marine biodiversity. Strong currents and upwelling from the
Indian ocean supply nutrient rich waters to marine life forms. Click
here for
images...
9th August 2008
Niue this time provided a great interaction
with adolescent humpback whales. Click
here for
more...
26th June 2008
Classical guitarist and friend
Bruce Paine has released an album of his own work titled 'Lateral
Lines'. I feel fortunate in having been able to provide Bruce with
underwater images as inspiration for part this project. Click
here for
Bruce's site...
6th June 2008
North Borneo (Layang Layang and
Kapalai / Sipadan) images now posted. Click
here for
Layang Layang and
here for Kapalai / Sipadan...
27th April 2008
Published: a review of the
Sealux CD300 underwater housing for Nikon D300 DSLR camera. Click
here...
26th April 2008
Niue again provided its magic
with unlimited visibility and an incredible encounter with the
resident pod of spinner dolphin. A good opportunity to sea test the D300
which exceeded expectations. Click
here...
26th March 2008
Images from Poor Knights Islands,
New Zealand
now posted.
Conditions recently have been excellent with very good visibility. Click
here...
18th January 2008
Images from Poor Knights Islands,
New Zealand
now posted.
Click
here...
14th October 2007
Latest images from Niue Island
now posted.
Click
here...
24th September 2007
After setting a new World Record less
than 48 hours earlier, on a single breath, Dave Mullins extended his
record distance in a freediving event with an amazing underwater swim
of 244 metres. For images of the event, click
here...
17th September 2007
Latest images from Niue Island
now posted.
Click
here...
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