Basic HTML Version
www.alertdiver.com
|
99
of bluefin tuna and what happens when they die for sushi.
I wanted people to be aware of the broad swath of damage
wrought by nets dragged across the bottom of the sea and
to see the cruel efficiency of longlines that capture sharks,
mostly to satisfy the market for sharkfin soup; 100 million
sharks are killed each year, and it is no longer (if it ever was)
sustainable. I wanted to tell the story of the stresses we are
placing on the ocean’s inhabitants. It was an opportunity
for me, but even more so, it was my duty as an observer
of the sea. I would like to do only happy stories of the sea,
and once in a while I have to shoot those to preserve my
sanity, but with National Geographic we have a forum to
reach 50 million readers. Some stories deserve a sense of
responsibility and urgency.
SF//
Anyone who achieves a high profile in underwater
photography is asked by people of equal passion how
they can do it, too. How do you answer?
BS//
I say it is OK to follow your dream, but temper it with
a dose of reality that leaves food on the table. I see three
important considerations:
• Set a strategy based on where you want to be in a given
number of years. This provides an ongoing reality check
while allowing you to quantify your progress.
• Identify your niche within a niche. What are you really
passionate about, and what stories can you tell with
pictures?
• Be journalistic in your approach. Work on subjects and
stories that exist in your backyard — in water you can
reach repeatedly and easily. Spend three months on
location and photograph the hell out of it. Embrace local
knowledge, and acquire an archive on a particular subject.
Then edit relentlessly and unmercifully. Come up with
30 pictures to sell to whatever local media exists in that
region. Then pick another story. Maybe you can come up
with three topics a year. After five years of working like
that you’ll have 15 portfolios, which should be enough
to launch you on a career in stock, editorial or fine art
photography.
It’s not a race, so don’t be in a hurry. Take your time,
for time it will take. Meanwhile, never let the fun go
away. Regardless of the pressure to deliver or the rigors
of the location, I’ve never forgotten being an underwater
photographer is a privilege I enjoy with all my soul, hence
the name of my book: Ocean Soul.
AD
A southern right whale (Eubalaena australis) encounters a diver on the
sandy, 72-foot-deep seafloor off the Auckland Islands, New Zealand.
Many of these southern rights in the Auckland Islands had never seen
humans before this encounter and were highly curious. Skerry contends,
“Swimming along the ocean bottom with a 46-foot long, 70-ton whale
was the single most incredible animal encounter I have had.”
92-99_Shooter_Winter2012.indd 99
1/13/12