Half the fun of being a travel photographer—in fact make that 100% of the fun—is the crazy adventures I often get to do as part of my job. Such as this rappel into the “Lost World” in New Zealand’s famous Waitomo Caves.
Before capturing this image I had to abseil down that very line myself, and considering I am normally afraid of heights this was no mean feat! 300 feet (150 meters) into the subterranean limestone that makes up this amazing caving system in the North Island of New Zealand.
Here are a few other shots that were as much fun in the “taking” as they were in the “making”
Swimming with Great White Sharks in South Africa—if you are into wildlife and the ocean then this really needs to be on your bucket list, almost impossible to describe just how this experience made me feel, magic!
I had this shot in my head before I even arrived in Alaska. I couldn’t guarantee we’d see the Aurora Borealis, but I could set up everything else and hope. To be able to keep the dogs still enough for this long exposure shot we had to run them hard that day (which they just love) and so half the fun in this shot was the day spent preparing for it! Running the dogs, setting up the tent with the dogs and sled beside it, waiting outside all night in the icy grip of Alaskan winter… and then the excitement when it all came together and we were witness to the amazing Northern Lights!!
One of my most recent adventures was had in Botswana where I took a series of photos of a pride of lions using a 4×4 remote control buggy which I christened “Car-L”. These shots have been hugely popular and the video about the project went viral, you can watch it here.
This project was so much fun from start to finish, designing and building the buggy, imagining what we might get with it once in Africa, and then the excitement of the results when we watched a pride of eight lions stalk, attack and carry off the buggy!!
I grew up in the mountains of New Zealand and have always been a keen skier. But unfortunately the constant travel required by my work means I don’t get the chance to ski as much as I’d like to anymore. But shoots like this one for Angel Fire in New Mexico get me back on the snow and while I don’t necessarily get much time to ski without a camera pack strapped to my back, I do get to set up and take shots exactly like this one, which is just as much fun!