NEXT GALLERY: Our impact shortlist

See the shortlisted photos from the ‘Our Impact’ category in the 2016 AG Nature Photography of the Year competition here.

Hang In There

The Sampson Flat fire in January 2015 decimated much of the Northern Adelaide Hills. I undertook a photographic series in 2015, called ‘rebirth’ documenting the aftermath and regrowth from the fires. This image was taken on a cold, misty morning during one of my rebirth shoots in May.

Gumeracha, Adelaide Hills, South Australia

Sony A7R, Sony 16-35 mm FE Lens, 1/6, f/10, ISO 100, Induro tripod

Desert Patterns

Aerial image taken from helicopter of a creek line that runs through Kata Tjuta in the early morning creating long shadows and patterns.

Kata Tjuta, Northern Territory

Nikon D800, Nikon Lens 24-70 mm, 1/2000, f/2.8, ISO 1100, aerial

A Mist Divided

Mist takes the bluster out of a eucalypt forest, muting colours and leaving soft-focus detail in the near, receding to a bewilderment of blurs.

Canon EOS 5D Mk III, Zeiss Distagon T* 2.8/21 ZE lens, f9, 1/10, tripod. Slice taken from a four shot stitched panorama

Transcendence

Being in the presence of the mountains stirs emotions deep inside me. This photo, captured in the Southern Alps looking toward Mt Avalanche, depicts a fleeting moment of light and the relentless forces of nature one is exposed to in these wild places. I’ll remember this moment for the rest of my life. 

Mount Aspiring National Park, New Zealand

Sony A7R, Sony 70-200 mm F4, 1/200, f/9, ISO 100, handheld

Silver Helix

When a hollow wave breaks over shallow reef or sand, the proceeding impact can be huge. Air trapped within the wave rolls forward and for a split second, a line of rings form below the surface. To capture this image, I had to dive directly into and under the explosion.

North Beach, Wollongong, New South Wales

Canon 5D Mk II, Canon 15 mm fisheye 2.8, 1/1000, f/5.0, ISO 800, Aquatech sport housing

Driftwood River

I loved the shape of the washed out driftwood on the bright sand, nestled amongst a small forest of orange succulents. But it also reflects a sad fact: once a freshwater oasis, this area is now six times saltier than the ocean as a result of over clearing.

Lake Ninan, Western Australia

Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 16-35 mm f/2.8L IS USM at 16 mm, 1/80, f/11, ISO 100, handheld

The Spine of Antarctica: Antarctic Aerial

Like a twisted spine, Nunataks break the surface of the scratched and scarred, yet otherwise pristine skin of thick snow and ice that stretches out for an incomprehensibly vast distance of wilderness below the aircraft, as we fly for hours over the breathtakingly beautiful scenery of Antarctica towards Scott Base.

Somewhere over the Ross Dependency, Antarctica

Canon EOS 7D, Sigma 17-50 mm f2.8 lens, 1/320, f/8.0, ISO 100, CPL, handheld from the window of an LC130 Hercules

First Light at Lake Oberon

Looking down towards Lake Oberon across a stand of backlit Pandani plants in the early morning light.

Lake Oberon, Southwest National Park, Tasmania

Sony A7R, Canon EF 16-35 mm f/4L, 1/5, f/8.0, ISO 100, tripod

Jupiter

Flying across the lake I was caught by the saltbush and the banks of Lake Martin. It immediately reminded me of Indigenous art and the topographic relations to the imagery. Salt lakes and clay pans seem otherworldly, hence the name of the piece.

Lake Martin, Western District Lakes, Victoria

Canon 70D, Canon EF-S 15-85 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, 1/800, f/5.6, ISO 250, handheld, from fixed-wing Cessna plane at 2500ft

Mount Taranaki under moonlight

After a severe storm for over 20 hours, the mountain returned to its calmness and I came to this location. The full moon was high just behind me, which enabled me to capture such an amazing volcanic mountain under the starry sky and their reflections in this tarn.

Mount Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand

Nikon D800E, Nikkor AF-S 14-24 mm f/2.8G ED (FX), 15, f/3.5, ISO 1250, tripod Benro C2980T, RRS BH-55 ballhead