I use to work for Creatures of Leisure and borrowed John Malloys underwater camera one day and took it out to shoot some mates at Rocky Point, and after that I was hooked.
Jamie grew up in the town of Dunsborough, Western Australia and was surrounded by water from an early age, Jamie now resides in Margaret River. Surfing, wave sailing and diving are a big part of Jamie’s lifestyle.
Jamie was immersed in the salty stuff from an early age and picked up his first camera at the age of seven. “My parents bought both my brother and I a Polaroid camera when we were kids, but I only started making a living out of photography when I was 30, and it’s all I’ve done for the past 13 years,” says Jamie. Now based in Margaret River, Jamie is often pacing up and down the WA coastline in his vegetable oil-powered Toyota Landcruiser (yes you read right), trying to capture that elusive moment of oceanic perfection, which he concedes may never happen. “The ocean and its moods are always changing, they are never the same,” says Jamie. “You’re dealing with different light, different swells, different winds and different tides. I get as much enjoyment taking photos out in the water as the surfers do catching the waves, especially shooting wide-angle as you have to be right in there amongst it all. It makes me feel alive.”
Years shooting: 24
Since 2000 all of my cameras have been digital, I use to cop a bit of flack for using digi back then, but how times have changed.
Ive always had a passion for photography and wanted to work for myself, I was lucky enough to get a government grant to help me start off, I learnt how to print, matt board and frame all of my own stuff to save money.
I bought a zodiac type boat back then so I could get out and shoot all the big stuff, that definitely paid off.
Inspirations:
I love the ocean and how it can be so different from one day to the next, I get a buzz from swimming in the line up probably as much as the surfers get from riding the waves and I get to see all the action. The big days are amazing to watch from the ski being right amongst it all, it keeps you on your toes.
Kevin(Twiggy)Sharland helped me out heaps when I first started, so a big thumbs up to him even though he’s not with us anymore.
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