Kiwi’s photos are truly breathtaking
Using just the oxygen he can hold in his lungs Matt Draper dives alongside some of the world’s largest ocean animals to capture them in the most natural way possible.
Now based in Byron Bay, Australia, the former Wellingtonian is enjoying a quickly growing international reputation as a master of underwater photography.
He uses natural lighting and no scuba equipment to disturb the animals as little as possible, and capture their natural behaviour.
The reason is simple – ‘‘the bubbles you get from scuba diving can be seen as an aggressive kind of behaviour to some species,’’ Draper says.
‘‘Using lighting also feels a bit artificial to me, and I’m not sure the animals would appreciate having a strobe or a flash in their eyes.’’
Draper’s pictures are taken just metres from the subject, appearing to be only an arm’s length away from huge tiger sharks and massive humpback whales.
He can get this close, he says, because he spends time getting to know each species, how it moves, what it likes and doesn’t like – so he can photograph them in as calm a state as possible.
‘‘Some for example don’t like eye contact and I try to just mimic their behaviour.’’
Draper has a particular passion for sharks and says he’s felt more uneasy around whales than he has around great whites.
‘‘Whales can be curious and a bit wonky. You don’t want a 40 tonne whale coming down on top of you,’’ he says.
‘‘I interact with tiger sharks regularly and have never had an issue, I just approach them with respect and a bit of experience.’’
Draper’s career has exploded in the last two years, a rise which he credits to a growing fan base he’s nurtured through social media.
He now tutors photography in Tonga and travels all over the world to get the perfect shot.
Before photography took hold, Draper was a carpenter who moved to Australia to work in the mines.
But he always felt he had a creative outlet that wasn’t being explored.
Draper says his primary goal with his work was to show animals unadulterated, just as they appear in their environment and to remove some of the stigma around sharks.
He says coming face-to-face with great white sharks was a humbling experience. ‘‘I try not to put any photos up of sharks with their mouths open. If you’re baiting them to get your photo, then it’s not natural. My photos are just of sharks being sharks.
‘‘People’s faces after diving with some of these ‘dangerous’ sharks is just unbelievable. You just can’t describe the feeling.’’
I try not to put any photos up of sharks with their mouths open. If you’re baiting them to get your photo, then it’s not natural. My photos are just of sharks being sharks. Matt Draper