South African lensman wins gold
TUESDAY MARCH 14 2017 A REMARKABLE shot of a young female ragged tooth shark fighting back a big potato bass has scored local photographer Allen Walker a gold medal win in an international underwater competition.
Walker, a self-taught photographer from Durban, celebrated 10 years in the photography industry when he received a gold medal in the prestigious annual UnderwaterPhotography. com competition, in the wide angle marine life category.
His winning photo, titled “Vexation”, was among a total of 5 355 photos entered in the annual contest, which made it in the top 221 shots before reaching the final round where 99 medals were awarded in 18 categories.
“Vexation” is an image of a young female ragged-tooth shark that finally snapped and fought back when a big potato bass kept on pushing her around.
“I was lucky enough to capture the moment… the more time you spend in the water the luckier you get. It is a great honour to once again feature and win another gold medal in this prestigious competition, this time in a category other than sharks,” Walker said.
Walker uses his photography to promote conservation, tourism and exposure for South Africa. Recalling his early days in photography, Walker said he started specialising in underwater photography in 2007.
“I am passionate about our South African wildlife heritage, both on the land and in the sea. However,with my passion comes a robust, hard but honest approach to photography and opinions. I believe that photography should be creative, fresh and inspiring. It is also extremely important to ‘give back’, so I endeavour to assist organisations dedicated to the conservation of the environment. I want my images to tell the story,” he said. – Staff Reporter
I BELIEVE PHOTOGRAPHY SHOULD BE CREATIVE, FRESH AND INSPIRING