Dream life spent in the ocean depths

  • 20/10/2015
Brian Skerry (Paul Henry)
Brian Skerry (Paul Henry)

He has spent more than 10,000 hours underwater, telling the story of some of the ocean’s most elusive creatures.

Brian Skerry has been a National Geographic photographer for the last 18 years and now he's in New Zealand to tell his story.

He first learned to dive as a young man.

“I discovered the best way to explore the sea was with a camera. From the moment I decided that was my dream I set my sites on National Geographic.”

Coming from a small working-class town in Massachusetts, it was a big dream.

“I think of my career as a long string of extraordinary encounters. At the beginning I wanted to take pretty pictures. Then I began to see fewer fish. About 90 per cent of big fish having disappeared since World War II.”

He aims to enlighten and inspire people about the ocean and how it needs to be cared for.

The photojournalist will be at Auckland’s ASB Theatre on October 21 and in Wellington at Te Papa on October 22 with his show Ocean Wild.

The show will take the audience on an intimate journey into the intelligence of dolphins, the world of the Arctic harp seal and the right whale.

Watch the video for the full segment.