What if your eye sees what the camera can’t? What if you look up into the skies and your imagination sees incredible lines and endless possibilities if only the rules of gravity (and trespassing) could be ignored? That’s where the Creative category comes in. It’s for images that have been digitally enhanced. It’s an open category, so anything goes. If you enter the creative category, you are free to create an image that matches what you want to see. And that is what finalist Luis Arriaga did when he wandered past Mexico City’s iconic Museo Soumaya. He explains more below.
Underwater photography 101 with Alex Voyer
There aren’t many people that can say they spend most of their time living on a sailboat and exploring the depths of the ocean with nothing but their wetsuit and camera. Alex Voyer is one of these people and we were able to catch him out of the water and find out some of his best freediving and photography tips.

What's important to consider when freediving several meters deep?
The most important thing is to be VERY comfortable freediving at certain depths (my max. depth is around 50 meters). When you are shooting, freediving is just a skill, a way to look at something, and this is not a sport to push to the limits. I used to freedive in rough seas, cold waters, surrounded by animals, so I do not even think about my freediving skills, I just go shooting.

What’s your work-life balance like?
At the moment, I am living the biggest part of my life with my wife Marianne Aventurier on my sailing boat (Diatomée) which is currently located in French Polynesia.
I am in the water swimming and freediving everyday and shooting very often. Most of the images I take are for my personal projects.

What gear do you trust in when shooting underwater and what do you always have with you?
I am using very standard gear for these types of images, it’s just important to put the camera in a diving underwater housing. My gear is very strong but also very, very heavy; two cameras plus 4 to 5 lenses, and the underwater stuff is probably around 12-15 kilos. I dream of a very compact setup, but I haven’t found any compact solutions yet.


How do you approach the animals of the sea such as the great white sharks?
Approaching marine animals is a huge subject for me, because I have been diving with them for a long time. The more I dive, the more I realize, that they do not need any photographer around… Mass tourism is not so good for them and I still shoot them, this is a huge dilemma for me.
The more I shoot sharks or whales, the more people ask me how to do that, and I am confronted with this contradiction. I try to explain that I can take a lot of time to approach an animal (several weeks, or more) on a sailing boat, but I think that in the future I will not spend much more time looking for animals. If they come to me, I will be happy, however, I will still free dive around seaweed.
What gear do you trust in when shooting underwater and what do you always have with you?
I am using very standard gear for these types of images, it’s just important to put the camera in a diving underwater housing.
My gear is very strong but also very, very heavy; two cameras plus 4 to 5 lenses, and the underwater stuff is probably around 12-15 kilos. I dream of a very compact setup, but I haven’t found any compact solutions yet.
I also try to reduce anything around me (freediving and sailing is not the best way to accumulate and have a lot of gear).
I have very minimal diving stuff (a wetsuit, a mask, a snorkel and 2 fins) I have no air tank, and also no additional light or strobe.

Do you plan your images or go with the flow?
Each time I plan an image it is a nightmare, I spend days planning for it and the result is not always good. There are so many unpredictable things that change underwater that you have to adapt to at any moment (waves, bubbles, light changing, etc.). You just need time (and luck).
What’s your aim when capturing the beauty of underwater life?
The aim is to capture beauty. As an outdoor photographer, I love my playground, I want to say that we can also be part of nature and live in harmony.
Many of us are really respectful and love wildlife, I feel that showing beauty is my job.
How do you edit your images?
Underwater editing is a great part of the job. Water absorbs a lot of light, and a lot of contrasts. You can push a lot in the editing process, that is probably why I am a disaster when I edit my land shots! I would say that the two main parameters are to take care of the white balance and contrast.
Shooting raw files is really needed for this kind of underwater light.
Discover more about Alex's work on his website and on Instagram!

