Borneo is a place I have wanted to visit for many years but never got around to it until now. The Island borders Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei and it is one of the most unique places in the world. Getting deep into the wild takes several modes of transport and even then you never know if you are in the right place. Although this was a short trip for me it was a good introduction to the region and the bonus was that I got to Photograph some of the Orangutans. These are amazing creatures only found in Borneo and some areas of Sumatra. Unfortunately the Palm oil industry is destroying their habitat. I think Borneo has a lot to offer and you need a fair bit of time to explore the land. There is always a next time.

My recent trip to the Bahamas provided some amazing photographic opportunities. But I spent the first 3 days at Crystal River in Florida swimming with the Manatees. These are amazing gentle animals that are quite interactive and spend most of their time huddled around each other or the warm springs. The Highlight was spending time with the Atlantic Spotted Dolphins in the Grand Bahamas, they were amazingly beautiful and very interactive. I would have spent the whole trip there if I could. But the aim of the trip was to dive with the sharks and more specifically seek out some of the tiger sharks that are found in the area. the lemon and reef sharks were abundant and most days we saw at least one tiger shark if not more. definitely a place to visit again. for images check out the gallery here.

Many people don’t realise how much diversity there is in the underwater world around Sydney beaches. I spent a lot of time in the water in 2011 photographing the various creatures we can find in our own back yard. Cuttlefish, Octopus, Sea Horses, Weedy Sea Dragons, Nudibranchs, Shrimp, Moray Eels, Port Jackson sharks and Wobbygong sharks to name just a few. I seriously recommend any underwater photographer taking the time to explore what Sydney has to offer.

I recently was approached by an artist, Patrick LaMontagne, who creates unique cartoon characters of various wildlife and has put together a collection of these wildlife cartoon totems. He asked permission to use a particular Humpback calf photo I took in Tonga last year and explained what he was trying to achieve. I didn’t know what the end result would be but the piece is very engaging.  It is always flattering when someone is inspired by your work and as you can see below the results are truly amazing. Patrick is a very talented artist and I look forward to seeing more of his work. For anyone interested in his collection you can visit his site at http://www.cartoonink.com/