Underwater photographer Matt Draper said the attitude that "a good shark is a dead shark" is where we're going wrong. Photo / Matt Draper
Images of great white sharks often instill fear in people, but one New Zealander is hoping to turn that reaction on its head with his stunning underwater photos of the notorious predator.
Matt Draper, 30, originally from Stokes Valley, threw in his day job, packed up his belongings and took a chance on a dream - all with the hope of educating and inspiring people about life in the ocean.
After moving to Australia's Byron Bay almost three years ago, Mr Draper purchased an underwater housing for his camera and started experimenting with photos of surfers. From that came a chance encounter with a turtle ... and somewhat larger creatures.
A look at his Instagram account is enough to see his past few years have been filled with encounters beyond most people's imaginations.
"I was sick of carpentry and not being able to express myself, Mr Draper said.
"I love the ocean and wanted to be able to share that with people and show what I was doing, whether that be surfing, or just enjoying the ocean."
Mr Draper said one of his main goals is to turn fear into fascination, to show animals in their natural environment and help people understand them. Particularly when it comes to those that commonly create feelings of trepidation.
"Fear-mongering from the media, especially with regards to sharks, is always going to be an issue, so it's more about educating individuals," Mr Draper said.
"I don't want to get underwater with them and show 'hey these guys are cool', I want to show how they're important and misunderstood and need to be respected.
"They're an apex predator, we need to respect their territory. If it was a tiger in the wild people would be more cautious ... we can't just do what we want in the ocean."
Great whites, manta rays, humpback whales, seals and turtles are but a few of the creatures to pass in front of Mr Draper's lens, but it's his encounter with a tiger shark in Hawaii that has left the strongest impression.
The few hours he spent with a breed considered one of the most dangerous in the world "changed my whole perspective of them as an animal and a predator".
These experiences are what has led the Kiwi to start classes tutoring others and helping the younger generation chase their dreams too.
"Every day you get in the water and something happens that you could never imagine. I want to try to capture those moments and share them with others."
• Mr Draper's photographs and details about his workshops can be found here. You can also see examples of his work on Instagram.
- nzherald.co.nz
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