Matt Shepherd sees the world more clearly under water. Indeed it is where he is most at home, amongst the tiniest of life forms to the largest rays and sharks.
Matt has teamed up with The Channon Gallery to present an exhibition that showcases images that are a little different to the normal surf shots that we have all come to know. There will also be a couple of really funky images taken while scuba diving at Julian Rocks over the last few years. The exhibition opends at 4pm Sunday the 18th of November at The Channon Gallery – 52 Terrania St, The Channon
“I guess I wouldn’t call the shots surf images at all but more underwater abstracts that allow the viewer to get lost in them for a few minutes or more. I have focused on clear water mixed in with amazing light and simple but powerful compositions.”
Through photography he shares the art which already exists beneath the surface and brings it above sea level into tangible images that make the observer taste salt water.
For 3 years Matt has been diving with his camera, plunging into deeper realms and travelling further away to capture the most stunning scenery below. His backyard is the east coast of Australia and much of his work consists of this land and seascape. Yet looking through his images one can travel alongside Matt to Japan, Indonesia, and Micronesia.
During a live-aboard contract on the Great Barrier Reef, Matt got amongst dozens of sharks with his camera and serenely, almost playfully, captured a feed which would yield some of his most memorable experiences and images, exemplifying his skills shooting underwater and proving remarkable for a self-taught photographer.
Not all his images contain living subjects however. An ability he has mastered is discovering and documenting the absolute simplistic beauty that occurs as light transfers through water and the power of currents on the sea bed, creating mesmerising and timeless photographs.
After taking shots which won him several awards, Matt was hooked on persevering for the next best image. A carpenter by trade, his attention to detail is meticulous and it is this quality that sets him apart from other photographers. This and the fact that he will relentlessly spend hours in a tumultuous ocean for one brilliant shot.
On Terra Firma Matt also produces images of the highest quality. He has an adeptness for shooting landscape and underwater with equally professional technique and creativity, rendering his work distinguishable in the field.
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