Linda Pitkin
From early childhood, Linda Pitkin's passion for the natural world inspired her to become both a biologist (specializing until recently in research on insects at the Natural History Museum in London, England), and to paint and photograph nature. For decades, she has found her most satisfying expression of this in photographing marine life. She approaches this with a biologist's fascination for living organisms, but even more with an artistic photographer's eye for composition and lighting.
“I am passionate about underwater photography because of the beautiful quality of light filtering through the water, and because with patience and care you can get really close to wildlife, nose to nose with a fish, that could easily be one of the most stunning creatures I've ever seen.”
Coral reefs host an array of life so startling and vast that scientists continue to discover many new species in these tropical ecosystems. Providing an overview of coral reef formation and development, she explains that reef-building corals cannot live in water deeper than 160 feet or cooler than 64 degrees Fahrenheit, and summarizes the threats to coral reef viability as well as steps towards conservation.
Linda started in scuba diving in 1979 and took up underwater photography a year later, joining the British Society of Underwater Photographers (BSoUP). She has travelled around the world in search of a wide range of underwater subjects, from immense whale sharks to tiny shrimps, details of corals, and scenic views of reefs and wrecks. Linda is the author and photographer of four books, and a number of articles. Her photography features widely in books and magazines, and in exhibitions - she has a long-standing exhibition at the London Zoo. Linda has won many awards in national and international competitions, and is in the Women Divers Hall of Fame. She serves occasionally on juries for photography competitions, and has been a jury member for BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Arts), for the 2002 Television Craft Awards. Linda and her husband Brian live in Croydon, England.
“I love the vivid colours and patterns of many marine animals, and especially the semi-translucent nature of some corals, anemones, shrimps, and others, that sparkle and glow in the light of my flash.”
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