HIS love for the ocean and knowledge of local waters has helped him experience and capture images of splendour and beauty at unspoilt dive sites that few get to see.
That’s the reason Steve Benjamin – an award-winning underwater photographer who has been involved, among others, in big BBC productions, including one on the local sardine run – appreciates the importance of South Africa’s Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Day.
After MPA Day was successfully launched on August 1 last year, the initiative, which is being driven by various partners and is aimed at ramping-up support and interest in marine biodiversity, is set to go global next month.
There are 41 MPAs in South Africa; they make up 5.4% of the oceans and coast.
Just as nature and wildlife reserves protect terrestrial plants and animals, the purpose of MPAs is to preserve the ocean’s inhabitants, some of which are on the cusp of extinction.
MPAs provide safe havens for marine life to thrive and mature. One of the benefits of having such designated areas is to counteract overfishing.
Benjamin said overfishing, mining and pollution are among the activities that most harm ocean life.
“Initiatives such as MPA Day are critically important. Human impact reaches far and wide, and there is almost no environment left on the planet that has no degradation or destruction because of people.”
He believes MPAs could be the last places where intact ecosystems exist.
“An MPA could be seen as a bank account filled with the richest savings in the world, and we live off its excess capital.”
Benjamin’s scuba or freediving expeditions to take photographs or videos of sea life has helped him become more familiar with the ocean's assets, including those found in hard-to-reach places.
“I am able to get to places that others can't reach. I get into holes, cracks and caves and expose creatures that might not have otherwise been seen.”
Benjamin said he also spends time in the open ocean, getting comfortable in the presence of dolphins, whales and other large animals and watching them get on with life.
His interest in the marine world dates back to him growing up in Cape Town, accompanying his father on trips to catch crayfish, scuba diving and snorkelling.
That interest deepened through the influence of a primary school teacher who got him to volunteer at the Two Oceans Aquarium.
He later studied zoology at the University of Cape Town and ichthyology (the study of fish) at Rhodes University.
His first job was at Two Oceans, before taking to underwater photography.
“My interest in taking pictures started in 2010, during my time at the Aliwal Shoal (off the coast near Umkomaas in KwaZulu-Natal), and working on tiger sharks with Mark Addison.”
Benjamin said he met many filmmakers and photographers there, who taught him “tips and tricks” on photography and gave him equipment.
While Benjamin has no formal photography or videography training, he learned as he went on and “took advice from qualified people who worked in the oceans for a long time”.
“I find the filming and photography to be easy, but having an ocean education on how to handle your body, drive boats and behave quietly around ocean creatures is the real skill, which you get through experience.”
Benjamin assisted on shoots with international photographer Thomas Peschak during National Geographic projects in the Seychelles, Mexico, Peru and the Galapagos Islands.
He was also part of a team that captured the sardine run for the BBC film series, Nature’s Great Events, and the broadcaster’s Blue Planet II series.
“Peschak is an absolutely dedicated conservationist who spends much time researching and understanding his subjects before he goes on shoots.
“He is very good at getting access to places that others can’t [in order] to expose important conservation stories.
“Tom has influenced me to portray images and tell a story by going to places and photographing things in a different way. He is also a very giving person. I try to do the same by helping NPOs and NGOs to expose the country’s marine life.”
On filming the sardine run, Benjamin said he counted it a honour to be instrumental in getting South Africa’s fauna featured in top-end productions for worldwide audiences.
“It was amazing to see the final product, having worked with other dedicated conservationists.”
For Benjamin, working in the ocean, showing tourists and filmmakers natural events such as the sardine run, or humpback whales feeding, or a kelp forest, is a privilege.
“Underwater, there are marvellous magical creatures... there are no ups and downs; rules and barriers of the land don't exist. It is also a world many people don't see,” said Benjamin.
He loves creating images that help scientists and marine specialists tell a story, while exposing the work they do.
“Photos that show the natural world and create change are my favourites. I really like wide angle shots showing creatures in their environment so people can see the splendour, colour and biodiversity.”
Dr Judy Mann, an executive of the strategic projects division with the Two Oceans Aquarium Education Foundation, said they were excited that MPA Day will be celebrated across the world in 2022.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE