Becky Kagan Schott
Wildlife Photographer
"My two passions in life have always been the underwater world and photography."
"Every time I descend I aim to photograph something unique and capture a powerful story in my images. My passion is documenting extreme environments; places rarely visited or ever seen by human eyes. I want to show these almost hidden locations and ignite the imagination."
About the photographer
Every time I descend I aim to photograph something unique and capture a powerful story in my images. My passion is documenting extreme environments; places rarely visited or ever seen by human eyes. I want to show these almost hidden locations and ignite the imagination.I began diving caves in Florida when I was just a teenager. After learning to shoot in the dark and perfecting creative lighting techniques in caves, I also found a true passion for shipwrecks. I specifically feel a strong connection to North America’s Great Lakes because it’s like diving in an underwater time capsule. I enjoy researching the stories of heroism, tragedy, mystery, and survival. The tales are powerful and seeing the shipwrecks frozen in time inspires me to capture their hauntingly beautiful essence.
I don’t just take photographs; I feel the moment and expect that my passion comes through in the image. When I shoot wrecks and caves I like to combine my artistic approach with science and history, spending a great deal of time planning my shot in advance. Even though my diving career started in Florida I find myself diving in mostly cold water environments because the possibilities are exciting. I never dreamed I’d be capturing images in depths past 100 meters using rebreathers, mixed gases, and being a part of exploration teams, but my journey and persistence has brought me to this point.
When I’m at depth I feel hyperaware of my life support equipment, environment, directing lighting assistants, and pulling it all together to create something I can be proud of. When I close my eyes, I can see what I want in my mind and the fun part is making that a reality. After my father’s passing when I was 13 I knew I’d follow my dreams and make my goals a reality. I have a loving family and I’ve made some of the best friends as I’ve traveled the world searching for spectacular moments and sharing the experiences. My two passions in life have always been the underwater world and photography.
I feel fortunate to have combined them and I can’t imagine my life in any other way.