Laurent Ballesta
Wildlife Photographer
"Dare to go where nobody has been before."
"Environmental adventures from the surface to a depth of 200 meters best describe what I’m working at.
It all started on the shores of the French Mediterranean, at depths that for a long time were believed inaccessible for underwater photographers."
About the photographer
Here I was fortunate to be able to find a treasure of an extraordinary biodiversity that even the local that I am never suspected existed. To take these pictures, my friends and I had to spend more than 600 hours of observation and diving up to a depth of more than 200 meters.
This kind of dives required ten years of preparation during which time we improved the equipment and security measures. During these years, my photographic technique also improved considerably when dealing with the constraints encountered – using a super endoscopic macro lens and panoramic photo stitching, to maximize dusk level light in zones beyond 150 meters requiring sensitivity of up to 100 000 ISO.
It was an environmental exploration ahead of an artistic achievement. A journey without leaving France – exciting, stressful, exhausting but always a fascinating quest for a biodiversity which is both eroding and unfolding before our hallucinated eyes. And even if I can’t stop it eroding, I hope to be able to contribute to its enhancement. May you enjoy it while looking through this portfolio.