Hi, I’m Helen

An Underwater Photographer in South Africa

Helen Walne

I started taking underwater photographs armed with a terrible action camera and a fear of the slightest ruffling of the water’s surface. Now, a few years and a clutch of cameras later, I head out almost every day into the cold sea off Cape Town to find tiny creatures and swoon over the life, beauty and light that lives in the kelp forests. Sometimes I feel like a pirate (albeit a slightly out-of-shape one) diving down into the not-so-deep and bringing treasures to the surface to share with others. Many of my pictures are taken in water that is less than 6m deep — you don’t have to be a Jacques Cousteau to experience the ocean’s magic. I have a fascination with jetties and the plants and animals that colonise these human-made structures. And anemones. I’m a fan. Oh, and fans. I’m a BIG fan. And, yes, octopuses, on purely non-instructive terms. Feel free to drop me a mail with any questions, comments or virtual cakes. 

 

View Some Of My Work

A kaleidoscopic record of the ‘underwonder’ of the icy waters just off the coast of Cape Town.