Underwater Gannets

Amy Davies finds out more about this incredible shot that garnered a Sony World Photography Award

- Tracey Lund

The patience and determination of wildlife photographers can never be underestimated. As you’ll already know if you’ve read the Wildlife Photographer of the Year feature on page 22, some will go to extreme lengths for the shot they want.

Tracey Lund has been photographing wildlife for the past 15 years, since a trip to Africa in 2004 spurred her on to dedicate every spare moment to her passion.

I caught up with Tracey at this year’s HIP Fest in Hull, where Tracey is from. Later, a packed room would be enthralled by her varied wildlife images, but it’s this one, thanks to picking up first prize in the Natural World & Wildlife Category and the overall first prize in the National Awards (UK) in this year’s Sony World Photography Awards Open competition, that I’m keen to find out about.

‘I planned it with Richard Shucksmith, the award-winning wildlife photographer who is a guide over in Shetland,’ she tells me. ‘I wanted to get into underwater photography, but because I haven’t quite got the money to branch out into this area, I hired his equipment.

‘We took the boat out off the coast of Noss, which is where the main gannet colony is. As soon as they see the boat they know what’s going to happen.