How and from where we view the sea governs our impression of it. My experience has generally been from where the land meets the sea, and has manifested itself through my work as a research zoologist and wildlife photographer.
Marine mammals have held my scientific interest for several decades largely because of their adaptations to an environment of which we can only view from the surface. The seal, though, is where my loyalty lies since it has adapted to two highly contrasting environments, the marine and the terrestrial. Much of my scientific work therefore takes place at the interface between land and sea. Not surprisingly, it is also at this juxtaposition where much of my photography takes place since it is from here where one can become engrossed in and inspired by the power and transient moods of the sea.
To both the scientist and artist, the sea has always been a challenge. How does one acquire knowledge on a group of animals that spend so much of their time hidden from view? The challenge for the artist is to portray, on a static canvas, the energy and essence of a body of water in constant flux and its relationship with the animals that live within it.
Whether one is a scientist or an artist, standing on the shore or on a boat, our approach to understanding or interpreting the sea requires openness, like the sea itself. The scientist needs to avoid the temptation of speculation and rather present the facts, however few there may be. The artist, on the other hand, must have patience, a quiet mind, and perhaps some luck. In either case, if we view the sea with accepted concepts and associations our impression of it will be shaped by what we think the sea ought to be rather than how we really see it.
Dr. Damian Lidgard is a research zoologist with The Ocean Tracking Network and a wildlife photographer.
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