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Finalist Conservation Photographer of the Year

Matt Potenski Bahamas

25°41'56.0"N N 79°17'28.0"W N

A mangrove sapling stands tall as its ecosystem is pulled down around it. It was buried the next day. “The irony of this shot,” says photographer Matt Potenski, “is that I was taking a journalist to this area to see some pristine mangroves and how juvenile lemon sharks use the area as a refuge.”

BEHIND THE LENS

2020 CPoY finalist, Matthew Potenski

Matt Potenski United States (US)

ABOUT THE IMAGE

  • Camera: Canon 20D
  • Aquatica housings with Ikelite DS-160 strobes
  • Crawled in the shallow lagoon to capture the image
  • Taken at 4pm on a warm, clear day

Matt grew up in New Jersey and his childhood was filled with trips to aquariums, museums and zoos. He developed a deep love for wildlife and the ocean and sharks in particular. Matt graduated with degrees in Biology and Marine Science from Rutgers University and began doing marine biology fieldwork with the Bimini Biological Field Station-Sharklab. He led research on species as different as southern stingrays and whale sharks working for the NSU Oceanographic Center, The Shark Research Institute, and WWF-Tanzania. During his travels, Matt decided to get a digital camera to record the things he was seeing on his research trips. That hobby turned into an addiction and eventually a second career in commercial studio photography. However, his passion is using photography to show the wonder and beauty (and sometimes the threats) of the underwater world that many people never see with their own eyes.