ORCA surfing the waves

I had dreamed of photographing orca swimming in the surf for years. Growing up in Whakatāne, my dad went for a horse ride early in the morning and happened to see orca playing in the surf. I was like 'wow, that would be the coolest thing to see'.

And then a few years ago, not only did my dream come true, but I also managed to capture the image. I’ve had some amazing opportunities to photograph New Zealand’s amazing marine wildlife in the past, but there's something about getting the perfect shot. There was a moment on the beach on Sunday when I had a quick look at the shot I hoped I'd got. You never really know looking at that little screen on the back of the camera, but I had a moment of 'oh my god, I think I've got the perfect shot'. It's just so exciting, it's what you strive to do.

And of course, a big shoutout to the Omanu Surf Club for cutting their IRB training short to let these awesome mammals pass safely through.