Ambassador Steve Miller has been a passionate teacher of underwater photography since 1980. In addition to creating aspirational photos as an ambassador, he leads the Ikelite Photo School, conducts equipment testing, contributes content and photography, represents us at dive shows and events, provides one-on-one photo advice to customers, and participates in product research and development. Steve also works as a Guest Experience Manager for the Wakatobi Dive Resort in Indonesia. In his "free" time he busies himself tweaking his very own Backyard Underwater Photo Studio which he's built for testing equipment and techniques. Read more...
Ambassador Gary Burns is a Photographer and Aerospace Engineer. His work has taken him from his homeland of the UK to Canada to work with a leading aerospace team developing the first Challenger corporate aircraft. Gary now works out of Southern California where he dives on a regular basis in the Channel Islands off Santa Barabara and Catalina. During each adventure, the Ikelite underwater camera systems have been the perfect dive buddy. Read more...
Denise Pietsch (pronounced “Peach”) currently manages Ikelite’s Photo School and social media presence. Denise hails from New Jersey, where she obtained a degree in Dance Therapy. After years teaching dance she migrated into the corporate world and eventually came around to Ikelite via the natural career path of fruit distribution and early childhood development. In the end, her lifelong love of photography and octopuses combined into the work she does now. In addition to sharing her energy and enthusiasm with the underwater community she also manages social media for her dog, Joe, collects vinyl records, and enjoys creating memories with her friends and family.
Mike Rabideau was certified in 1984 and two years later started working at Ikelite. He went on to become head designer of our camera housing line and leads our technical customer support team. If you call or email with a technical question, there’s a good chance you’ll hear back from Mike R. Mike’s an active diver and underwater photographer. In his free time he enjoys driving his 1962 Nash Metropolitan to car shows. His son also became a certified diver and works underwater every day with the marine mammals at the Indianapolis Zoo.
Josh Blank is a diver and underwater photographer based out of the Gold Coast on the east coast of Australia. Through a combination of scuba diving and freediving, Josh is passionate about exploring the open ocean and photographing the larger marine species that inhabit the deep blue. With his photography he hopes to inspire, inform, and instill an interest in the underwater world. Read more...
Logan Wood is a published photographer, cinematographer, and Producer at Ikelite. Stemming from a great appreciation for the outdoors and living an active lifestyle, his work focuses on capturing and sharing the natural world through the latest technologies. When not in the studio, Logan can be found cruising on his bike, going to concerts, and researching where to go next. You can see more of his work at loganwood.net and on Instagram @jlowood
Charlotte Bories is an award-winning French underwater photographer specializing in fine art, fashion, and fantasy images. She currently resides in Bali where she has harnesses the water as a powerful medium for her storytelling. A fierce freediver and scuba diver, Charlotte mixes her underwater photography with digital media to create her dreamy underwater aesthetic. Read more...
Ambassador Lindsey Dougherty is an avid underwater photographer, and recently joined the Elysium Epic Expedition where she was the principal scientist for coral. Lindsey’s love of photography stems from her background in animal behavior - she received her PhD from the University of California Berkeley in 2016 on the flashing “disco” clam, and did the majority of her research throughout Indonesia. Her research has been featured in over 50 new stories, including the New York Times, CNN, the Discovery Channel, and National Geographic. Read more...
David Combs started out part time at Ikelite in 1971 but he has been acting as General Manager since as long as we can remember. David is integral to purchasing, HR, sales & marketing, and occasionally even answering the telephone. When he's not in the office he can be found diving, spending time with his family, on a garden tour, or hanging out with his two german shepherds.
Ambassador Brandi Mueller has been nursing an addiction to WWII wrecks for years now. She fulfilled her childhood dream of becoming a Marine Biologist, then set off to travel the world exploring and teaching underwater photography. She published The Airplane Graveyard in 2018 documenting the history of wrecks photographed during her years in Kwajalein Atoll. She moved on to captain the MV Truk Odyssey in 2019 and we're never quite sure where she'll turn up next. Read more...
Ambassador David Fleetham left his hometown of Vancouver, Canada, for Maui in 1986 and never looked back. He earned his USCG Captain's license while working in various dive charter businesses, shooting, and submitting his photos to magazines and businesses. One of the most prolific underwater photographers of his time, David now has galleries and agents in over 50 countries that reproduce his images thousands of times each year. Read more...
Ambassador Jacques de Vos started out shooting photos and video underwater on his days off as an engineer in the oilfield services. After progressing through scuba instructor and commercial diver certifications, he took up free diving. Before long, Jacques gave up both engineering and compressed air to become a full time photographer, videographer, and free diving instructor. Completely self-taught, Jacques has won several prestigious international UW photography awards; his photography has been published worldwide in several books and publications, and he now also works as a camera operator on projects for companies like the BBC and Red Bull. Jacques now spends several months a year free diving with Orcas in Norway and travels the world the rest of the time. Read more...
Ambassador Glenn Ostle has been taking underwater photos for more than 25 years, starting with Nikonos cameras in the 90s. Since switching to housed cameras, he has owned seven Ikelite housings. Before he retired, he spent 30 years in industrial marketing and 10 years as publisher and editorial director of a leading trade magazine. During that time he also contributed articles and photos to a Florida-based travel magazine, which he continues to do today. Glenn and his partner, Pam Hadfield, travel and dive extensively around the world. Besides underwater photography, he is also an avid bird and land photographer. His photos can be viewed at featherandfins.smugmug.com, and he posts photos regularly on Instagram @ostleglenn. Read more...
Ambassador Alison Bounce was freediving in the Philippines when she saw a pregnant mother playing with her son in the water. It was a revelation. She returned to France and started developing her techniques and setting up a service combining photography with the underwater world. Now a specialist, Alison travels the world doing sub-aquatic shoots and teaching underwater photography. Check out her work at alisonbounceunderwater.com and follow her on Instagram @alisonbounceunderwater
Ambassador Matt Jacobs learned to dive in the Philippines while he was traveling around the world extensively as a photographer in the late 90's. It was only natural to combine his passion for photography with his love of the water. Egypt is now his spiritual home with a special fondness for the Red Sea. Matt is a Panasonic LUMIX Ambassador and his work has been published and sold as fine art internationally. In 2021 Matt became a fellow of the Royal Photographic Society for his black and white underwater images. Read more...
Ambassador David Valencia started diving while a student at the University of California Los Angeles to learn more about the marine environment. David is regularly published in dive publications such as Sport Diver magazine and has won and/or been recognized in numerous international underwater photo competitions. He continuously works to educate people through photography about the incredible natural resources of Baja California Sur, Mexico, where he lives. Read more...
Ambassador Andrew Raak always dreamed about making a life on the water, and he has made it a reality. Andrew has a degree in Marine Science, a Captain's license, and is a certified dive instructor. At the moment he spends his days on the boat in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina, when he's not traveling the world and teaching underwater photography. Read more...
Ambassador Ken Kiefer has had a love of the water and nature since his younger days surfing in Corpus Christi, Texas. He got his first breath of compressed air while lifeguarding and was immediately hooked. Ken spends his professional life in and around a pool, which provides a handy spot to work on underwater photography and lighting techniques. But his passion is the ocean, and his favorite subjects are sharks (and his wife, Ambassador Kimber Kiefer). Read more...
Ambassador Chase Darnell is an award winning ocean photographer, videographer, and filmmaker, with a passion for showing the oceans' natural beauty and fragile place on this earth. He was born landlocked in Jolly, Texas, but now spends his days diving off the coast of Grand Cayman island. He has been published on Alpha Universe and DivePhotoGuide and has been recognized for his surf, scuba, and freediving photography. Read more...
Ambassador Claude Evangelista's work shows more experience than his 26 years would suggest. Claude hails from the Philippines and is a USPA licensed skydiver, PADI AOW scuba diver, and graduate from the International Academy of Film and Television. His passion for extreme adventures gives him a unique perspective of life on earth from 4,000 meters to the deepest depths, and everything in between. Read more...
Ambassador Karen Bagley took her first photography job at the tender age of 16. Since then she's been nationally published, named one of the best maternity photographers in Atlanta, Georgia, and teaches her craft throughout the United States. Karen has a talent for adding a dramatic flair to her unique maternity, newborn, birthing, high school senior, and underwater portraiture photography. Plus she's a master of the business of portrait photography and social media marketing. Karen offers one-on-one mentorship in addition to regular photography seminars. Read more...
Ambassador Ashley Siana has a M.S. degree in Marine Science from the University of Miami and has been scuba diving for over 15 years. While conducting her thesis research in Dry Tortugas National Park, Ashley used her first Ikelite underwater housing to discover her love for capturing the underwater world through photographs as a way of telling the area’s story. Ashley is currently pursuing her M.F.A. in Science & Natural History Filmmaking at Montana State University. Her interest in film is rooted in the fact that films can serve as an application for environmental issues and have the ability to create measurable changes in our world. Read more...
Jean Rydberg, daughter of Ike Brigham, became President & CEO of Ikelite in 2006. Prior to that, she wisely pursued a degree in Astronomy & Astrophysics to prepare herself for the challenges of running a technology-driven manufacturing business with global distribution. Jean fully embraces the need to travel outside of her hometown of Indianapolis to experience good diving. She believes that any camera is capable of amazing results in the right hands, and anyone can become a great photographer given the right advice. When she's not working she's spending time with her husband, cats, and two daughters (though not necessarily in that order).
John Brigham is the Vice President & head of product development at Ikelite. He was born with a flair for design and an entrepreneurial spirit as son of Ikelite founder Ike Brigham. He worked his way up in the business and is a natural fit in the R&D side of things. John dives the equipment as much as possible to test product and put himself in the "fins" of the user. You may also find him on the other end of an email or phone call when you reach out for product advice and support. When he's not underwater he's flying drones, setting off rockets, training his German Shepherd "T2", and spending time with his family.
Ambassador Grant Thomas left Scotland with a degree in Engineering and a desire to travel. His travels developed into a passion for photography, a PADI SCUBA Instructor certification, and an underwater housing. Since then he's established himself as an award-winning underwater photographer including a distinction as British Underwater Photographer of the Year in 2018. He now works as a freelance photographer and expedition guide, leading tours and workshops to encounter and photograph animals like humpback whales and orcas. Read more...
Ambassador Shawn Jackson is a native islander from the Caribbean island of Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras. He began his professional underwater photography career as a Photo Pro at Anthony's Key Resort. From there, he left AKR to start his own professional photography firm handling commercial clients and focusing on his underwater fine art photography. His work has been seen in countless dive magazines including Scuba Diving and Sport Diver. His underwater video footage has also been featured on ESPN as well as several other TV and educational programs. Read more...
Ambassador Elena Kalis picked up a camera and housing as a way to extend her traditional art background. A resident of the Bahamas, she waded into her backyard and used her daughter as a model. This became her first major underwater project "Alice in Waterland" which went viral on the web. Since then her work has been featured on magazines and book covers, and has been exhibited worldwide. In addition to her professional work, Elena (and her daughter) have a mission to bring attention to the conservation work of the Bahamas National Trust. Read more...
Caitlin Hale started out with a PADI Digital Underwater Photography Course and her passion bloomed from there. She went on to meet a variety of professional underwater photographers while working in Little Cayman and Komodo. Since then Caitlin has started the Photography Department at Dive Friends Bonaire and channels her love for photography into an enthusiasm for teaching visitors how to get results, fast. She has been particularly focused on the Olympus Tough series and has developed a course around how to get phenomenal results with this pocket point-and-shoot.
Ambassador Lorenzo Terraneo, from Milan, Italy, works in the world of communication and web marketing and is a journalist enrolled in the Register. In 2010, he joined the strong passion for the sea and diving with the one for photography that always accompanied him since his first analog Nikon SLR. Passionate about marine and terrestrial biology, he is always looking in his photos to recreate the magical meeting between the wonders of nature and human emotions aroused by unusual shapes and colors. Therefore, not naturalistic photos in the strict sense, but moments of artistic beauty (nature art) according to the human canon, which nature expresses incessantly. Read more...
Ambassador Jacques de Vos started out professionally as an engineer in the oilfield services and diving on his days off. After becoming a scuba instructor and commercial diver, Jacques developed his freediving skills and never looked back. He now shoots both stills and video and has developed the skill set to do all of this without the aid of SCUBA. Jacques has won several prestigious international underwater photography awards, his photography has been published worldwide in several books and publications, and he now also works as a camera operator on projects for companies like the BBC and Red Bull. Read more...
Ambassador Bryant Turffs has worked on six of the seven continents as a biologist, boat captain, dive professional, commercial fisherman, photographer, and educator. Today he lives in Palm Beach County, Florida, and works with his partner, Jessica Pate, to understand the mysteries of the local manta ray population. He also uses his photography to tell other natural history and conservation stories. Read more...
Ambassador Jeff Milisen is an internationally acclaimed underwater photographer who has specialized in blackwater photography since 2009. He is a recent addition to the Ikelite ambassador team. His upcoming book, a Field Guide to Blackwater Diving in Hawaii, will help both newbies and seasoned blackwater veterans identify the strange animals they encounter. He currently shoots with a Canon EOS 7D Mark II and dual Ikelite strobes. Read more...
Bill Hawthorne is an aquatic ecologist specializing in the study of the freshwater springs of Florida. Bill focuses his studies and photography on freshwater species, most notably turtles. By sharing his underwater images, Bill hopes he'll expand his viewers' passion toward these unique environments and animals. Check out more of his work on his website, Instagram @billhawthornephotography, TikTok, and YouTube.
Fritz Liechti of Switzerland started diving in 1986 and rarely goes into the water without a camera. He particularly enjoys diving in Switzerland's rivers, especially at night. He travels the world and teaches underwater photography as a CMAS (World Confederation of Underwater Activities) Diving and Underwater Photo Instructor. He has had his work published in several magazines and represented Switzerland in the 2019 CMAS Underwater Photo World Championships. See more of his work at fritzliechti.ch
Nirupam Nigam is a dedicated underwater photographer and fisheries scientist. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Underwater Photography Guide and the Marketing Director at Bluewater Photo. While growing up in Los Angeles he fell in love with the ocean and pursued underwater photography in the local Channel Islands. He received degrees in Aquatic and Fisheries Science and General Biology, at the University of Washington. Check out more of his photography at photosfromthesea.com and his reviews at uwphotographyguide.com and bluewaterphotostore.com
Douglas Klug has been diving California’s Channel Islands for over 30 years as a SCUBA diving instructor and underwater photographer in Santa Barbara, CA. Doug specializes in underwater photography within the kelp forest environment. His photo-essays have been published in print world-wide, including articles in California Diving News, DAN Alert Diver, and Dive Training. Doug’s images have been used in many publications and by the US National Park Service, US National Marine Sanctuary, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Google, and Microsoft. Doug even does live talks on underwater photography for dive clubs and museums in Southern California. See more...
