Returning to Film: Exploring Nature & Portraits in Black and White
Back to where it all started
I learnt photography developing in the darkroom 24 years ago. I loved shooting black and white film.
Since I’ve been shooting digital for the past 10 years, I’ve tried getting back into film every now and then — and to be honest, I felt like I sucked. At least, that’s what I thought until recently.
I was chatting to a friend, Baz Anderson who was a commercial film photographer back in the day, and he helped me realise something important: I’d been approaching film the same way I shoot digital — spontaneous, fluid moments, full of movement. I was photographing on film while out and about with people, but I’d forgotten that shooting film is more about framing the moment with intention. Slowing down to capture that one frame.
It’s not like surf photography, where you’re constantly moving, reacting to the conditions and the surfer. Even my lifestyle photography is about movement and spontaneous moments.
I opened up the photos again and started to see the recurring subjects I’m always drawn to: repetition and patterns in nature, interesting light, reflections, and portraits. I love textures and the repetition of elements — how nature can look like a blanket of intricate detail.
Lush fern forest on a recent trip to New Zealand.
This creative black and white film photography series is a return to my roots — exploring nature, light, and portraiture through the lens of traditional film. I’m currently based in Cabarita Beach, and much of my inspiration comes from growing up in Evans Head and spending time along the Northern Rivers coastline. The textures, patterns, and light in this landscape are what continue to draw me back.
So I decided to hone in on those subjects and create a black and white series around them. This post is here to hold me accountable to this creative project: a series exploring patterns in nature, light in nature, and intimate portraits — all in black and white.
La Ticla, Mexico - 2021
Over the next few months, I’ll be sharing pieces from this series here, and I’d love to know what you think. In this post, I’ve included the photos that helped piece together the vision, along with some of my very early black and white work from when I was 16.
A gallery of work from my film developing days in the darkroom at school.
Feel free to share your thoughts with me below!
Life Lately: Published Work, Surf Sessions & Creative Musings
Early morning musings ~ Rainbow Bay, QLD
It’s been a little while since I last shared an update—what started as a monthly newsletter has become more of an every-few-months kind of rhythm. Lately, I’ve been spending time redefining my business and reflecting on where I want to go creatively. The female surf industry has always been a huge part of my work as a surf lifestyle photographer, and it will continue to be a focus. I want to share more about the incredible women I photograph, the reasons I’m drawn to their style, and their stories that inspire my work. And always, with dreamy light and sparkly skies.
A Few Highlights From the Last Few Months
I’m super stoked to share that I was recently published in Every Body Surf—a stunning new photo book that celebrates women of all ages, body types, and ethnicities in the surf. Having both my images and words featured in this project was an absolute honour. Representation in surf media has been evolving, and it’s so encouraging to see more diversity in surf photography and advertising. Still, I’d love to see more brands focusing on the athleticism, talent, and individual style of the surfer—not just how they look in a bikini. Buy book internationally ~ buy book in Australia
Some other exciting features I haven’t yet shared: my work was published in Tracks Magazine last year and White Horses Magazine in 2023. These two projects are incredibly special to me because they included not only my photography but also my writing.
In White Horses, I had the privilege of interviewing two talented Mexican surfers—Mirian and Brenda—who I’ve photographed over the years and become close with. While I’ve always admired them, diving into their personal journeys gave me a whole new level of appreciation for their strength, spirit, and contributions to the female surf culture.
For Tracks Magazine, I had just moved back from Mexico and wrote about my time living there for the past six years. I found writing this article hard—writing about yourself and your journey is terrifying when it’s out there for everyone to read. But it was an incredible experience to reflect back over my time in Mexico and see all the amazing dreams I accomplished, the lifelong friends I made, and the life-changing experiences that have shaped the person I am today.
New Offerings & Creative Sessions
On the business side of things, I’ve introduced Creative Content Sessions—a new way to work with me. These sessions are perfect for creatives, entrepreneurs, or anyone wanting to create content that is tailored to reflect you. I’m still offering Surf Sessions, Commercial Photography for surf and lifestyle brands, and my Fine Art Print Shop, where you can take a piece of the ocean home with you.
If you’re curious to learn more or want to collaborate, you can explore all the options on my website: www.saltysee.com.
A Moment from the Sea
I’ll leave you with a little moment from a recent swell in Lennox Head. Even though we arrived before the swell had fully filled in, the electric energy was contagious—it’s why I love documenting these moments.
Thanks so much for reading and for continuing to support this ever evolving journey. Whether you’ve been here since the beginning or just recently found me, I’m really stoked you’re here.
With love,
Emy
Billabong Womens ~ Shapes
Shapes: A bikini for every body.
Tall waves, short waves, round rollers and bumpy barrels. Wave shapes and women's shapes are all different, beautiful and unique in their own special way. Our Shapes series continues with four new women who inspire us to do what we love, and to love our shape. #ILoveMyShape
Director: Scott Wynn
Creative Director: Elley Norman
Agency: Patti Agency
DOP: Andrew Schoener
Photographer: me!!
Client: Billabong Womens
Surfers: Lexi Jorgensen, Mahina Florence, Kalei Fukuda and Gabi Turnbull
Billabong womens ~ my mexican roots
The idea behind involved Nique Miller connecting back to her Mexican roots with the help of local Mexican Female Surfers Mirian, Brenda and Patty. The imagery was carried out as a Social Media campaign, website product imagery and blog post for Billabong Womens. Read the blog post here: Billabong Womens blog Post ~ Mexican Roots: Reconnecting with Nique Miller and Friends
Surfers: Nique Miller, Mirian Ventura Esteban, Patty Valdovinos Ornelas and Brenda Flores Rodriguez
Chillies, Cacti and Suffocating hugs
This is something I celebrated back in December 2019. I was published in my first magazine, Pacific Longboarder Magazine. This was a dream of mine for a long time, to share my stories and images together and to be published in a magazine that I truly respect and admire. I wrote a piece about how I ended up in Mexico accompanied by images of my Mexican home, Sayulita. I’ve wanted to share this piece for a while now, I was waiting on the magazine to arrive in Mexico but in true Mexican postal style, it never arrived. Or it did, it’s now somewhere else in Mexico, who knows! I got ahold of the digital copy and pieced this together to celebrate and share one of my dreams coming true because if we don’t celebrate our dreams coming true, what’s the point of having them right?! Thanks Pacific Longerboard mag for this awesome opportunity. Enjoy the article below!
Chillies, Cacti and Suffocating hugs.
How did I end up in Mexico when I grew up in a small Australian coastal town? Good question! I guess I ended up here after following a 13-year fascination that one day I thought I’d like to live in Mexico after numerous conversations with my Mexican workmate. I spent many years doing laps between Australia and South America, not quite making it to Mexico. So finally for my 30th birthday, I bought myself a plane ticket. That’s when I realised those 13 years of fantasising weren’t for nothing. The rhythm, colour, heat, balmy waters, fire laced sunsets, endless waves, lines of palm trees, cacti, glowing smiles, rapid-fire Spanish, and endless supply of tacos – it grabbed me like it never wanted to let me go, embracing me like a suffocating hug, holding me so tight, I couldn’t breathe. But at the same time, I didn’t want it to let go, chaotic and calm all at the same time.
That sensory overload became my goal. To go back to Australia, build my photography business and return to the land of chillies, cacti and suffocating hugs. It took me 2 years to get back there but this time I was equipped with a dream, just no idea of exactly where or how long for. Without much thought, I decided at the last minute to follow my cousin’s suggestions of a surf trip along the Pacific Coast of Mexico. I decided to start in Sayulita, finish off some work and then continue on my journey. But I never left. One week in, I decided I was going to call Sayulita home with its enticing energy, full of mixed cultures, sweaty saltiness and lovely longboard waves. 1 year later, I’m still here.
Sayulita Mornings ~ buy print here
I’ve been blessed with so many magic moments since making Mexico my home away from home but one thing that sticks in my mind is the opportunities that have arisen once I took the leap and decided to follow my dreams. Traveling to countries I’ve always dreamt of, floating in the ocean, snapping away. But with every adventure comes those life lessons that hit you in the face when you least expect it, like my water housing leaking twice in 8 months, costing me a small fortune. And not to mention, communicating in my wonderful Spanish, asking if I can shit my telephone instead of charging, that I’m going to go look after the tits instead of tents, and calling doors whores. But I wouldn’t trade any of this journey for anything in the world. Because while I sit here and wonder if I’ll ever be able to communicate fluently in Spanish or keep my camera dry, I get to wear a smile that lights up every bone in my body, because I decided that one day, I’d like to live in Mexico and one day, I did just that.
2019
What a year it has been. While it’s not over yet, I thought for this month’s blog post it would be nice to reflect back on the year it has been. Epic, challenging and laced with plenty of blessings in disguise. As artists, we are almost, always hustling, hustling for our next gig or striving for our next goal or dream and we very often forget to just stop and pause, rest and soak up all the goodness we’ve achieved. Thanks to a lovely run of kidney infections, the flu, and dengue fever, I’ve had many opportunities in the last 2 months to stop, pause and rest, lapping up much needed time to appreciate everything that has been this year. As I write this, I’m sitting at Day 8 of dengue fever, another gift that keeps on giving.
This year decided to start, keeping me on my toes with my water housing flooding in January when the high season was in full swing, making me think quick and on my feet to ensure that I could keep myself afloat here in Mexico. This led me to my very first solo exhibition ever, in my favourite café Miscelánea. I’ve always loved the community of Sayulita, hence why I live here but having my first exhibition here and watching how the community comes together to support each other, this is something I experienced for the first time, firsthand.
Next was Mexilogfest, traveling down to parts of Mexico, I’ve been dying to see. I was equipped with my camera again after being out of action for 3 months. This was a lifelong dream to photograph alongside some of the best surf photographers in the world, some of the best longboarders in the world. What a week, a week full of good vibes and beautiful humans, lifelong friendships and a bunch of photos I’m so proud of, some of my best work I’ve ever produced came from this frothy week of lefts. Mexilogfest has become a career highlight for sure.
Kristy Murphy, Caio Teixeira, Mason Schremmer and Mantarraya at this year’s Mexilogfest, La Saladita.
The next moments of epicness saw me traveling to Costa Rica for 2 months working with Rise Up Surf Retreats and Surf With Amigas. Not only had I never been to Costa Rica before, but I’d also never traveled this far for work before. And what can I say, I hit the jackpot. Rise Up became my instant family. The good vibes, manic monkeys and jungle houses became our home for the next 5 weeks. Our daily routine/ commute saw us walking through the jungle spotting sloths, monkeys, snakes and many other random animals I couldn’t pronounce the names of, not to mention the numerous wonderful guests that came through. Each and every one of them bringing something different and wonderful to the Rise Up experiences. Photographing all these wonderful humans with the backdrop of the jungle, was again another highlight in my career, right now I was literally going from one highlight to the next. From the rights of the Osa Peninsula to the lefts of Pilon and Pavones, I found myself catching some of the best waves I’ve ever surfed (for all the goofy’s out there). I spent the next two weeks on another epic adventure with the Surf With Amigas crew. Again, photographing some of the most epic swells coming through with some incredible souls. Could my life get any better?
From Costa Rica back to Mexico, my housing flooded yet again, costing me another small fortune. But it also saw me landing some of my most favourite clients, becoming a swimwear ambassador for Salt Gyspy, an Australian Sustainable swimwear brand, a trip to some islands about 3 hours off the coast of Mexico, which are illegal (sorry Mum) and where a prison used to be up until February this year. We scored 2 days of epic rights to ourselves, a beached boat, fresh ceviche from our daily catch as well as shark sightings and a night in the tent with 4 tropical storms gracing us with their presence.
The next couple of months saw me on a trip to Ensenada, Baja for the Peninsula Longboard and Film festival. Another weekend of epicness and freezing my ass off in the water. I hate the cold but I tell you what, those glassy waves and misty sunsets were worth the 6 hours in the water and the adventures to find chocolate clams.
Ricardo Garcia, Jen Smith, Vicente Yazbek at this year’s Peninsula Longboard and Film Festival, Ensenada Baja.
Which brings me to my most treasured accomplishment of this year, being published in my first magazine and I couldn’t be more stoked to be published in Pacific Longboarder, an Australian Surf magazine which has been a big part of my life for years. I wrote a piece about how I ended up here in Mexico with many colourful moments about my journey. I’m beyond stoked to see my work splashed across the pages in a few week’s time.
So while I’m not sure what else could pack itself into this year, and to be honest, I’ll be happy if nothing else does, I can say this, I’m so bloody grateful for everything that has popped up this year. It’s been a challenging year that has made me so uncomfortable in so many ways because it’s pushing me to do things I’ve always dreamed of but never knew how to. I’m so grateful for all the people I have in my life reminding me, if it scares you, that’s good. While I wish I could keep my eyes shut a little bit longer, I’m also very thankful for the opportunities that continue to come my way. 2020 will see me in Guatemala, Morocco and back home to Australia (for a few weeks) for work, my best friend’s wedding and meeting my beautiful little niece Elsie for the first time.
And the next special thing is, today is actually Salty See’s 3rd birthday. 3 is also my favourite number and I just happen to be 33! So yay for 3’s hahaha. It’s been 3 years since I started my baby, Salty See. Born out of my love for swimming around in the ocean for hours on end, surfing and being able to play with light, colour and movement of the ocean and the people who gracefully glade in front of my camera. It’s each and every one of you who appreciate my work, allowing me to follow my dreams. If you didn’t love and support my work, then I wouldn’t have a job! To say thank you and to celebrate I’m offering 30% (because I love 3’s so much) off my print shop. I’m also releasing a limited edition print run of 100 prints for ‘Baja dreams’.
So thank you, everyone, for an outstanding 2019. I hope 2020 brings less snapped boards and flooded water housings, no more dengue fever and a whole lot more epic smiles.
Meet Mirian
I first noticed Mirian’s graceful style when I was out photographing early one morning in Sayulita. She glided past me on her beautiful turquoise board, dancing around in the waves. I immediately became mesmerised with capturing her in the glistening sun as it bounced around her.
As time went on, I got to know Mirian and her sweet lovely self mostly because of her help in the surf. Before I arrived in Mexico just over a year ago, I only surfed short boards and not that often. I’ve always loved the idea of longboarding, it’s beautiful and graceful and it combines two things I love most, surfing and dancing. Sayulita is a very popular tourist destination and the main break is often packed full of tourists and locals of all levels. Some days it’s a battlefield, fighting for a wave. When I was first learning to longboard, Mirian would catch waves with me, cruising along beside me, telling me what to do. With her help amongst many others, my love for longboarding grew rapidly. Her style and kindness in the waves made me curious about the story behind this beauty that graciously glides through my photos.
I think the most amazing part of Mirian’s story is before she moved to Sayulita 6 years ago, she’d never swam in the ocean or had seen a beach. She didn’t even know how to swim. For someone who now has such a graceful presence, it’s pretty impressive.
Mirian moved here from Guerrero when she was 18. She started working at one of the local surf shops where the guys would hassle her everyday to give surfing a go. She was scared of the ocean but eventually decided to try paddleboarding. From there, she moved onto surfing. When I watch Mirian surf, it blows my mind how she had never seen the ocean before she got to Sayulita and that she’s only been surfing for 3 and a half years. When she first started surfing, there wasn’t many women in the line-up in Sayulita or female role models to look up to. In international competitive surfing, most of the women are from the US, Europe, and Australia. Countries like Mexico aren’t strongly represented so women’s surfing here she feels is super important. I asked Mirian what it was like to surf in Sayulita, her response was she feels sometimes when you surf the point here, the men just go one wave after another, there’s no etiquette. Maybe it’s because of the culture? It’s like a war in the Sayulita, you have to play hard or go home. Despite this being the case, it makes you want to surf harder. Which led to my next question, how do we become part of the change, how do we encourage women’s surfing here? She feels by creating more opportunities, like groups, or girls go surfing days where we all get together, surfing and encouraging one another. Power in numbers.
After speaking to Mirian about women’s surfing in Mexico, I was asked a similar question about the challenges being a female surf photographer. And to be honest, I can’t say I’ve faced any, if anything, curiosity and encouragement but no misogyny. The one place I have experienced challenges is as a female surfer, and I don’t know if it’s because the breaks are crowded and there is more aggression in the water which results in fighting for waves, but I’ve definitely learnt to become more assertive in the waves, because my politeness doesn’t seem to cut here sometimes.
You can find Mirian in the main break here nearly every day. It’s surfers like Mirian that become an integral part of the local community here in Sayulita, weaving together the identity and encouraging more women to get out there and give it a go. Her parting words were simple yet so true, something I feel we all share when we’re in the waves, no matter where you’re from or who you are:
‘Cuando estoy en el agua siempre estoy feliz y como me siento diferente nunca estoy pensando nada. Solo estoy mirando las olas y me gusta más en la mañana por el amanecer. La Luz es muy bonita. Me siento más confiado y siento que puedo hacerlo, porque a veces si vas por él, te puede gustar mucho.’
‘When I'm in the water I'm always happy and as I feel different I'm never thinking anything. I'm just looking at the waves and I like it more in the morning by sunrise. The light is very pretty. I feel more confident and feel like I can do it, because sometimes if you go for it, you might really like it.’
