Above left : 1968 Guaymas , Mexico , Ernest with early colour chart
Above right : 1962 Exakta 35mm with flash bulb attachment . The case was designed for Ernest ’ s first photos of Devil ’ s Hole , Death Valley , California and Nevada
ERNEST patched together his first housing from scratch for a black and white Leica camera at the age of 19 and still has not strayed into colour photography . His list of appearances and accolades couldn ’ t fit onto one roll of 36-frame film , including induction into the Scuba Diving Hall of Fame , being named Legend of the Sea and having his work featured in the Smithsonian alongside the likes of Ansel Adams . Through it all , the timelessness of his black and white beauties continue to serve as a reminder of the ocean ’ s resilience , beauty and fragility .
We know your father was an avid boater and diver . What effect did this , and growing up in the rich marine environment around Santa Barbara , have on launching your love of the sea ? This certainly was one of the key elements that urged me to venture out into the Pacific and the Channel Islands . At the age of nine I entered a swimming contest at summer camp – a 50-foot-long sprint . Not only did I win first place , but also I managed to hold my breath and stay underwater the whole time . By the time I was in high school , I was competing in mile-long swim meets . It was during a five-kilometre race off the
coast of Santa Barbara that my fate was sealed – through my swim goggles I spied the kelp strands , schooling fish and sunrays disappearing into the depths . With both my parents working as photographers I didn ’ t just see Nature , I saw frame and focus lines .
When did you first pick up a camera ? I was given my first camera in kindergarten – a Kodak Browne Box . I made one exposure of my class in front of the Lompoc Grade School , superimposing the teacher in front of the class . It turned out to be my first published photograph on the front page of the Lompoc Review in October of 1940 . My father had a photographic studio in town , so my sister and I would work together to develop my father ’ s film – I would do the acetic acid while my sister handled the processing times , washing and drying . By the time I reached grade school , I already had a brown fingernail from all the film processing . By the time I turned 19 , I decided to build an underwater housing for my Leica camera . It was the perfect camera , compact with a sharp lens for my love of ambient light . But it wasn ’ t like a fancy housing of today . There was only one control – the shutter . The rest of the
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