A year as Gina Goodman: Lecturer adds more awards to collection
24 October 2024
Marine & Natural History Photography BA lecturer Gina Goodman has followed up a stellar 2023 with a lengthy list of awards in 2024.
With a mix of underwater wildlife subjects, including jellyfish, dolphins, and lionfish, Gina draws on her 19 years of underwater photographic experience to capture these incredible moments at sites all over the world.
In January, during a shoot in Marsa Alam, Egypt, Gina snapped a lone bottlenose dolphin (below left) in an image named Alone. This image earned her an official selection and a jury top five placement in the International Photography Awards, as well as a nomination for a nomination for a Fine Art Photography Award. This shoot also featured in Finisterre's The Reefs Of Marsa Alam broadcast post. Another image of her dive partner Alice Hickson named Together (below right) also made it to the final round of voting at the International Photography Awards.
Discussing the location, Gina says "The site I travel to in Egypt is remarkable, they have a focus on eco-tourism and sustainability which is a huge draw in an area where tourism demand is high. The reef is voraciously protected and you can see the efforts paying off in the health of the coral and the diversity of life. The image ‘Alone’ which features the lone bottlenose dolphin was quite probably the dive of my life, the dolphin as the title suggests is a lone wanderer and was with us from the moment we rolled from the back of the rib. We didn’t entice or try to engage with the animal, there was no need, it was incredibly inquisitive and encouraged us to play by passing us empty bleached shells to throw. I don’t think I’ll ever be fortunate enough to have an experience like that again, once in a lifetime."
Gina's shots of jellyfish also gained acclaim in various competitions, including the British Wildlife Photography Awards, the British Society of Underwater Photography Awards, another International Photography Award and a 'highly commended' in Nature TTL's Photographer of the Year awards. Her compass jellyfish photograph was also included in the Glasgow Gallery of Photography's Nature exhibition in September.
Her 'above and below' shot that included lionfish would also see her shortlisted for a fifth consecutive year in the British Photography Awards in the Water Life category.
To round things off, Gina also took part in the Underwater Gardens of the Helford exhibition at Trebah Gardens and was a photography panellist at the Women in Ocean Sciences' World Oceans Day event in Covent Garden.
Gina says "I’ve had a spectacular couple of years, they have been quite unforgettable in terms of the opportunities I have managed to generate and seize underwater. Whilst it’s incredible to shortlist or win in competition circuits, honestly the real highlight has been sharing these professional platforms with my own students or course alumni. Attending the British Wildlife Photography Awards and the British Photography Awards shoulder to shoulder with past and present cohorts has been the highlight of my career so far, everyone in that moment is a winner and I could not be more proud of our students.”
About Gina Goodman
Alongside being a lecturer at Falmouth University’s Institute of Photography, Gina is also an underwater photographer and PADI qualified diving instructor with a deep and genuine love for the marine environment. She has been shortlisted for four British Photography Awards for her underwater work and has also worked commercially for brands including Finisterre, Nature TTL, Fourth Element and the National Maritime Museum Cornwall.
Gina’s career in underwater photography began 18 years ago and has taken her across the Caribbean, Europe and Africa, photographing a diverse array of marine habitats – from coral reefs and eagle rays to kelp forests and cuttlefish.
These experiences have led her to focus on adapting equipment and techniques that do not typically form part of the underwater photographer’s toolkit, to give images an unexpected look and feel.
See more of Gina’s work:
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