Exhibitionists·Video

He's photographed Amy Winehouse and Lou Reed, but now he's turning his lens on whales

David Howells was a celebrated photographer of celebrities, politicians and other well-known faces. That is, until he was seduced by whales.

Where there's a whale, there's a way...for David Howells, the challenge 'is that you're not in control at all'

He's photographed Amy Winehouse and Lou Reed, but now he's turning his lens on whales

7 years ago
Duration 3:11
"With this, the challenge is that you're not in control at all." - David Howells on chasing whales.

When David Howells was 14, he saw the film Under Fire with Nick Nolte and Gene Hackman and immediately decided he wanted to be a photojournalist. He certainly succeeded, capturing images of politicians and celebrities like Hillary Clinton, Amy Winehouse, David Cronenberg, Lou Reed and Gordon Ramsay. But five years ago, Howells moved to Newfoundland and Labrador and unexpectedly found some new favourite subjects: whales.

After his buddy took him whale watching, Howells decided that challenge of photographing the large sea mammals really appealed to him as it was a far cry from the work he'd done before. And where there's a whale, there's a way...

(CBC Arts)

In this video (made with special thanks to shooter and editor Mark Cumby), we show you Howells in his new life as a whale photographer on a choppy sea. 

Check out Howells's website to see more of his work.

Watch Exhibitionists on Friday nights at 12:30 a.m. (1 NT) and Sundays at 3:30 p.m. (4 NT) on CBC Television.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Amy Joy

Associate Producer

Amy Joy has been working with CBC Newfoundland and Labrador for 10 years, and has produced local and national radio and television shows. She enjoys finding peculiar people and helping tell their stories.