My reply was “Are you serious?”

To which she responded “Yes”

Her question and response really threw me, for the simple fact that when I walk out the door and go anywhere in Rarotonga, I see so much more than just beaches to photograph.

Case in point – below are 10 photographs from a selection of hundreds taken in the last couple of days. Take the time and you’ll find plenty of things to photograph in a place like Rarotonga.

Po-Po, daughter & dog, Rutaki Passage, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Two day old piglets, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Afternoon light on mountain ridges, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Surfer, slotted. He made it. Avana Passage, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Fisherman searching for fish, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

New channel marker, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Beach, Rarotonga, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Lone fisherman, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

South Pacific power. Avana Passage, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

Portrait of a spear fisherman, Cook Islands. © www.thomaspickard.com

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I went online and looked for ‘Gili Islands’ imagery at Getty Images, Corbis, Lonely Planet Images and Aurora Photos.

I did this for two reasons. One to give me a visual idea of what the place looks like. And two, to give me an idea of where the image gaps are.

Despite being reasonably well known, there isn’t a lot of available imagery of the Gili Islands. The search results at the time I did my searches (mid-September), bought back these results:

Getty Images: 48 photos

Lonely Planet Images: About 40 photos.

Corbis: 20 photos

Aurora Photos: 5 photos

Though I wasn’t on Gili Trawangan on assignment, I still took some photos of the island – it is just what I do.

A tight edit of these images are now online and available for licensing for magazine usage. Hit the following link to view all 77 photos:

Indonesia | Gili Islands at Thomas Pickard Stock Archive.

Some favourites photos:

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Related Posts:

Indonesian Portraits

Beach Creativity

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An hour before I took this photo, I was walking past the harbour at Madifushi Island in Thaa Atoll in the Maldives, wondering what I was going to do for the day.

A friendly man invited me onto the small dhoni crowded with two or three families for a day trip to a nearby deserted island.

How could I say no?

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Double page spread in Qatar Airlines Oryx Magazine. Published 1st February 2010.

As a photographer there is almost nothing I love better than seeing my work printed full page.

This opening spread ran in the February 2010 issue of Oryx Magazine and was the opener of a six page article I produced, complete with imagery.

The image at left, showing a board walk set amongst turquoise blue waters in the Maldives, can be licensed via Aurora Photos.

The image at right, showing a dhoni travelling along an atoll edge in the Maldives, can be licensed via Aurora Photos.

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One day I was a resident, the next I wasn’t.

The capital Male’ left a huge impression on me. For the two years that I called Male’ home, I became very fond of this tiny city and it’s quirks. I grew accustomed to the daily call to pray that would billow out of the nearby Mosque; I grew to love mid-afternoon surfing sessions at the local surf break, just four blocks from where I lived; I adapted to the heat, the culture and most of all, the sense of place that living in Male’ provided me.

Male’, the people and the Muslim culture opened my eyes in ways I didn’t expect.

Few people come to the Maldives to experience Male’. By a stroke of good fortune I did and I encourage all visitors to the Maldives to spend at least half a day (preferably from mid-afternoon onwards) walking the scooter clogged streets of Male’. In its own way, Male’ is a unique city. I hope it grows on you during your visit.

License any image by clicking on it.

See the full Male’ the Capital gallery at my stock library.

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This photo was from a recent shoot I did while in the Maldives. The client required some interior shots of their new sea plane for promotional purposes.

The brief was to photograph the interior as well as a couple enjoying the inflight experience. The models were provided by the creative agency I was working with. While I like to have a say in clothing choice, this was taken out of my control for this shoot. Though the shoot went well and the client was happy with the final result, the shoot had a couple of unexpected speed bumps to negotiate. They were:

The photo as published.

Problem #1 – The plane interior wasn’t ready when it should have been

This wouldn’t have been a problem, except for the limited amount of time we had to do the shoot. When I arrived, the plane was still being cleaned. A friendly ‘come on guys, lets get this plane clean’ seemed to help things along.

Problem #2 – There was no air con inside the plane

Twin Otters don’t actually have air conditioning. They have fans. The fans only operate when the plane is running and given we were stationary at a floating dock, this wasn’t going to happen. Given it was 30 degrees outside, it must have been at least 35 degrees inside and getting hotter. As I didn’t want my models looking like sweat soaked people, I advised them to stay outside until we were set to go with the shoot. By the time I walked out of the plane at shoot end, my shirt had gone from light green to dark green, it was that hot.

Problem #3 – Maintenance man walks into my photo

The lighting is set; the models are set and I have just started taking the first frames, when a maintenance man walks on board (into the back of the frame), kneels down and starts repairing a broken table. The kicker is he is totally oblivious to two models, a photographer and some lighting equipment just feet away.

A friendly ‘excuse me, you’ll have to come back and fix that later’ does the trick.

While pre-production planning is key to any successful shoot, the truth is that you often get a couple of curve balls to deal with on the day. None of these would have been a major problem, except for the short time we had to actually do the shoot. Big thanks to the two models, the pilots and crew and the team at the creative agency.

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Fisherman Feydhoo Island, Maldives.

For me, studying photography changed the way I would go on and see the world forever.

Not a day goes by that I don’t notice something, that I know I wouldn’t have seen if I hadn’t become a photographer.

Location: Feydhoo Island, Maldives. Time: 2.02 am. Subject: Fisherman waiting dockside.

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Commercial fishermen about to dive for bait, Addu Atoll, Maldives.

Feydhoo Island reflection, Addu Atoll, Maldives.

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Photography on commercial fishing vessels is probably the hardest thing I have had to shoot. In no particular order, here is a list of challenges I have faced while onboard commercial fishing vessels in the Maldives:

Lack of Sleep

Commercial fishermen are masters at cat napping. Getting 90-minutes to two hours of sleep between fishing action is pretty common. You sleep on the deck where ever there is space.

Sea Sickness

Generally speaking, I travel well on open ocean vessels. However I do experience some nausea during the first day or two at sea.

A Dangerous Work Environment

Photography comes second to safety when I am on a commercial fishing vessel. Rule number one is to look after myself. Rule number two is don’t endanger the safety of any of the fishermen onboard.

The reality is, you are on a large, wide deck with no railings and there are open hatches – complete with 6-foot drops – all over the place. If that wasn’t enough, decks are often slippery and when the fishing starts the deck becomes the work area for up to 20-men, depending on how many crew are on board.

Getting Hit by a Flying Tuna

Sounds pretty funny, but the reality with pole and line fishing is that tuna once hooked, literally fly out of the water and onto the back deck.

The drop zone is clear of men when the fishing is going, but having said that I watched a 6-9 kilogram tuna fly over my head last week and land in the bait hatch. That was a distance of 18-metres (60-feet) from the back deck where the fisherman was. To get hit by a tuna that size is no laughing matter.

Technical Photography

Photographically it is tough because you are half asleep and having to deal with all sorts of shooting conditions. It can be pitch dark; it can be raining; the action can be happening incredibly fast; the light changes with the position of the vessel, so getting consistent manual exposures is difficult and of course, the vessel is continuously moving around, so composition is tough too.

Despite these challenges, I love it. I really do.

I love seeing the darkness of night slip away to reveal a new day. I love the early morning and the magical light you get for just a few minutes. I love the split second action and the sheer challenge of producing good visuals. Most of all, I love those moments when everything is quite on the vessel and you can just sit back and experience the many moods of the ocean.

While I’m still editing my work from my two days shooting last week, here are two that I like.

Peak fishing action, 17 nautical miles east of Addu Atoll, Maldives.

Down time - taking a quick cigarette break near Addu Atoll, Maldives.

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For now, two photos from the recently opened Shangri-La Resort, Maldives.

Shangri-La Presidential Suite, Maldives.

The old and the new. Resort staff motoring past a dhoni.

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