Jason Heller

Aliases: None known
Role: Underwater photographer, entrepreneur, journalist, educator
First appearance: 2004 ([1])
Affiliation: DivePhotoGuide.com (founder), New York Underwater Photographic Society (founding president), UnderwaterCompetition.com (co-founder)
Personal website: underwaterphotos.net (historical)

Biography

Jason Heller is an underwater photographer and internet entrepreneur who founded DivePhotoGuide.com (DPG), one of the two most significant underwater photography community websites alongside Wetpixel. Based in New York, Heller combined expertise in digital media and internet business with a deep passion for underwater photography to build multiple institutions that shaped the underwater imaging community during the mid-2000s through early 2010s.

Heller first appeared on Wetpixel as a guest contributor covering the Asian Dive Expo (ADEX) 2004 in Singapore, the 10th anniversary of the event. His coverage was introduced by James Wiseman as a feature “by guest contributor Jason Heller” ([2]). His personal website at the time was underwaterphotos.net, where he described himself as “an up and coming underwater photographer” ([3]).

Eric Cheng described Heller as a “good friend” ([4]), and the two developed one of the most productive partnerships in the underwater photography industry, co-founding the UnderwaterCompetition.com competition series, co-writing columns for Sport Diver Magazine, and jointly hosting cocktail parties at DEMA and other trade shows. At DEMA 2006, Cheng noted that he used DPG’s booth “as both home base and a meeting point” ([5]). Heller’s wife Wendy was also actively involved in DPG operations and appeared alongside him at industry events ([6]).

Heller was engaged underwater, as he revealed in his tsunami account: “we were engaged underwater (www.underwaterphotos.net/ourstory.htm)” ([7]).

2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami Eyewitness Account

One of Heller’s most significant contributions to Wetpixel was his eyewitness account of the December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Heller was diving at the Similan Islands, an 8-hour boat ride from Phuket, Thailand, when the tsunami struck. He was underwater at Richelieu Rock, a pinnacle in about 120 feet of water, when the wave passed through as an abnormally strong current ([8]).

Upon surfacing, the sea exhibited extreme tidal anomalies: “The tide tables indicated high tide, yet Richilieu Rock was exposed by more than 15 feet. We checked again and it had disappeared under the sea. A whirlpool started forming around us” ([9]). The crew cut their mooring rope to avoid being pulled into the whirlpool and spent a harrowing night at sea receiving warnings of further waves, during which “passengers were saying their last goodbyes.”

Heller and his fiancee spent the following days documenting the devastation at Khao Lak, the area hardest hit in Thailand, where they observed damage extending more than a mile inland. His account included descriptions of makeshift morgues, recovery efforts by monk-accompanied scuba divers, and the emotional toll on survivors and rescuers. The report was published on Wetpixel on January 4, 2005, accompanied by nine photographs documenting the destruction and rescue efforts ([10]), with a follow-up the next day by Cheng ([11]).

DivePhotoGuide.com

Heller founded DivePhotoGuide.com and launched it in beta at Beneath the Sea 2005, the 25th anniversary of that show ([12], [13]). DPG’s mission was to “match the needs of underwater photographers and videographers of all levels with the facilities of dive operators worldwide” ([14]).

At launch, DPG featured a comprehensive dive operator directory and search engine. Cheng described the ambition: “Jason has undertaken the task of gathering a ridiculous amount of data from all of the dive operators around the world, so you will be able to do searches like: ‘show me all of the operators in Indonesia that cost under $200/day, who have rinse tanks on their boats, where I can find pygmy seahorses’” ([15]). The DPG Dive Operator Directory officially launched during Celebrate the Sea in Singapore in June 2005 ([16]).

By DEMA 2006, DPG had expanded to a database of over 4,000 dive destinations searchable by photographer-specific criteria (camera tables, rinse tanks, etc.), a calendar of international photo competition deadlines, and nearly 70 professional underwater fine-art galleries ([17]). The Antibes press release described Heller as an “internet agency entrepreneur” ([18]).

By August 2007, DPG reached 100 professional galleries, a milestone Cheng called “an amazing achievement” and noted it was “the only place you can go to see such a large collection at once.” DPG’s gallery was linked from Wetpixel’s main navigation under the Media menu ([19]).

In November 2009, DPG relaunched with a major redesign featuring a new Techniques Guide to underwater photography with contributions from leading photographers including Jason Bradley, David Doubilet, Martin Edge, Alex Mustard, and Aaron Wong ([20]). At Beneath the Sea 2010, Cheng saw the relaunched site and noted that it had “a lot of underlying infrastructure that allows nearly every aspect of their content to be linked up,” including user equipment reviews integrated with image galleries ([21]).

In 2008, DPG won the Best Website award at the 35th Annual World Festival of Underwater Images in Antibes, France, one of the most prestigious recognitions in the underwater imaging world ([22]). In his acceptance remarks, Heller credited his team: Wendy Heller, Matt Weiss, Gyula Somogyi, Richard Morris, Andrea and Antonella Ferrari, Keri Wilk, and Miguel Novey ([23]).

In October 2011, Heller sold DPG to editor Matt Weiss, who had been Editor-in-Chief since 2008 and “the only full time underwater photography editor in the world.” DPG had grown to over 50,000 monthly readers and 10,000 pages of published content. Heller remained as strategic advisor and remarked: “The dive industry is beginning to understand the pivotal role of digital media in the influence of consumers and the web has become the primary source of purchase influence for the entire travel industry” ([24]). Jean Bruneau of Aquatica praised Heller’s work: “Jason did a terrific job of building up Dive Photo Guide to its present high standard” ([25]).

UnderwaterCompetition.com

Heller and Cheng co-founded the Wetpixel & DivePhotoGuide International Underwater Photo & Video Competition series, hosted at UnderwaterCompetition.com. The inaugural competition in 2006 accepted only digital entries with over $25,000 in prizes across six categories, including a pioneering compact camera category. Winners were announced at Our World Underwater in Chicago. A unique feature was that 15% of entry proceeds were donated to marine conservation efforts ([26]).

The competition grew rapidly. By 2009, it offered over $75,000 in prizes and was described as “the ‘Superbowl’ of international underwater imagery competitions” ([27]). The series was held simultaneously with two dive expos on opposite sides of the world: Our World Underwater in Chicago and DEEP Indonesia in Jakarta ([28]). By 2010, prizes exceeded $80,000 and the competition celebrated its five-year anniversary ([29]).

In October 2008, Wetpixel and DPG relaunched UnderwaterCompetition.com with an automated submission system and photographer ranking features. Cheng noted: “In just 4 years, these competitions have become some of the most prestigious and widely supported international underwater photography & video competitions in the world” ([30]).

Heller personally presented winning images and videos at the OWU film festivals. At OWU 2007, he “presented the winning images and videos to a packed crowd” during the Saturday night film festival ([31]). At OWU 2008, he reported presenting first-place videos from the General and Conservation categories “to the packed auditorium” ([32]). At OWU 2009, he again presented to “an enthusiastic crowd” and posted video of the presentations to Vimeo ([33]).

New York Underwater Photographic Society (NYUPS)

In January 2007, Heller founded and became president of the New York Underwater Photographic Society (NYUPS), filling a gap he identified: “New York, with our large number of divers and underwater photographers has not had such a forum…until now” ([34]). The society was open to novices, amateurs, and professionals, with monthly workshops, contests, and exhibitions held in Manhattan. NYUPS planned annual photo expeditions starting in 2008 and an international competition and festival ([35]).

As NYUPS president, Heller organized and presented at regular events including “Planning Your Shot & Shooting to Win” (August 2007), featuring tips on competition photography and image creation versus simply taking pictures ([36]). He also presented on “Digital Workflow Basics” covering RAW vs. JPEG, histograms, white balance, color space, and backup strategies (September 2008) ([37]). NYUPS co-hosted events with Oceanblue Divers featuring presentations by Amos Nachoum, Heller, and Larry Cohen ([38]).

Journalism and Writing

Heller established himself as a prolific underwater photography journalist. He partnered with Cheng to write the “IMAGES” column for Sport Diver Magazine, soliciting community input for articles on topics including shooting with models (May 2007) ([39]), capturing motion underwater (July 2007) ([40]), shooting animal behavior (August 2007) ([41]), and going wide (January 2008) ([42]).

Heller contributed to X-Ray Magazine, writing about rigging photo gear (issue #12, 2006) ([43]). He also wrote a technical article on the Nikon D3s underwater housing compatibility problems, exploring “exactly why this upgrade doesn’t perfectly integrate into the D3/D3x existing housings” ([44]).

He appeared on Scuba Radio in January 2006 to discuss the joint Wetpixel/DPG photo contest ([45]).

Event Coverage and Industry Presence

Heller was a tireless event correspondent, covering shows and festivals across the globe for DPG:

Legacy

Heller’s contributions to the underwater photography community were multifaceted. He built DivePhotoGuide from a beta site into an award-winning platform with 50,000+ monthly readers and 10,000 pages of content. He co-created what became the premier international underwater photo and video competition series. He founded New York’s first underwater photography society. And he partnered with Wetpixel to create a collaborative ecosystem that elevated both communities.

Eric Cheng captured the DPG-Wetpixel relationship at DEMA 2008: “DivePhotoGuide has been one of our partners here at Wetpixel for quite some time. Together, we run the OWU and DEEP Indonesia annual photo competitions, and have had a really great synergy between our two readerships” ([65]).

Timeline

References

Sources

  1. Wetpixel article, May 1, 2004: Asian Dive Expo ↩
  2. Wetpixel article, May 2, 2004: Asian Dive Expo Report By Jason Heller ↩
  3. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  4. Wetpixel article, Jan 5, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Story ↩
  5. Wetpixel article, Nov 9, 2006: Dema 2006 Divephotoguide ↩
  6. Wetpixel article, Nov 9, 2006: Dema 2006 Divephotoguide ↩
  7. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  8. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  9. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  10. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  11. Wetpixel article, Jan 5, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Story ↩
  12. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  13. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Beneath The Sea 2005 Report ↩
  14. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  15. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  16. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  17. Wetpixel article, Nov 9, 2006: Dema 2006 Divephotoguide ↩
  18. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2008: Divephotoguide Awarded Best Website At Antibes ↩
  19. Wetpixel article, Aug 28, 2007: Divephotoguide Reaches 100 Pro Galleries ↩
  20. Wetpixel article, Nov 25, 2009: New Dive Photo Guide Website Launched ↩
  21. Wetpixel article, Mar 28, 2010: Beneath The Sea 2010 Day 2 Coverage ↩
  22. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2008: Divephotoguide Awarded Best Website At Antibes ↩
  23. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2008: Divephotoguide Awarded Best Website At Antibes ↩
  24. Wetpixel article, Oct 11, 2011: Divephotoguide Announces New Ownership ↩
  25. Wetpixel article, Oct 11, 2011: Divephotoguide Announces New Ownership ↩
  26. Wetpixel article, Feb 26, 2006: Wetpixel Divephotoguide Contest Winners Announced At Owu ↩
  27. Wetpixel article, Nov 6, 2008: 2009 International Underwater Photo Video Competitions ↩
  28. Wetpixel article, Nov 6, 2008: 2009 International Underwater Photo Video Competitions ↩
  29. Wetpixel article, Oct 12, 2009: 2010 Our World Underwater Deep Indonesia Competitions ↩
  30. Wetpixel article, Oct 7, 2008: Wetpixel And Divephotoguide Relaunch Underwatercompetitioncom ↩
  31. Wetpixel article, Feb 11, 2007: 2007 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  32. Wetpixel article, Feb 16, 2008: Live Coverage From Our World Underwater 2008 ↩
  33. Wetpixel article, Feb 22, 2009: 2009 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  34. Wetpixel article, Jan 26, 2007: New York Underwater Photo Society Established ↩
  35. Wetpixel article, Jan 26, 2007: New York Underwater Photo Society Established ↩
  36. Wetpixel article, Aug 8, 2007: Nyups Hosts Saving The Dragon Planning Shot ↩
  37. Wetpixel article, Sep 2, 2008: Nyups Hosts Presentation On Digital Workflow Basics ↩
  38. Wetpixel article, Mar 19, 2007: Oceanblue Divers And Nyups Host Planning Your Shot ↩
  39. Wetpixel article, May 22, 2007: Special Request For Wetpixel Members Do You Shoot With Models ↩
  40. Wetpixel article, Jul 13, 2007: Special Request For Wetpixel Members Capturing Motion Underwater ↩
  41. Wetpixel article, Aug 6, 2007: Shooting Behavior How Do You Do It ↩
  42. Wetpixel article, Jan 11, 2008: Call For Tips From The Community Going Wide ↩
  43. Wetpixel article, Aug 2, 2006: X Ray Magazine 12 Is Available For Download ↩
  44. Wetpixel article, Jan 14, 2010: Nikon D3s Underwater Housing Woes ↩
  45. Wetpixel article, Jan 8, 2006: Jason Heller On Scuba Radio ↩
  46. Wetpixel article, May 1, 2004: Asian Dive Expo ↩
  47. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Beneath The Sea 2005 Report ↩
  48. Wetpixel article, Apr 26, 2006: Adex Asia Dive Expo 2006 Report ↩
  49. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2006: Antibes International Underwater Photo Festival 2006 Report ↩
  50. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2006: Antibes International Underwater Photo Festival 2006 Report ↩
  51. Wetpixel article, Nov 9, 2006: Dema 2006 Divephotoguide ↩
  52. Wetpixel article, Dec 7, 2006: Ernie Brooks And Wyland Interviewed By Jason Heller Of Divephotoguidecom ↩
  53. Wetpixel article, Apr 24, 2007: Adex Wetpixel Meetup Bangkok April 28 ↩
  54. Wetpixel article, Feb 11, 2007: 2007 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  55. Wetpixel article, Jun 22, 2007: Divephotoguidecom Posts Coverage From Scuba Show 2007 ↩
  56. Wetpixel article, Oct 21, 2007: Jason Heller Covers Pdns Photoplus Expo 2007 ↩
  57. Wetpixel article, Jan 9, 2008: Divephotoguide Wakatobi Underwater Photo Video Festival 2008 ↩
  58. Wetpixel article, May 1, 2008: Divephotoguidecom Posts Wakatobi Underwater Photo Video Festival Winners ↩
  59. Wetpixel article, Feb 16, 2008: Live Coverage From Our World Underwater 2008 ↩
  60. Wetpixel article, Oct 23, 2008: Dema 2008 Divephotoguide ↩
  61. Wetpixel article, Oct 28, 2008: Dema 2008 Wetpixel Divephotoguide Cocktail Party ↩
  62. Wetpixel article, Mar 5, 2009: Summary Coverage From Our World Underwater 2009 ↩
  63. Wetpixel article, Feb 22, 2009: 2009 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  64. Wetpixel article, Nov 4, 2010: Save The Date Dema Party 2010 ↩
  65. Wetpixel article, Oct 23, 2008: Dema 2008 Divephotoguide ↩
  66. Wetpixel article, May 1, 2004: Asian Dive Expo ↩
  67. Wetpixel article, May 2, 2004: Asian Dive Expo Report By Jason Heller ↩
  68. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  69. Wetpixel article, Jan 4, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Report ↩
  70. Wetpixel article, Jan 5, 2005: Jason Hellers Tsunami Story ↩
  71. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  72. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Beneath The Sea 2005 Report ↩
  73. Wetpixel article, Mar 24, 2005: Divephotoguidecom Launches Beta ↩
  74. Wetpixel article, Jan 8, 2006: Jason Heller On Scuba Radio ↩
  75. Wetpixel article, Feb 26, 2006: Wetpixel Divephotoguide Contest Winners Announced At Owu ↩
  76. Wetpixel article, Apr 26, 2006: Adex Asia Dive Expo 2006 Report ↩
  77. Wetpixel article, Aug 2, 2006: X Ray Magazine 12 Is Available For Download ↩
  78. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2006: Antibes International Underwater Photo Festival 2006 Report ↩
  79. Wetpixel article, Nov 9, 2006: Dema 2006 Divephotoguide ↩
  80. Wetpixel article, Dec 7, 2006: Ernie Brooks And Wyland Interviewed By Jason Heller Of Divephotoguidecom ↩
  81. Wetpixel article, Jan 26, 2007: New York Underwater Photo Society Established ↩
  82. Wetpixel article, Feb 11, 2007: 2007 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  83. Wetpixel article, Mar 19, 2007: Oceanblue Divers And Nyups Host Planning Your Shot ↩
  84. Wetpixel article, Apr 24, 2007: Adex Wetpixel Meetup Bangkok April 28 ↩
  85. Wetpixel article, May 22, 2007: Special Request For Wetpixel Members Do You Shoot With Models ↩
  86. Wetpixel article, Jun 22, 2007: Divephotoguidecom Posts Coverage From Scuba Show 2007 ↩
  87. Wetpixel article, Aug 28, 2007: Divephotoguide Reaches 100 Pro Galleries ↩
  88. Wetpixel article, Aug 8, 2007: Nyups Hosts Saving The Dragon Planning Shot ↩
  89. Wetpixel article, Oct 21, 2007: Jason Heller Covers Pdns Photoplus Expo 2007 ↩
  90. Wetpixel article, Jan 9, 2008: Divephotoguide Wakatobi Underwater Photo Video Festival 2008 ↩
  91. Wetpixel article, Feb 16, 2008: Live Coverage From Our World Underwater 2008 ↩
  92. Wetpixel article, Sep 2, 2008: Nyups Hosts Presentation On Digital Workflow Basics ↩
  93. Wetpixel article, Oct 7, 2008: Wetpixel And Divephotoguide Relaunch Underwatercompetitioncom ↩
  94. Wetpixel article, Oct 23, 2008: Dema 2008 Divephotoguide ↩
  95. Wetpixel article, Oct 28, 2008: Dema 2008 Wetpixel Divephotoguide Cocktail Party ↩
  96. Wetpixel article, Nov 2, 2008: Divephotoguide Awarded Best Website At Antibes ↩
  97. Wetpixel article, Feb 22, 2009: 2009 Our World Underwater Winners Announced ↩
  98. Wetpixel article, Mar 5, 2009: Summary Coverage From Our World Underwater 2009 ↩
  99. Wetpixel article, Jan 14, 2010: Nikon D3s Underwater Housing Woes ↩
  100. Wetpixel article, Mar 28, 2010: Beneath The Sea 2010 Day 2 Coverage ↩
  101. Wetpixel article, Apr 13, 2010: Dive Photo Guides Ipad First Impressions ↩
  102. Wetpixel article, Nov 4, 2010: Save The Date Dema Party 2010 ↩
  103. Wetpixel article, Oct 11, 2011: Divephotoguide Announces New Ownership ↩
  104. Asian Dive Expo (article) ↩
  105. Asian Dive Expo Report by Jason Heller (article) ↩
  106. Jason Heller’s Tsunami Report (article) ↩
  107. Jason Heller’s Tsunami Story (article) ↩
  108. DivePhotoGuide.com Launches Beta (article) ↩
  109. Beneath the Sea 2005 Report (article) ↩
  110. Jason Heller on Scuba Radio (article) ↩
  111. Wetpixel/DPG Contest Winners at OWU (article) ↩
  112. ADEX 2006 Report (article) ↩
  113. X-Ray Magazine #12 (article) ↩
  114. Antibes 2006 Report (article) ↩
  115. DEMA 2006: DivePhotoGuide (article) ↩
  116. Ernie Brooks and Wyland interviewed by Jason Heller (article) ↩
  117. New York Underwater Photo Society established (article) ↩
  118. 2007 OWU Winners Announced (article) ↩
  119. DPG coverage from OWU 2007 (article) ↩
  120. Oceanblue Divers and NYUPS host Planning Your Shot (article) ↩
  121. ADEX Wetpixel meetup Bangkok (article) ↩
  122. Special request - shooting with models (article) ↩
  123. DPG coverage from SCUBA Show 2007 (article) ↩
  124. Special request - capturing motion (article) ↩
  125. Shooting behavior (article) ↩
  126. NYUPS hosts Saving the Dragon and Planning Your Shot (article) ↩
  127. DivePhotoGuide reaches 100 pro galleries (article) ↩
  128. Jason Heller covers PhotoPlus Expo 2007 (article) ↩
  129. DPG/Wakatobi Festival 2008 (article) ↩
  130. Call for tips - Going Wide (article) ↩
  131. Live coverage from OWU 2008 (article) ↩
  132. DPG Wakatobi Festival winners (article) ↩
  133. NYUPS Digital Workflow Basics (article) ↩
  134. Wetpixel and DPG relaunch UnderwaterCompetition.com (article) ↩
  135. DEMA 2008: DivePhotoGuide (article) ↩
  136. DEMA 2008: Wetpixel/DPG Cocktail Party (article) ↩
  137. DPG awarded Best Website at Antibes (article) ↩
  138. 2009 International Competitions (article) ↩
  139. 2009 OWU Winners announced (article) ↩
  140. Summary coverage OWU 2009 (article) ↩
  141. 2010 OWU & DEEP Indonesia competitions (article) ↩
  142. New DPG website launched (article) ↩
  143. Nikon D3s housing woes (article) ↩
  144. Beneath the Sea 2010 day 2 (article) ↩
  145. DPG iPad first impressions (article) ↩
  146. DEMA party 2010 (article) ↩
  147. DivePhotoGuide announces new ownership (article) ↩