Limited Edition photographic release 40 years in the making

by Claire McLaren on 28 Dec 2013 40 years ago, a young Tasmanian photographer with a passion for the ocean was trying to carve a niche for himself in the competitive world of photography. In 1974 he took to the skies with a daring young pilot in a fixed wing aircraft with the door off to chase the yachts of one of greatest ocean races in the world. Hanging out the door to the hip he captured the drama, the beauty and the brutality of this world famous race and a career was born.

The signature bronze beard (now white) and wild mane, masked by a heavy black camera have become as exciting to spot in the Bass Strait crossing for yachties as the iconic Cape Raoul on Tasmania’s rugged coastline – for they know that their epic adventure is being captured for perpetuity.

Experienced crews that once waived at the camera in their youth, now tighten the jib, take to the rail and go to work, in the hope of securing the perfect shot.

Perfecting the art of capturing not just the yacht but explaining the sea state, the many moods and scale of the vast ocean and the signature Tasmanian landscape, Richard’s photographs have been celebrated around the world, winning multiple awards and gracing the covers and pages of sporting magazines across the globe.

Forty years on the Richard Bennett Archives have been opened to celebrate 75 years of iconic Sydney Hobart racing in a one-off black and white limited edition release of Richard’s favourite images from the past 40 years.

These iconic images will be presented in black and white for the first time. Personally hand-printed to order by the photographer using archival materials, these beautifully crafted prints are finished with the photographers signature with logo embossed on the border of the print. Each print is titled and numbered on the reverse, with only nine prints in each edition at this size.

Available for purchase through the website or direct from the photographer, yachties won’t want to miss this opportunity to own a piece of yachting history.

Richard’s images will be on display and for sale outside Mures Fish Centre at Constitution Dock, Hobart, for the 74th Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race 29 December 2013 – 2 January 2014.