Kimmo Hagman always dives with his underwater camera and in his portfolio he has collected amazing shots from above and under water. Kimmo is 45 and now lives in Hurghada, right by the Egyptian Red Sea, where he works as dive centre manager for Colona divers.

"I try to be good example when it comes to - how not to destroy the marine environment - while I'm taking pictures. That's much more important than taking good pictures.", Kimmo says.

Kimmo started diving in 1986, and shortly afterwards moved to the Maldives where he stayed for 10 years. It was there he began his "Photo Kick" and since then has taken photos nearly every day.

"The majority of my pictures are taken in the Maldives and in the Red Sea. The Swedish and Norwegian coasts also have many fine locations for photography", says Kimmo.

Although photography is only a hobby, Kimmo has photographs published in many magazines, has held photo exhibitions and has taken part in several photo competitions with good results. Twice he has won 1st prize in "Tauchen Shoot Out" and reached 6th place in the world championships.

Kimmo's photography case

Kimmo has difficulty in picking a favourite lens or subject matter. He enjoys both wide angle and macro, and loves colours. He is not in favour of shots taken just for documentation purposes.

Kimmo's photography case today includes: Nikon D100 and D200 for digital and 801s for film. Housings are Sealux, Sea & Sea and Seacam. On the flash side Kimmo uses exclusively Subtronics. Lenses are 16mm, 20mm,2 0-35 mm together with macro 60 and 105 mm.

Enjoy more of Kimmos images at www.kimmohagman.com.