Hi I’m James Stone, a multi-award winning night-sky, nature and time-lapse photographer based in Tasmania.

My passion for photography was re-ignited upon moving to Tasmania, Australia’s island state, brimming with World Heritage recognised wilderness and crawling with diverse, and unique wildlife. Tasmania’s latitudinal location in the path of the Roaring forties provides ever-changing weather patterns and cloud formations, all bathed in an ethereal natural light, along with the incredible opportunity to witness the Aurora Australis or Southern Lights.

Since I successfully chased my first aurora, I have been addicted, spending many long, cold nights out under the stars capturing Tassie’s spectacular southern night sky. My night-sky photography has been recognised in the INSIGHT Astronomy Photographer of the Year Awards run by the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, winning second place in the Aurora category, and third in the People and Space category in 2019, out of over 4600 entries from 90 countries. I was also a shortlisted finalist in 2018.

My aurora time-lapse work won the Animated Aesthetic Category in Australia's premier astrophotography awards - the David Malin Awards in both 2018 and 2016. I was also awarded the Photo Editor's Choice at the David Malin Awards in 2016.

My images have been featured in Australian Geographic, a book on aurora chasing and awarded International Loupe awards. My time-lapse has seen me placed as a finalist in Tasmanian short-film festivals, and been featured in TV and cinema advertising throughout the Asia-Pacific region for Google.

I love to travel, and, having studied Antarctic Science and voyaged to Antarctica on a couple of occasions, the world’s polar regions hold a particularly strong attraction. The challenges of polar photography are far out-weighed by the stunning beauty and stark contrasts these regions provide. I participated in a voyage to the Arctic with Ocean Geographic on the Elysium Artists for the Arctic expedition, collecting stills and time-lapse for use in a global exhibition, book and documentary, highlighting ocean and climate change in the region. The Elysium Artists for the Arctic Exhibition previewed at the Explorer's Club in New York before premiering in Singapore in April 2017, across China in 2019 and in Sydney at the National Maritime Museum.

Early in 2021 I was very fortunate to be asked along by Chimu Adventures as an astrophotographer onboard the first ever special charter flight out of Melbourne, South into the auroral oval to view the Southern Lights, a totally unforgettable experience.

Subsequently, I have been to the South Pole! Well, in an aircraft anyway, as expedition photographer on board the world’s first scenic flight to the South Pole from mainland Australia, what an incredible experience!

Chasing Light is a showcase of my work.