Mark Daffey’s ‘scare factor’ croc snap named East Arnhem’s photo of the year
A travel photographer’s ‘scare factor’ snap of a huge crocodile has been crowned East Arnhem Land’s favourite photo of the year.
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“It reminded me of a crocodile emoji, only it was real.”
Travel photographer Mark Daffey was on a boat tour of Port Essington when he spotted a saltie lazing in the sun on one of the inlet’s eastern beaches.
Mr Daffey said the boat was “pretty close” to the massive reptile, which he guessed to be about four metres long.
“As we drew nearer, it picked itself up and casually strolled into the water just off the beach,” he said.
“I expected it to disappear and pop up somewhere else one or two hundred metres away, like I’d seen other crocs do, but this one only went as far as it had to.”
Mr Daffey said he had been on assignment for a few magazines and newspapers, and wildlife was his main focus of the trip.
He said he had seen crocs up close before in places such as Kakadu and Uganda, but the barely-hidden saltie resting just beneath the surface was a unique sight.
“I knew it would be a nice shot because of the scare factor of a croc lurking in the shallows a metre or two off a gorgeous beach,” he said.
“How easy would it be to make the mistake of going for a swim in those waters, in that heat?
“It was over 30C and humid – a typical Top End day.”
The thrilling snap was crowned the top photo of 2023 by the official East Arnhem Land Facebook page.
Having previously worked as a contributing member for Lonely Planet and Getty Images, Mr Daffey said he was no stranger to seeing his photos hit the pages of glossy magazines and specialist websites.
“Stock imagery isn’t as lucrative as it once was – thanks to smart phones and royalty-free images, pay rates have dipped savagely these past 10 or 15 years,” he said.
“But photography remains my number one passion. My return on investment is less while my thirst for creating a winning image has increased. Go figure.”
Mr Daffey said he travelled all over the globe with a mission to get the perfect shot and bring stunning scenes to life.
“Travel photography encapsulates a bit of everything – landscapes, cityscapes, food, sport, people and wildlife,” he said.
“I’m a sucker for wildlife assignments – polar bears in Canada, Komodo dragons in Indonesia, gorillas in Uganda, the Big Five in East Africa.
“Last year I did a three-day trip around South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula swimming, snorkelling and diving with sea lions, great white sharks and giant cuttlefish. I loved it.”
Mr Daffey’s most memorable excursion remains his first outside of Australia, when he travelled through Kenya and Tanzania with World Expeditions in 1997.
“All those David Attenborough documentaries came to life,” he said.
Mr Daffey’s photos can be found via his Instagram, @markdaffey.
SEE EAST ARNHEM LAND’S OTHER WINNING PHOTOS OF 2023
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