Photographers, photojournalists and BSOUP members Jeremy and Amanda Cuff have recently published a new brochure called "Shoot To Thrill Policy" which features a sample feature article.

Jeremy said, "The aim of producing our "Shoot To Thrill" brochure is mainly for the purposes of expanding our portfolio of photojournalism work and is a good example of the type of commission that we can produce. It will be sent to editors, publishers and similar but we're happy to send to it anyone who may be interested in what we're up to."

Copies of "Shoot To Thrill Policy" can be requested from Jeremy and Amanda's website at www.ja-universe.com

The website features a selection of photography and articles with particular emphasis on scuba diving and travel, although other topics such as abstracts and black and white photography are also included.

New work is regularly added to the JA-Universe website in the form of new galleries and articles, and also news items and an image of the month.

13th September 2007

Dive Photojournalist Jeremy Cuff Wins Sport Diver Magazine's "UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AWARD 2007"

UK based scuba diver, photographer and photojournalist Jeremy Cuff has won the coveted UK Sport Diver Magazine's "Underwater Photographer of the Year Award 2007", announced in the September edition of the magazine.

The competition brief was to "shoot the cover" of the magazine and attracted a great number of entrants. The winning image was taken by Jeremy in Australia on 3rd April 2007, at the Cod Hole dive site on the Great Barrier Reef. It graces the cover of the September edition of Sport Diver magazine, a popular scuba diving magazine in the UK.

The image was taken on a "cod feed" dive which involves the crew luring these huge fish to a large sandy "arena" with a holed container of "bait" - an irresistible concoction of dead fish and chum. Once in the water, the divers assemble in a large circle on the sand and wait for the container to be brought past. Several large Potato Cod remain glued to the container, transfixed by its contents. To add to the spectacle, the crew also hand feed the cod with fish.

Jeremy said, "I was really pleased to win this award, especially in light of the high profile nature of the competition and the number of entrants. The image features my wife Amanda next to a giant Potato Cod at the Cod Hole dive site and makes for a striking image."

"For photo opportunities, it was a chance not to be missed. What could be better than huge fish in shallow, clear water that are unafraid of divers?"

"When diving with my wife Amanda, we have an arrangement that she'll model for me when required. This is handy when I'm shooting wide angle or fish eye, as a diver can sometimes add that extra bit of context, composition or visual spectacle to an image. After the feed was over we remained in the sandy area and "worked" the cod. I tried a few things, each time with Amanda in the background, but none of them had that indefinable "wow factor".

"I noticed that the largest specimen was never more than a foot or so from the container, so I capitalised on it's obsession by placing my camera in front the object, so that the cod was literally on the end of my dome port. I then gestured Amanda to come in closer and lie by its side whilst I fired away, careful to keep the container out of picture."

"In the case of my winning image, I think it works on each of the "context, composition and visual spectacle" aspects, and is the result of teamwork between Amanda and myself."

The prize is an underwater photography trip worth £2500 to either southern Africa or Indonesia, plus a digital underwater camera worth £500.

Jeremy has contributed a number of feature articles to magazines including Sport Diver, Dive, Scuba World, UWP Magazine and the British Society of Underwater Photographer's "In Focus" Magazine.

Jeremy added "Our photography and writing has grown organically, starting as a simple desire to record our travels and experiences which, over time, grew into a more organised and focused pursuit whereby photography and feature writing is often the main reason for a trip."

"So far, we've developed to the stage where we're having work regularly published, but now we are seeking more regular and extensive working partnerships with publishers of magazines, newspapers, websites, image banks and books."

NOTES TO EDITORS

Contact: Jeremy Cuff on (01985) 214362 / 07768 308953/ info@ja-universe.com or visit www.ja-universe.com

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13th September 2007

Wiltshire Photographer Wins Sport Diver Magazine's "UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AWARD 2007"

Warminster based scuba diver and photographer Jeremy Cuff has won the coveted Sport Diver Magazine's "Underwater Photographer of the Year Award 2007", announced in the September edition of the magazine.

The competition brief was to "shoot the cover" of the magazine and attracted a great number of entrants. The winning image was taken by Jeremy in Australia on 3rd April 2007, at the Cod Hole dive site on the Great Barrier Reef. It graces the cover of the September edition of Sport Diver magazine, a popular scuba diving magazine in the UK.

The image was taken on a "cod feed" dive which involves the crew luring these huge fish to a large sandy "arena" with a holed container of "bait" - an irresistible concoction of dead fish and chum. Once in the water, the divers assemble in a large circle on the sand and wait for the container to be brought past. Several large Potato Cod remain glued to the container, transfixed by its contents. To add to the spectacle, the crew also hand feed the cod with fish.

Jeremy said, "I was really pleased to win this award, especially in light of the high profile nature of the competition and the number of entrants. The image features my wife Amanda next to a giant Potato Cod at the Cod Hole dive site and makes for a striking image."

"For photo opportunities, it was a chance not to be missed. What could be better than huge fish in shallow, clear water that are unafraid of divers?"

"When diving with my wife Amanda, we have an arrangement that she'll model for me when required. This is handy when I'm shooting wide angle or fish eye, as a diver can sometimes add that extra bit of context, composition or visual spectacle to an image. After the feed was over we remained in the sandy area and "worked" the cod. I tried a few things, each time with Amanda in the background, but none of them had that indefinable "wow factor".

"I noticed that the largest specimen was never more than a foot or so from the container, so I capitalised on it's obsession by placing my camera in front the object, so that the cod was literally on the end of my dome port. I then gestured Amanda to come in closer and lie by its side whilst I fired away, careful to keep the container out of picture."

"In the case of my winning image, I think it works on each of the "context, composition and visual spectacle" aspects, and is the result of teamwork between Amanda and myself."

The prize is an underwater photography trip worth £2500 to either southern Africa or Indonesia, plus a digital underwater camera worth £500.

Jeremy has contributed a number of feature articles to magazines including Sport Diver, Dive, Scuba World, UWP Magazine and the British Society of Underwater Photographer's "In Focus" Magazine.

Jeremy added "Our photography and writing has grown organically, starting as a simple desire to record our travels and experiences which, over time, grew into a more organised and focused pursuit whereby photography and feature writing is often the main reason for a trip."

"So far, we've developed to the stage where we're having work regularly published, but now we are seeking more regular and extensive working partnerships with publishers of magazines, newspapers, websites, image banks and books."

NOTES TO EDITORS

Contact: Jeremy Cuff on (01985) 214362 / 07768 308953/ info@ja-universe.com or visit www.ja-universe.com

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23rd July 2006

New Images To View On Ja Universe Photojournalism Website.

Photographers and photojournalists Jeremy and Amanda Cuff have recently added a selection of new work to their website at www.ja-universe.com.

The new galleries show images from a variety of destinations and situations including Florida in the USA, Bahrain in the Persian Gulf and the south of France. Other work is from closer to home such as the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

It features a selection of photography and articles with particular emphasis on travel and scuba diving, although other topics such as abstracts, motorsport and black and white photography are also included.

Photographer and writer Jeremy Cuff said, "It's nice to be able to regularly update our website and I believe that we’ve been able to produce some interesting work ovedr the past few months. Recently, we've recently made the transition to digital for both land and underwater work, so we expect our ideas to develop at a faster rate, and in a more creative direction."

New work is regularly added to the JA-Universe website in the form of new galleries and articles, and also news sections such as "Latest News", "Coming Soon" and "Field Notes". Also look out for our images of the month.

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14th November 2005

A New Travel, Underwater Photography & Photojournalism Website Unveiled.

Photographers and photojournalists Jeremy and Amanda Cuff have just completed a brand new website www.ja-universe.com to illustrate their work.

The compilation of the site began back in the early summer followed by the actual construction of the site over the late summer and autumn. The website went live on November 1st.

It features a selection of photography and articles with particular emphasis on travel and scuba diving, although other topics such as abstracts, motorsport and black and white photography are also included.

Photographer and writer Jeremy Cuff said, "We spent a considerable amount of time and effort to collate some representative examples of our work. Our website is by no means a comprehensive collection of what we’ve produced so far. It is intended as an overview - to show both the potential of our work, and the variety of images that we are capable of producing. The site is also regularly updated with fresh work, so it’s worth coming back from time to time, to see what’s new."

"Our photography and writing has grown organically, starting as a simple desire to record our travels and experiences which, over time, grew into a more organised and focused pursuit whereby photography and feature writing is often the main reason for a trip."

"So far, we’ve developed to the stage where we’re having work regularly published, but now we are seeking more regular and extensive working partnerships with publishers of magazines, newspapers, websites, image banks and books."

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