Bridgette grew up on a farm near a small rural town in NSW.  Being surrounded by nature she developed a great appreciation of the natural world from a very young age.

Over the years her love of wildlife, conservation and photography grew.  She travelled around the world to experience and learn about the wildlife and habitat of many countries.

This spirit of discovery and adventure took her to see such magical places as Antarctica where she was a crew member on the Sea Shepherd vessel MV Steve Irwin, to defend whales against the annual Japanese Whale Hunt.  Her photos are still featured on the Sea Shepherd website.

Bridgette has also explored India, Thailand, Belize, Honduras, USA, Chile, Fiji, Egypt, Sumatra, Bali, China, UAE, New Zealand, Mexico, Guatemala all in the name of discovery and adventure.

First on the Left: Bridgette flying the drone that took this image of the Crew on the bow of the MV Steve Irwin, Melbourne 2017.

Iceberg, Antarctica.  Operation Nemesis Anti-Whaling campaign 2016-17. Copyright Bridgette Gower and Sea Shepherd Global.

Over the past two years Bridgette has dedicated every spare minute to finding, photographing and identifying some of the worlds smallest animals.  She is lucky to live near the Cairns Botanic Gardens where she spent countless hours in search of the many hidden treasures.

Bridgette started using her macro photography to capture images of the incredible variety of fungi in Tropical Far North Queensland.  She quickly gained a following on her fungi dedicated Instagram account and produced a calendar called Phallic Fungi in 2020.  The specialised imagery gained media attention and the calendar sold out.

At the start of 2020, and with the emergence of COVID-19 she was made redundant from her tourism marketing role with Mike Ball Dive Expeditions, one of the worlds most highly-rated dive tourism companies and a consistent Number 1 on Trip Advisor – Tour Operator in Cairns.

This slump provided the opportunity for Bridgette to grab the Rhinoceros Beetle by the horns and pursue her passion of sharing the beauty of the miniature world that largely goes unnoticed.

Aussie Macro Photos features photographs by Bridgette available to purchase in a range of mediums including gorgeous acrylic blocks and wall hangings.   Collections of postcards and greeting cards are also available via the Shop.

In a brand-new enterprise not offered in Cairns previously, Bridgette is now running Guided Tours Let’s Go Buggin for those interested in seeing and or photographing some of the many of the lifeforms she has photographed in the Cairns Botanic Gardens.   Her 1000 plus hours spent in the gardens has allowed her to become aware of many host plants and locations for a variety of caterpillars, cocoons, moths and butterflies, leaf, tree and planthoppers, praying mantis, jumping spiders, tortoise beetles, damselflies and dragonflies, and a variety of frogs.

During the Wet Season in Cairns (usually November to May), there are many beautiful and unusual fungi to be found and photographed, and Let’s Go Shroomin Weekly Tours run each Sunday.

To participate in a tour with Bridgette, please visit the ‘Book a Tour‘ page.

A pair of Humpback whales come in the say hello at midnight during Operation Nemesis, Antarctica 2016-2017.

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