Wildlife Photographer, Storyteller, Speaker, Expedition Leader & Advocate

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Rachel Bigsby is an award-winning wildlife photographer specialising in seabirds and remote marine environments. Entirely self-taught, her work is defined by a rare combination of fine art aesthetics, immersive field experience and a true emotional connection to the species she photographs. Driven by a lifelong fascination with the ocean and the seabirds shaped by it, Rachel creates atmospheric imagery that blends artistry with ecological understanding.

Her photographs are guided as much by feeling as fieldcraft, seeking not simply to document wildlife but to reveal the soul, environments, fragility and the often overlooked beauty of her subjects. Working exclusively with species to which she feels a profound personal connection, Rachel immerses herself in their world through long-term observation, independent research and hands-on conservation work. This intimate approach allows her to create work that offers artistic depth grounded in a genuine fascination and scientific insight into the lives of her subjects.

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Rachel has received international recognition including the 'Natural Artistry' Award in Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the Portfolio Award in Bird Photographer of the Year. She serves as a Nikon Creator, an ambassador for the RSPB and Badger Trust, and her work has been exhibited at prestigious institutions including the Natural History Museum, the Royal Geographical Society, 10 Downing Street, and the National Museum of Scotland. Her photography, advocacy and writing have appeared in publications including National Geographic, WWF, and New Scientist. Alongside her photographic work, Rachel actively collaborates with wildlife charities, conservation organisations and rescue initiatives using storytelling, photography and self-shot natural history films to inspire deeper connections with the natural world. From documenting seabird colonies devastated by avian influenza to participating in hands-on rescue work and public activism, her work exists at the intersection of art, science, storytelling, and conservation.

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Beyond the field, Rachel is an experienced public speaker and expedition leader. She has delivered talks internationally at esteemed venues including the Natural History Museum, the Royal Geographical Society, Parliament Square, the National Museum of Scotland (to name a few), sharing insights into creativity, fieldcraft, storytelling, and conservation. Her specialist qualifications and field experience allow her to lead photographic programmes and expeditions across some of the world’s most remote environments, from the Arctic and Antarctic to the seabird colonies of the British Isles, North Atlantic and remote Sub Antarctic. Rachel is an IAATO-certified expedition guide, licensed powerboat operator and qualified emergency first aider, combining technical expertise with a teaching style rooted in encouragement, creativity, and collaboration. Passionate about accessibility within the creative industries, Rachel also works to support emerging photographers through university lectures, mentoring and free workshops, helping young creatives build confidence, develop portfolios and access opportunities that were once out of reach to her herself.

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The Founding Years

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Rachel’s connection to the natural world began in earliest childhood, shaped by an enduring curiosity and a deep love of wildlife passed down by her late grandfather. Growing up along the Sussex coast, she found inspiration and escape in wild places, first beginning to photograph nature on an iPod camera during her early teens. At seventeen, she purchased her first DSLR camera with all of her savings from a part-time job, and devoted herself to photographing the wildlife close to home; foxes in summer fields, winter seas and the changing rhythms of the seasons. But it was an encounter with a Northern Fulmar soaring along the chalk cliffs of East Sussex that ultimately changed the course of her life, sparking an enduring fascination with seabirds and the oceanic world they inhabit.

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Without financial privilege or formal training, Rachel forged her own path into the industry through persistence, fieldwork and relentless self-education. She volunteered on remote seabird islands to gain experience, immersed herself in behavioural study and conservation and sought opportunities wherever she could find them. Determined to learn, she attended lectures at universities she was never enrolled in, wrote hundreds of emails to industry professionals and travelled across the country for opportunities while working full-time to support her ambitions. By her early twenties, Rachel’s work had begun attracting wider attention through publications and sheer determination, leading to opportunities in broadcast and natural history filmmaking with BBC Earth, BBC One, Channel 4, Springwatch, and The One Show. One of the defining moments of her early career came while filming her beloved European Badger clan for Wild Isles, presented by Sir David Attenborough. Yet despite the world of broadcast filmmaking, Rachel found herself continually drawn back to the still image. For her, stills photography holds a unique power; the ability to distill emotion, atmosphere and story into one single frame.

 

That pursuit of emotional connection, artistry and authenticity continues to define her work today.