Michaela Skovranova is an Australian photographer and filmmaker who specializes in telling human and environmental stories. From documenting the Great Barrier Reef restoration for National Geographic to capturing the aftermath of 2020’s Australian bushfires for TIME Magazine, her projects have had a huge impact on raising awareness for a variety of global issues. While on a trip to Tonga, Michaela took her underwater camera equipment on an organized tour to swim with humpback whales. The breathtaking footage she captured became “Love Scars,” which we featured on the site. Through a series of close up images and videos, she captured the intense bond between a humpback calf and its mother. Besides documenting her experience, the work examined what we humans could learn from the gentle sea giants, and went on to inspire “Nature Love Stories,” a short film which premiered at TEDxSydney in 2019.
Stories with Michaela Skovranova