It鈥檚 kind of a love-hate thing with sharks for most of us.
Although 鈥淛aws鈥� is a perennial favorite on scariest film lists and the Discovery Channel鈥檚 鈥淪hark Week鈥� has record-breaking viewership year after year, our fondness for sharks wanes in open water.
Not, though, for Lauren Benoit. She鈥檚 the one in the water filming them.
Benoit, who has a bachelor鈥檚 degree in and a master鈥檚 in , will be spending this year traveling the world, filming sharks with internationally known underwater cinematographers. She’s already worked on a “Shark Week” episode to air later this year.
鈥淚 will be working on many projects relating to sharks, but in different areas around the world and on different species,鈥� Benoit said. 鈥淢any jobs are for the Discovery Channel and also for the BBC and National Geographic.鈥�
Benoit鈥檚 fascination with sharks tracks to childhood when her family spent summers traveling by boat to Canada and other destinations. On one of those family trips, she had her first shark sighting鈥攁 Basking shark filter feeding at the water鈥檚 surface. After that, she read and watched everything she could about the fish. Now, her fascination is coupled with a deep appreciation for the shark鈥檚 function.
鈥淪harks have been around for over 400 million years, keeping prey and lower populations in check. Due to overfishing, their populations are rapidly declining. I have participated in many shark conservation projects, and there is a difference between a healthy ecosystem with sharks and one that has been fished out,鈥� Benoit said.
鈥淪howing people the true side of sharks will help with conservation efforts and show people how important they are in sustaining our oceans.鈥�