Herbert Frei

Herbert Frei © Heiko Pludra

“Freshwater photography is a lifelong 
passion. It’s not the depth that counts, 
but the subject. Photographing 
what remains hidden from others. 
To show what you would never
have guessed was there.“

Herbert Frei

In 2025, UNESCO will celebrate 50 years of water research. A year of fresh water.

Fresh water makes up only 2.6 to 3.5 per cent of the Earth’s water supply, which is very little. A significant proportion of the world’s fresh water is stored in glaciers or in permafrost soils, or is groundwater in our soils. 

As these limited global freshwater resources are steadily shrinking, scientists believe that it is necessary for humanity to adapt its consumption to nature and develop new strategies to stem the decline of freshwater reserves. 

Freshwater goes through many different states in the water cycle, with elements such as precipitation, seepage and evaporation. Freshwater can be found on the earth’s surface in streams, rivers and lakes. Freshwater is the habitat of many organisms. And, since 1973, it has been the habitat of Herbert Frei. 

Frei has earned such great recognition as a diving journalist and photographer that many refer to him as the ‘freshwater pope’. As a specialist in freshwater photography, he is one of the oldest and most experienced underwater photographers in Europe. He regularly publishes in Tauchen, Sporttaucher, Wetnotes and Divemaster. He has published 34 books about the underwater world. For decades his photographs of freshwater fish have also been published in fishing and sports fishing magazines. No other author worldwide has written more books about underwater photography than Herbert Frei. 

As a tester for diving magazines and camera manufacturers, he knows underwater technology like no other. Herbert Frei packs all cameras in precision underwater housings from SEACAM, some of which he helped to develop.