:: Valerie Taylor - Arts - 1980

Valerie Taylor is a pioneer in the history of scuba diving and the underwater environment. She is a renowned marine conservationist, underwater photographer and videographer, scriptwriter and painter. Valerie first ventured underwater in 1956. Four years later, she took up spearfishing and won several Australian championships for both spearfishing and scuba. Valerie and her husband, Ron Taylor, gained fame in the early days of scuba diving for their breathtaking live footage of sharks, particularly Great Whites. In 1969, the Taylor's formed their own production company and Valerie, a stunning blond, was catapulted to international stardom when she appeared in Peter Gimbel's classic feature film, "Blue Water White Death." Since then, she has twice graced the cover of National Geographic Magazine and has been featured in numerous articles and documentary films. During that same year, 1969, Valerie took up underwater photography and quickly became one of the world's top underwater photographers. During the 1970s Valerie and Ron's live shark sequences appeared in numerous productions, including the movies, "Jaws," "Orca" and "The Blue Lagoon." Both she and Ron have won numerous awards in underwater photography and videography, including the prestigious NOGI (they are the only husband and wife to win NOGI Awards in different categories).