Gergo Rugli: Seascape and Ocean Photographer based in Sydney, Australia. I was only a small child learning how to speak when my grandfather would read stories about the oceans, dolphins, and sharks to me in the landlocked country of Hungary where I grew up. I still remember vividly how fascinated I was by these stories, which ended up shaping my entire life. In my early years, my love for nature was expressed through my drawings, and later in my twenties, through my award-winning garden. Designing and maintaining this garden opened my eyes to the smallest details of nature’s beauty. I was amazed by the intricate beauty of the hundreds of flowers. This made me realize that we're surrounded by wonders we often overlook due to our busy lifestyles. Capturing the micro-world of this "little oasis" was when I first picked up a camera. By my mid-thirties, I had established a comfortable lifestyle through our successful family business. Despite all the good things life provided for me, I felt an emptiness. Something was missing, and I searched for it restlessly. In 2014, I visited Australia for the first time; my heart was filled with joy like never before. On my last day there, I went for a swim at the famous Bondi Beach. It was magical. The waves were gently rolling in while I floated on my back with my eyes closed, letting the current drift me around. Being in the ocean, I felt a peace I had never experienced before... it was at that moment everything became clear, and I felt I had found what I had been seeking for so long. Unfortunately, the next day, all this magic ended when I returned to Europe. The emptiness returned, and the feeling of lost love was unbearable. Every day after my return, I watched the sunset from my balcony, yearning for that magical land and its vast oceans. My mind was filled with countless excuses about why it would be impossible for me to live near my beloved ocean. Every time a plane flew overhead in the sunset sky, a voice inside me screamed, "you must go." It was during one of these evenings that I decided to stop resisting the pull and instead surrender to the universe's flow. In that moment, when I resolved to give up everything, it felt as if a light had been switched on – all the excuses, fears, and mental obstacles faded. I left the comfortable and calm waters, and I drifted to a faraway land, through furious cascades, rough whirlpools and severe storms, all the way back to my beloved ocean. Throughout this journey, it was photography that helped me fight the currents. Photography helped me focus only on the positive, the magnificent beauty of our world and its wonders. It shined a path for me during the dark hours. Without this passion of mine, all my dreams would have been lost forever. Now, I have the privilege of spending most of my time by the ocean, absorbing its beauty day by day.I continuously search for those magical moments, like the ones in my grandfather’s stories, and aim to capture the beauty and wonders of our world for the rest of my life.