THE GREAT BARRIER REEF: A Queensland Museum Discovery Guide. ISBN: 978 09751116 5 9

Foto Frenzy knows Gary Cranitch for his support as a Friend of Frenzy. Cranitch has formal qualifications gained at the College of Art (Griffith University), Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP) and a commercial dive certification. His work has been published in Australian Geographic, Popular Science (USA), New Scientist, and National Geographic online; as well as various publications and journals around the world. In 2008 Cranitch was awarded the Canon AIPP Science, Nature and Environment Photographer of the Year Award.

But more importantly is his 30+ years of working with the Queensland Museum as a photographer. The Queensland Museum has just published the definitive volume documenting the Great Barrier Reef. Principal Author is Greg Czechura and Cranitch is Principal Photographer. Czechura has written extensively on a range of natural history subjects, particularly birds of prey; and his contributions have been published in a number of Museum Wild Guides.

Much of the content and almost all of the photographs found in The Great Barrier Reef Discovery Guide are the result of the CReefs Project. In 2007, the Queensland Museum Network was invited to participate in the Australian node of the CReefs Project; an international collaboration designed to assess and explain the diversity, distribution and abundance of reef life.

CReefs Australia involved the systematic sampling and identification of coral reef biodiversity from three key Australian reef sites: the Great Barrier Reef’s Heron and Lizard Islands and Ninglaoo Reef in Western Australia.

This project, made possible through a $3.4 million grant from BHP Billiton, resulted in the identification of 1,200 new species, and thousands yet to be described. Most importantly, the project has established the first ever baseline for coral reef biodiversity. These findings will be used to inform policy decisions regarding the future of the Great Barrier Reef.

The significance of the printed page is seriously on display with this project. This Guide is the first definitive document about the Barrier Reef in over 40 years; and is destined to become the volume of reference for the next few decades.

To mark this launch, Cranitch will display some photographs from The Great Barrier Reef Discovery Guide and talk about the production of the book on Wednesday 7 August 2013 at 6:30pm at Foto Frenzy, 3/429 Old Cleveland Road, Coorparoo. This free event will feature some light refreshments, a display of enlarged photographs, a presentation by Gary Cranitch and the opportunity of having your personal copy signed by the author. Copies will be on sale during the evening (RRP - $59.95).

A great opportunity to have a personalised copy of this great reference book on your library shelves.