Exploring the rarely photographed Montebello Islands
Situated 130km off the Pilbara coast of Western Australia, the Montebello Islands are a little explored part of Australia best known for being the site of atomic bomb testing in the 1950’s.
There were three tests done in the Montebellos by the British government, one in 1952 and two in 1956.
These days, the 174 islands that make up the Montebellos are largely untouched, and act as the winter home for small groups of yachties who anchor in the secluded bays to escape the cold of down south, while small tourist groups visit by boat occasionally as well.
I first started to explore the idea of photographing the Montebello’s five years ago by helicopter, but with no option to refuel I decided to go down the path of using a light plane - not my ideal platform to shoot from, but the only option I had.
With Dampier being the closest airport at 130km from the islands, in 2019 I started to talk to some local pilots, but they were reluctant to do it.
The following year I talked to a pilot who was willing to fly but only in a larger plane, which would be too expensive. At the same time, I wasn’t allowed to shoot from an open window so that idea was canned as well.
I spent the next two years trying to find a pilot who would be willing to take on the trip, but with the same outcome until about a year ago I worked out I could fly from Exmouth (220km away) to Dampier, stay the night, and then head off in the morning after refuelling.
Earlier this year I contacted a pilot I had used before in Exmouth and he was happy to do the trip.
So, at the end of July and with a perfect weather window, we headed off, following the coast north past Onslow which allowed me to get additional photos of that coastline, something I hadn’t seen before.
That leg took two hours, and after spending the night in Dampier we departed at 8am for the 130km trip out to the islands, flying above several smaller islands so we didn't spend too much time over water.
The views were spectacular, with the water colour better than expected, with vivid aqua lagoons and white beaches.
In total, we spent almost two hrs photographing the Montebello’s, and also captured the nearby Lowendal Islands and Barrow Island which were on the way back to Exmouth. All up, it was just over 7hrs flying time over the two days.
All the images were captured with a Canon EOS-1D X Mark II and EF24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens.
Getting there
I flew with Norwest Air Work in a Cessna 172 out of Exmouth, but I’m not sure they would be willing to fly for other people (I was the first) but you could always ask.
At the same time, even though I did this over two days it would be possible to do the journey as a day trip without going to Dampier. However, that would mean only spending about 30min at the islands.
There is so much more to photograph along that coast, so it makes sense to spend that little bit extra and go to Dampier to refuel.
About the author: Colin Leonhardt runs Birdseye View Photography, a helicopter based aerial photography service located in Perth, Western Australia specialising in stunning photography of Perth and WA. See more of his images at birdseyeviewphotography.com.au.