Brice Smith purchased his first camera in 2021. A dual enrollment high school student at the time, he took a photography elective at Eastern Florida State College.
The experience made an impact.
“I was captivated by the potential of the camera,” he recalled. “The ability to capture any moment in time—emotions, actions, memories, all with the click of a shutter. It’s almost like it opened my eyes to a whole new world.”
When his interest waned after his class was complete, Smith re-embraced the craft of photography in 2022 as a student at Florida Tech thanks to two of its best practitioners on campus, the biology professors Richard Aronson and Mark Bush, and their summer field course in Peru.
This resurgence was rewarded late last year when Smith, now a senior majoring in marine biology, got word his photo of a blue heron with a juvenile alligator in its beak—moments before the reptile becomes a meal—was chosen for inclusion in the 2025 Indian River Lagoon calendar from the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program.
Here is more from Smith. Responses have been lightly edited.
Question: So that field course in Peru, how did that renew your spark?
Smith: Seeing the Andean cock-of-the-rock, the Catacombs of Lima, and the abundant life in the Peruvian Amazon motivated me to capture its beauty to the best of my ability. Of course, that meant I had to get better with the camera.
Question: With several years of advanced photography now under your belt, who have you found were influences on your work?
Smith: My primary influence is Dr. Aronson. Through his life he has travelled the world and taken thousands of amazing photographs. It was nice to talk to someone about photography who was experienced in the field. Meeting him opened a world of opportunities and led to lots of amusing photographic expeditions. It gave me a new appreciation for the memories a photograph can hold. I also have to thank Dr. Bush for getting me into birding! He has been a big influence in that regard.
Question: You shoot primarily nature-related images. Why is that? And is there some thing or a place that’s on your bucket list to someday take pictures of?
Smith: I primarily shoot nature because, as a marine biologist, I am infatuated with the circle of life. It can be brutal, but predation is one of my favorite ecological interactions to capture. Some animals will go to crazy lengths for a meal; say, a great blue heron eating a baby alligator.
I do have quite a bucket list. From the Lion of Lucerne in Switzerland to the bioluminescence of firefly squids off the coast of Japan, I hope to capture all sorts of wonders around the world.
Question: How does your photography help or enhance your classroom education?
Smith: Photography enhances my classroom education because it makes me more knowledgeable about wildlife in Florida. I have taken so many pictures of birds and other wildlife in Florida that I can usually I.D. them on the spot. A lot of the time I have classmates asking me, “What’s that bird?”
Florida Tech has provided me with many opportunities to do photography. While on lab trips for marine biology I saw bald eagles carrying fish; on SOARS (Sustainability Outdoors Adventure Recreation Survival) club trips I saw black and white warblers hunting for grubs; and through field research courses I have seen the immense amount of biodiversity there is in the world.
Photography also helps with connections. It is an easy subject to broach with science professors because they have an appreciation for nature.
Question: What does it mean to you to land a spot in the Indian River Lagoon calendar? Pretty impressive given there are not many openings in a 12-month calendar.
Smith: Landing a spot in the Indian River Lagoon calendar didn’t feel real at first. I honestly didn’t think I won because they announced the winners a couple of months late, so it came as quite a shock. Florida, being home to many diverse ecosystems and wildlife, has tons of amazing photographers. It is an honor to compete with them and win a slot in the first photography contest I’ve ever entered.
Interested in seeing more of Brice Smith’s photographs? Email him at bsmith2022@my.fit.edu for details on how to do that.
