Writer, photographer, observer.

Michael Cassimaty is an Australian writer, photographer and former tourism, education and government professional whose life has been shaped by wildlife, travel, fieldwork and an enduring curiosity about the natural world.

His early years took him from turtle research at Mon Repos, Heron Island and Raine Island to travel through Europe, the Middle East and the Sinai, and later to work in tourism, conservation, education and public administration. Photography has accompanied much of that journey, recording landscapes, wildlife and people across several decades.

His memoir, Learning to Lean Back, revisits the years before illness and disability altered the course of his life. Rather than a story of overcoming adversity, it is a reflection on curiosity, fear, belonging, change and the ways experience quietly accumulates over time.

He continues to write, photograph and develop new projects, including a photographic companion to the memoir and a series of children’s books.