Onne van der Wal’s career was launched while racing as a crew-member during the 1981-82 Whitbread Round the World race on the Dutch entry, Flyer II.  Onne was the engineer and bowman onboard, photographing the experience for his friends and family when he had the opportunity to show his slides to the editor of SAIL magazine while Flyer was anchored in Marblehead during sail trials with Hood before the race.  Keith Taylor, hired Onne on the spot to document the race and Onne’s first cover shot, taken from the boom of the boat hauling down a wave in the gnarly southern ocean, appeared on the cover of SAIL during the second leg of the race.   His images have since graced over 500 national and international nautical magazine covers and hundreds of yacht builders’ promotional brochures. His 34 years as a professional and award winning photographer not only includes editorial and assignment photography but he also owns a gallery in Newport where the public can purchase and hang his fine art photography on the walls of their homes, yachts, hotels and businesses.  He is the author of four coffee table books, (two published by Rizzoli), the creator of several documentaries, a Tedx Newport speaker, and the subject of a Rhode Island PBS documentary (co-produced by This Old House) about his career, trades education, photography and ability to refit his own 36 foot Pearson sailboat. Since 2008, Onne has been a member of Canon’s exclusive Explorer of Light program – one of only 33 selected photographers world-wide.