I was born in New York City, and although my family had a place in Miami, I was terrified of the ocean.
On a snorkel trip in the Bahamas, I saw a giant starfish in 1.5 meters (5 feet) of water and sprinted out crying. I wouldn’t even swim in pools, convinced a shark might appear.
At age 11, my dad enrolled me in a PADI Open Water Diver course at Tarpoon Lagoon Dive Center in Miami Beach, Florida. I finished it, clinging to him the entire time. I was proud… but I didn’t touch that certification for years.
A High School Shark Unit That Changed Everything
In high school, I took a marine biology class that included a unit on sharks. I finally learned the truth about their behavior, not the fear-based fiction I’d grown up with. That understanding replaced fear with fascination.
Every time I got back in the water, I ventured a little deeper. Eventually, I studied abroad in Australia and joined a Great Barrier Reef liveaboard, where I earned my Advanced Open Water Diver certification and met the ship’s underwater photographer.
That meeting lit the spark. “One day,” I told myself, “I’ll come back to Australia as a working underwater photographer and diver.”
Training up and Diving In
Back in the US, I interned at the Coral Restoration Foundation in Key Largo, Florida, and earned my PADI Rescue Diver certification with Rainbow Reef Dive Center. That course changed everything. I finally felt confident underwater, capable of helping myself and others.
I worked at dive shops in Miami, built experience and earned my Divemaster, then Assistant Instructor certification from Divers Paradise in Miami, Florida. I guided manta ray tours with Kona Honu Divers in Hawai‘i, worked as an underwater photographer for construction and research projects and gained a deep love for the ocean’s complexity.
The Full-Circle Moment
A few years later, I returned to that same liveaboard on the Great Barrier Reef, only this time, I was a professional underwater photographer and diver with my dream camera rig.
The onboard photographer?
She complimented my photos.
Where I Am Now
Today, I hold a Master’s degree in Marine Biology and run The FINstitute, a non-profit helping early-career conservationists break into shark and ray science. We partner with shark conservation organizations around the world to expedite and amplify their work, creating the biggest impact possible. The FINstitute’s mission mirrors the goals of PADI AWARE’s Shark Conservation Specialty Course by raising awareness of the threats sharks face and empowering people to take action. I’ve seen firsthand how informed divers can dispel misconceptions and become passionate shark defenders, and I’m committed to growing that global community.
I’m also one of the featured scientists on All the Sharks, a six-part Netflix series where four teams of shark experts race to find and film the most shark species in some of the planet’s most spectacular habitats. My training as a PADI Divemaster and Assistant Instructor gave me the navigation, safety and situational awareness skills I needed to thrive in remote, fast-changing environments while filming hammerheads, tiger sharks and other threatened species for a global audience.
That scared little girl who ran from a starfish now films hammerheads for viewers around the world. I never expected this life; I thought I’d be a fashion designer, athlete or (very randomly) a dentist. But following curiosity and my PADI certifications led me to a future even better than I imagined.
Follow my journey on Instagram at @aliah.in.waterland.
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Author Bio
This blog was written by Aliah Banchik, PADI Assistant Instructor, Marine Biologist and Shark Advocate.
Aliah Banchik is an underwater photographer and marine scientist featured on Netflix’s All the Sharks. She holds a Master’s degree in Marine Biology and is the co-founder of The FINstitute, a nonprofit dedicated to shark and ray conservation through student-powered science.
