Collection: MIKE COOTS

It’s been a wild ride for Mike Coots. Mike began surfing as a toddler in the warm waters of Hawai’i, and a lifelong obsession was born. In a strange twist of fate, he lost his right leg to a tiger shark attack right after high school.  With a tad bit of irony, he's become one of the staunchest advocates of sharks, dedicating his life to protecting the animal that nearly killed him. Between lobbying Congress for shark legislation to sharing compelling stories on social media, he's optimistic we can shift the negative stigma of sharks. He's shared his story through countless news outlets. In doing so he created a petition that was hand-delivered to the US Secretary of Commerce about the importance of protecting sharks in the North Western Hawaiian Islands. It was successful, and became the largest protected area on Earth when signed into law in 2016. Along with all of this amazing activism Mike has remained a world class photographer and waterman. His knowledge and deep love for the ocean and all of its inhabitants are evident in his work.