adventure – Documentary Travel Photographer – Rafael Ben Ari

A day in a life of a girl living in Auckland city New Zealand on Nikon Auckland Photo Day 2017.

AUCKLAND IS MY PLAYGROUND

Documentary travel photographer Rafael Ben Ari. At the end of 2018, we closed our chapter in New Zealand. We said goodbye to family and familiar routines, packed up what little we owned, and crossed the Tasman Sea to the Gold Coast. We bought a Toyota Land Cruiser, mounted a rooftop tent, and transformed the back into a tiny photography studio—cameras and drone ready for the road. From coastline to desert, from deep gorges to lush rain forests, we immersed ourselves in Australia’s raw landscapes, its people, and its wildlife. And somewhere along the way, we fell deeply in love with this vast, ancient land.

THE BIG LAP

Documentary travel photographer Rafael Ben Ari. As Israel stands as one of the world’s leading destinations for religious pilgrims, it became the natural place for me to guide others on a journey of discovery. I united my passion for photography with the land’s deep history and spiritual significance, launching photography tours across the Holy Land and leading photographers from around the world through its breathtaking landscapes and ancient cities. Through these journeys, we captured more than images—we connected with stories thousands of years in the making. My work led to collaborations with the Israel Ministry of Tourism and the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has been exhibited internationally in France, Italy, Mexico, and across Central and South America.

UNEXPECTED ISRAEL

Documentary Travel Photographer Rafael Ben Ari photography and videography work in Oceania region My family and I traveled across New Zealand, chasing light through vast landscapes and capturing the raw beauty of its culture and wild horizons. From there, the journey carried us deeper into the Pacific—Fiji, the Cook Islands—where turquoise waters met ancient traditions and time seemed to slow under tropical skies. It was a dream I had carried for years, sparked by Paul Gauguin’s Tahiti paintings—an urge to immerse myself in color, warmth, and distant cultures. To see the tropics with my own eyes. To explore the exotic and unfamiliar. To live fully—and create freely.

PACIFIC ISLANDS ADVENTURES

A showreel showcasing documentary travel photographer and photojournalist Rafael Ben Ari photography work from New York City

NEW YORK MOMENTS

A showreel showcasing documentary travel photographer and photojournalist Rafael Ben Ari photography work from New York City

MEDRANO CIRCUS

Documentary photography fine art visual work of The Medrano Circus by documentary travel photographer Rafael Ben Ari

AUSTRALIAN ROAD TRIP

ISRAEL IN MULTI-COLOR

TROPICAL ADVENTURE

AUSTRALIA