Water-based photographer and videographer Nolan Omura is on the crest of a wave. In 2019, at the age of just 22, Omura’s super-cool photo of a beautifully curved, cerulean blue wave made the front cover of the long-running, premier Hawaiian surfing magazine Freesurf. In the same year, Omura contributed to the ad campaign for the 8th iteration of the widely popular GoPro Hero series of action cameras, the GoPro HERO8 Black, and teamed up for a paid partnership with Chinese technology company DJI to promote their waterproof action camera, the Osmo Action. He has also collaborated with global software company Adobe, quartz watch manufacturers MVMT, California outdoor clothing designer Patagonia, Scandinavian travel gear brand Db and the Nike swimwear range, Nike Swim.

In January 2020, Omura took a trip to the French Polynesian island Mo’orea with fellow Hawaiians Chun Chau and popular photographer and videographer Sho Niimura, with the goal of learning about coral reef damage from members of the conservationist organization Coral Gardeners. The trip was documented on video and, in March of that year, resulted in the YouTube video Reviving Our Reefs, in collaboration with Mexican pale lager brewers Corona. In the description for the video, Omura stated that, ‘Growing up in Hawai’i, I’ve witnessed the damage to coral reefs happen right in front of my eyes. Not only is this occurring here in Hawai’i, but around the world.’