David Parer

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David Damien Parer AO ACS, born on 29 July 1945 in Melbourne, is an Australian wildlife cinematographer and natural history filmmaker. He often works with his wife, Elizabeth Parer-Cook, who is a sound recordist.

Parer was drafted for the Vietnam War in 1970, but he chose to study physics in Antarctica, spending summers at Mawson Station in 1970 and 1972 and making his first documentary there. He later joined the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s Natural History Unit, where he met Elizabeth in 1977. After the unit closed in 2007, they continued as freelance filmmakers. Their films have won more than 130 awards, including two Golden Pandas at Windscreen and three Emmy Awards, with AFI awards for best cinematography in non-feature films four times. Many of his documentaries were narrated by David Attenborough.

He received an Honorary Doctor of Science from Monash University in 1989 and was inducted into the Australian Cinematographers Society Hall of Fame in 2008. In 2024, he was named an Officer of the Order of Australia for his service to wildlife cinematography, literature, and the environment. Parer’s notable work includes Wolves of the Sea. He is related to the late war cinematographer Damien Parer, his uncle. He has a daughter named Zoe with Elizabeth.