[1] Atley starting shooting photos professionally in 1987 after winning a cadetship for the Sydney Morning Herald, selected as one of two people out of 2000 applications.
[4] In 2010 he was listed as a top ten finalist in the Sony World Photography Competition judged out of 37,617 entries.
[5][3] After shooting the news he then spent the next 12 years covering major sporting events[5] for Australia's leading daily newspapers, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
[6] More recently, he received the award as 2010 Volunteer of the Year by The Steve Waugh Foundation, the charity established by former Australian Test Cricket captain Steve Waugh that aids youths with rare diseases.
[8][9] Atley has taken many photos of famous people including George W Bush, HRH Queen Elizabeth II, Pope Benedict XVI, Vladimir Putin, Roger Federer, Tiger Woods, Sting and The Rolling Stones.