When I see the quality of the images in this year’s Ocean Views photo contest, two thoughts come to mind. The first is how impressed I am with the talent and vision of the contestants. As one who has spent most of my adult life underwater, I cannot help but be amazed — and perhaps a little intimidated — by the caliber and ability of the photographers at work today. It gives me hope and excites me to know our craft is evolving and that new technology and ideas keep emerging.
To those who believe everything that could be photographed underwater has been, I have only one thing to say: Keep an eye on this new crop of underwater photographers. Clearly there is much more for us all to learn. Even more important, this next generation is telling stories with its cameras at a time when storytelling is needed more than ever. These images add the critical visual dimension to the urgent questions confronting humankind today.
The second thought that comes to mind is the extreme level of commitment required to create photos like these. As a National Geographic photographer tasked with delivering images from some of the most inhospitable parts of the globe, I am keenly aware of the willingness to risk life and equipment — as well as personal relationships — required to bring back images like these. This type of work demands boundless energy, unflagging enthusiasm, a spirit of adventure, the ability to survive in difficult circumstances and the courage to confront danger. It is all consuming, making for lonely mates and neglected families. It is frenetic, exciting and sometimes hazardous, but every minute is worth it.
But there is much more to being on location than personal sacrifice; shooters must also think about the practicalities of photography. I’ve adopted a methodical workflow that allows me to make sure my equipment works correctly and get my images safely back to my editors in Washington, D.C. This workflow includes the use of several indispensible pieces of software (including Photo Mechanic and Lightroom) as well as a very strict naming convention, backup protocols with multiple redundancies and the application of metadata embedded in the images. Sticking to the workflow takes discipline; it’s not easy while living on sea ice at -30 F°. The simpler the system, the better.
Preventative maintenance of gear in the field is extremely important to any photographer working in a remote destination far from repair or replacement equipment. Often the best pictures require we walk a fine line between creativity and personal risk, and once there you want to know for certain your camera, strobe and dive gear won’t let you down.
The images on these pages remind me a good photograph is one that arrests the eye but also invites reflection. The best pictures are the ones that evoke emotion. As underwater storytellers we must remember a good image becomes an experience shared with thousands of people who might never get a chance to be immersed in the amazing places and situations we photographers and divers encounter. Each image becomes an ambassador for an ecosystem very much at risk. Through them, we all are gifted with a larger vision of the world.
— Paul Nicklen
First Place
Lemon Shark Sunset, Grand Bahama
By Deano Cook
As the sun was setting, I wanted to capture a quiet moment with one of the lemon sharks we had been photographing that afternoon. This particular shark was just as curious as I was, and what an amazing moment I was able to capture! His eye above the surface stares back at me, as if to show me he’s watching, too. Below the surface his mouth was just slightly open, showing off his sharp teeth.
(Nikon D200, Nikon 16mm lens, 1/200 sec at f/11, ISO 200, Sea & Sea housing, Sea & Sea YS-110 strobes, www.deanocook.com)
Second Place
Octopus, Barcelona, Spain
By Raimundo Fernández Diez
This octopus lived in a glass bottle in the sand off an urban beach near Barcelona. The beach is full of trash, and the water is always murky, but it can deliver nice surprises like this curious octopus. The first few times we met the octopus was quite shy, but it seemed attracted to its image reflected in the dome. Many times, including this one, it embraced the dome with its tentacles. Besides needing perfect timing to get the tentacle in the frame, the other big problem was achieving proper lighting in bad visibility with something that was literally touching the dome.
(Canon EOS 7D, Tokina 10-17mm lens at 10mm, 1/20 sec at f/16, ISO 320, Nauticam housing, dual Inon Z-240 strobes, www.livinguw.com)
Third Place
Lava Wave, Hawaii
By C.J. Kale
In 2010 I probably became the first photographer to ever shoot lava from in the surf. The conditions had to be perfect: First, the lava had to cross a beach; second, there needed to be surf; and third, the volume of lava flowing into the ocean needed to be perfect (too much and the water would be boiling far out to sea; too little and there would not be enough to capture in a photo). I got three days in the water out of seven; the other days it was just too dangerous. If you look above the lava to the clouds you can see shading of a face in the sky. Perhaps it’s Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of fire.
(Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon 16-35mm LII f/2.8 lens at 16mm, 1/1600 sec at f/5.6, ISO 1000, SPL housing)
Fourth Place
Emerald Spirit, West Coast of Ireland
By George Karbus
This photograph was taken beneath the heaviest and most intimidating waves for surfing on Ireland’s west coast. Local surfer Fergal Smith was paddling into the amazing waves and scoring a few deep tube rides. Each time he started to paddle into a wave, I dived down under it, held my breath and waited for the moment he came swishing through a silver barrel only feet away from my lens. Water visibility is always limited in Ireland, and I was very lucky to get this shot.
(Nikon D700, 16mm f/2.8 fisheye lens, 1/1000 sec at f/6.3, ISO 800, Subal housing, available light)
Fifth Place
Polar Bear, Svalbard Archipelago, Norway
By Linda Drake
After a trip to see polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba, I became hooked — possessed of a desire to see and photograph them in all seasons and situations. Eventually I found an opportunity to work for a month as an expedition photographer aboard a small ship in Svalbard, Norway. Normally when we encountered bears, they would move away quickly or ignore us, but this one was different. He came straight toward us, running and jumping through ice flows. Just as he got close to the ship he paused on an ice shelf and looked up at us on the bow. Then he looked at the water ahead of him, as if contemplating whether to go all in. He did, and then he swam up to the hull of the boat and climbed onto a small ice floe. He stood on his hind legs and put his front paws on the ship, as if knocking, asking to come in from the cold.
(Canon EOS 7D, Canon 100-400mm lens at 250mm, 1/1250 sec at f/7.1, ISO 800, hand held, www.LindaDrake.com)
Sixth Place
Harp Seal, Prince Edward Island National Park, Canada
By John Sylvester
| Every March up to 200,00 harp-seal pups are born on the sea ice in Canada’s Gulf of St. Lawrence. In 2011, storms and a lack of ice cover due to an unusually warm winter resulted in the drowning deaths of many seal pups. Hundreds washed up on the shores of Prince Edward Island. This young seal faced an uncertain future. At nearly three weeks old, it was weaned but not yet ready to swim on its own, leaving it vulnerable to predation or drowning in the incoming tide. With a 17-year trend of warmer winters and reduced sea-ice coverage, the future of the Gulf of St. Lawrence harp seal herd is in question. For me, this image expresses not only the vulnerability of this individual pup but of the entire harp seal population. (Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 24-70mm lens at 27mm, 1/50 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200, Canon Speedlite 580EX II flash on camera with Sto-Fen diffuser, www.johnsylvester.com) |
Seventh Place
King Penguins, Right Whale Beach, South Georgia Island, Southern Ocean
By Steve Gould
This photograph, taken the first evening of six days spent at South Georgia Island, captures a group of king penguins on their way to the ocean for feeding. As they approached from a distance, I knelt down, set up the camera low to the ground and waited for them to reach the right spot for the composition I envisioned. Most images of king penguins are static, showing these tall, elegant creatures standing and looking fairly placid. This image appears to be of a gang, seemingly with a leader, and moving with a purpose. The mountains partially hidden by ominous clouds added to the drama I felt at the moment.
(Canon EOS 7D, 70-200mm lens at 70mm, 1/1000 sec at f/10, ISO 800, tripod mounted, www.stevegouldphotography.com)
Eighth Place
Weedy Sea Dragon, Flinders Pier, Victoria, Australia
By Richard Wylie
The males of the species are given the fertilized eggs (the pretty pink “bubbles” under the tail) from the female once mating has been completed. They incubate them until they hatch approximately eight weeks later. The day this photo was taken the weather was perfect: no wind, blue skies and clear water, which was very unusual. It took a long time for this sea dragon to get used to my presence, and the best shot of the day was taken as it was leaving. I got this photo while under the local leafy sea plants on my back, looking up as it swam by.
(Canon EOS 550D, Tokina 10-17mm lens at 17mm, 1/200 sec at f/8, Ikelite housing, Ikelite DS-51 strobe on TTL, www.marinecentre.info)
Ninth Place
Manta Rays Feeding, Baa Atoll, Hanifaru Bay, Maldives
By Tobias Friedrich
Manta rays arrive only rarely in high numbers to this small bay in the Baa Atoll. The concentration of plankton must be very high in this particular bay because up to 200 animals have been seen here at once in the past few years. It is difficult to capture a solitary moment with the rays because so many divers and snorkelers are around. Fewer and fewer rays were coming, but as of Jan. 1, 2012, the Maldives government restricted scuba diving in the bay.
(Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 8-15mm fisheye lens, 1/320 sec at f/9, ISO 50, UK-Germany housing, twin Ikelite DS-125 strobes, www.below-surface.com)
Tenth Place
Twin Gobies, Marsa Alam, Red Sea
By Tobias Friedrich
It’s quite unusual for this type of goby to sit on a hard coral like this one, so I spotted the first one and set my camera up for the shot. When the goby was in focus, and just before I was about to take the picture, a second goby came out of nowhere and sat on the first one. I quickly corrected the frame and took two or three shots before both of them disappeared.
(Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 100mm macro lens, 1/125 sec at f/22, ISO 200, UK-Germany housing, twin Ikelike DS-125 strobes, www.below-surface.com)
Eleventh Place
Larval Squid, Kailua Kona, Hawaii
By Joshua Lambus
This image was captured during an open ocean night dive above thousands of feet of water where the largest migration on earth occurs nightly. The miniscule squid was less than an inch long, transparent and highly reflective, making proper exposure extremely difficult. Over hundreds of dives I have become familiar with this species, its inherent shyness and varying range of exposure requirements. Although challenging, the combination of photographing unusual subjects and experiencing new frontiers keeps me shooting.
(Nikon D80, 60mm macro lens, 1/60 sec at f/40, ISO 320, Ikelite housing, Sea & Sea YS-120 and YS-90 strobes, www.jlambus.com)
Twelfth Place
Southern Elephant Seal, Gold Harbour, South Georgia Island, Southern Ocean
By Justin Hofman
The southern elephant seal is a behemoth, but it’s a study in restraint. These seals are either not breathing or not eating for most of their lives. I wanted to show they do much more than lie about like slugs on the beach. The males are true gladiators. This individual may look fierce, but he was simply yawning, over and over in the wave wash, allowing me to try multiple times for this impressive pose. So I settled down near the water and tried my best not to disturb his slumber.
(Nikon D7000, 14-24mm lens at 16mm, 1/640 sec at f/8, ISO 100, hand held — just inches from the seal’s mouth, www.Justin-Hofman.com)
Honorable Mentions
Clownfish Eggs, Eliat, Red Sea
By Esteban Toré Escofet
These little eggs were next to the anemone with their parents — two beautiful clownfish. The shot was tricky because the clownfish were constantly oxygenating the eggs, and they move very quickly. You can see one egg had already hatched. Clownfish eggs hatch about seven to 10 days after they are laid.
(Nikon D7000, 105mm VR macro lens, SubSee magnifier +10, 1/320 sec at f/57, ISO 400, Nauticam housing, Inon Z-240 strobe)
Abandoned Fishing Boat, Point Reyes National Seashore, Calif.
By Tim Aiken
Tomales Bay is a narrow, protected strip of water along the San Andreas Fault in Northern California, which in years past was known for its thriving fishing industry. This boat is a relic of better times for the local fishermen; few of this style can still be found today. The ridgelines along the bay blocked the sun, creating diffused light on the boat while still adding color to the clouds and distant hills.
(Nikon D700, 17-35mm lens at 17mm, 3-stop reverse graduated ND filter + 2-stop graduated ND filter, 3/5 sec at f/11, ISO 200, tripod mounted, www.timaiken.org)
Scripps Pier, La Jolla, Calif.
By Peter Lik
The California coast is a truly magical place, and I really wanted to capture that with this image. This pier held a strong composition for me, blending man-made architecture with nature. Long summer days covered the La Jolla coast with a blanket of mist I thought would never lift. I needed backlit color to shoot this, which would give depth and clarity to the converging lines of the pier. Shooting beneath the pier gave the image a unique perspective. Finally, there was a narrow window of opportunity as I could see the sky again. I only needed a few seconds. I frantically set up the camera and fired off a series of shots. The clouds moved in quickly, and a brief burst of color filled the sky. The wait was worth it. I walked away with the image that had been eluding me.
(Phase One IQ180, 55mm lens, 1 sec at f/22, ISO 35, tripod mounted, www.lik.com)
Sweetlips, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
By Jose Alejandro Alvarez
I spotted this small group of sweetlips holding in the current behind a seafan while a school of convict blennies swam nearby. I had to work close because of the nutrients in the water. While I managed several frames, this is my favorite because the fish is “yawning.”
(Nikon D300, Tokina 10-17mm lens at 14mm, 1/125 sec at f/16, ISO 200, Aquatica housing, dual Inon Z-240 strobes)
Milky Way Seascape, Kauai, Hawaii
By Aaron Feinberg
I wanted to capture the night sky while still able to show the landscape along Kauai’s north shore. I set up the composition and took photos as the light waned. When it was dark enough to shoot the night sky, I took another exposure; the second sky photo was taken as I panned upward for the vertical composition. All were carefully and painstakingly blended later to give a feeling of sitting by the ocean’s edge under the night sky, just as I was.
(Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III, Canon 16-35mm LII lens, 4 sec at f/5.6 for land, 30 sec at f/2.8 for sky, ISO 800 for land and 3200 for sky, tripod mounted, www.afeinphoto.com)
© Alert Diver — Q2 Spring 2012