Gettin' Excited

I will be back in Papua on the 13th of October...headed back to paradise for a week of diving...I am bringing 21 other people with me this time, and will be teaching an underwater photography workshop....really looking forward to it!!

I just posted this photo on Google Plus, and thought I should share it here too...they are like the Bad Boyz of the reef...

Headed Back To Raja Ampat

I just paid for my plane tickets to Sorong today. When that happens, the trip back to paradise always feels that much closer. This trip, I will be armed with my new Nikon D800 and my new Ikelite housing. The trip is still another month away, but I get so excited before a dive trip. I tried to put together my housing this past weekend so that I could practice in my pool learning the new knobs and controls, but I was confused with the directions on installing the dome port...so, I am waiting for better instructions from the guy I bought the housing from before jumping in the pool. The last thing I want to do is flood my housing the first time in the water.

I don't think I have posted this photo from Raja Ampat before....If I have, I apologize in advance.

Black n White Tornado

I have posted the color version of this photo before, but was playing around with Nik's Silver Efex Pro 2, and came up with this version...I think it looks really cool.

I received my Nikon D800 today, but I don't have a memory card(s) for it yet, so can't use it....gotta get on that!!

Bat Fish Under A Ledge

I can't remember if I had posted this photo or not, but maybe it is worth posting again if I had already...A group of Batfish hiding from the raging current under a ledge...a tricky shot to get with the current and movement from the waves above...

Mike's Point

I was going through some of my older underwater photographs...most of my older shots (and a bunch of my new stuff) were lost when my Drobo failed. This one, for some reason, I had an extra copy of....and I am glad I did. I have always liked this shot. This was taken at Mike's Point in Raja Ampat....named after my buddy, Max's son. I have dived this spot countless times. Usually, the current is raging....and I mean really raging. During WWII, the Americans bombed this little rock thinking it was a ship moving through the water...in reality it was just the current passing around the rock...that's how strong it usually is. However, on this day, the current was slack, so I was able to compose my shots of the reef much easier. With the morning sun coming down through the water, it lit just a small portion of the reef which I lit further with my strobes...Not many others really like this shot, but it is special to me...

Twins

Oops....missed a day yesterday....just too busy to find the time to make a post. I try to post a new photo every week day, but it is not always easy to do.

I took this photo a couple of years ago. I was on a night dive when I heard someone clanking on their tank...at first, I couldn't see what the diver was looking at, and then I saw there were two Ghost Pipe Fish...getting a photo of the two of them was tricky as one of them would always turn in a different direction, but I was finally able to catch them turning in the same direction...

Like An Aquarium

Well, of course, the real ocean is going to look like an aquarium, but not everywhere...but head to Raja Ampat, and it looks like an aquarium on steroids most everywhere you go...

Fish With Attitude

I love their expressions....they are like the bad asses of the reef...

Reaching For Light

There was a big swim meet at my school this weekend...I jumped into the pool with my scuba gear between races, and grabbed this shot...the Black n White came out much nicer than the color version (I thought)...

On Vacation...From Archives #1

Sorry for not posting anything the last two days...I have no internet at home.

I am off on vacation until the 5th of January, so will post some photos from my archives the next couple of weeks until I return from China with some new photos.

Have a great Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Gold Fish

A combination of Nik's Silver Efex Pro 2 and Nik's Color Efex...

Cool Nudibranch

Not sure how I missed this photo when I was browsing through my latest underwater stuff...but somehow I just "swam" right by it which is usually what happens underwater...

A Swarm of Fish

I have been watching a series on the BBC about "Swarms"...they have some amazing footage of swarms of fish, birds and insects and talk about the behavior of the swarms as a whole....really interesting stuff. I couldn't help think about that series when I saw this school (swarm) of fish around this reef head. They all acted as "one"....really amazing stuff...

Is this photo too "tall" for your monitor? It fits nicely on my iMac, but don't want you to have to scroll up or down to view it...let me know in the comments if it is too large, and next time, I will re-size photos like this...

Mike's Point

Happy Friday!! Don't you just love Friday's??

This is a shot from one of my favorite dive sites in Raja Ampat...Mike's Point, named after my friend, Max's son. The currents can be fierce at this spot, but currents bring with them big fish and lots of them. On this particular day, the currents were fairly mild, and I was able to sit next to this big rock that had fallen from the island above, and watch the schools of fish stream by...I could have sat there for hours...

Have a great weekend!!

Red and Black

Sometimes I get bored underwater...after over 4000 dives, it gets to a point when you have seen most of the stuff there is to see underwater...so, I give myself little challenges...try to get photos of only certain colors, or a combination of colors, or look for new and interesting patterns...etc, etc,...so, this is one photo I took for one of my personal challenges...I was looking for the colors red and black, and trying to make the most interesting composition I could find with those colors...I should start a contest with something like this...would be a cool challenge for a bunch of divers to do all at the same time...

Reef On Fire

Sorry for no post yesterday....we had a three day weekend out here.

Thanksgiving went well...hope you all had a great weekend as well...

Doesn't this photo look like fish running from a fire?

Happy Friday!!

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!! We had a great time last night, and all 70 or so people left with stuffed tummies! The turkeys were the best I have had!!

Here is the last of my underwater fashion series...I do have a couple more, but thought you might be getting tired of these...but if want more, I can share a few more with you...

Have a great weekend!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Happy Thanksgiving for you Americans out there!! I know that not all of you are Americans, but even if you are not, it's still a great day to say, "Thanks" and enjoy a nice day with family and friends. I am hosting a big dinner tonight....I have over 70 people coming over. We have the tents set up at the house, and my wife, Tika, is picking up SEVEN turkeys this morning....I will start cooking at 1:00...we deep fry the turkeys, and each one takes between 30 and 40 minutes, and it is the most delicious turkey you have ever had....it is for sure the way to go...can't wait. In any case, I hope you all have a great day today...it is one of my favorite American holidays!!

To continue with my series of "Underwater Fashion"...here is round 4...one more tomorrow, and will then get back to my usual stuff....

Underwater Fashion No. 3

On a totally different topic...are any of you on Google+ ? I am writing my thoughts about G+, and will share them in a post in a couple of days...my thoughts might spark an interesting conversation on Google+, so stay tuned...

Here is my third entry from my underwater shoot last Sunday...trying to get two models with their eyes open, no bubbles in their nose, not too much hair or scarf in their face, enough light on their faces, the right expression, etc. while they are holding their breath is no easy task....got lucky with this one...

Underwater Fashion No. 2

I converted this one to black n white...you wouldn't even know it was underwater if it weren't for the pose...you would need an elaborate system of cables if you did a shot like this on land...