The abstract detail of an artichoke coral is brought out using a 105mm macro and SubSea +10 diopterĪfter seeing great photographers shoot the area over the last couple of years-David Doubilet, Stephen Frink, Michael Aw, Lia Barrett and others-I knew trying to find a unique image was going to be difficult, but in such a rich place, the possibilities seem endless, as long as you have some time to experiment. The abundance and proximity of the life means you can focus on crafting the light and then wait for interesting compositions.Īnother background “model” adds to a wide-angle shot of some brightly colored spongesĪn arrow blenny pokes out from fire coral for an appealing macro portrait I used mostly wide-angle lenses-the Tokina 10–17mm and Nikon 17–35mm-but I made sure to bring along my Nikon 105mm macro and Reefnet SubSea +10 diopter as well, as details are important when telling a story. The ocean is an amazing place and the people working to save it are all our heros, whether we know it or not. Getting the chance to talk conservation and exploration with such a legend was surreal, intimidating, enlightening, and joyful. I stayed on the comfortable and well-staffed floating hotel called Tortuga, and the trip was led by the awesome Michael Aw and we were joined by the incomparable Dr. Sylvia Earle, you know it’s going to be an exciting dive! When your dive buddy is the legendary scientist and explorer Dr. Yes, Cuba may not have gotten everything right in their past, but we can all look to this success story, and invest in our own future.Ī well-positioned model can make a good composition even more interesting While Cuba may benefit economically from their park, the world benefits ecologically. A healthy ocean can tolerate climate change and the effects of warming better than a weak one. Marine protected areas not only help that region. As savvy divers get bored with dead, algae-covered reefs, they will seek relatively healthy ecosystems and those nations that do not have them will lose out. Today, it is an advertisement to the rest of the world that leaving a place alone can pay off some day. At first, it was a place Fidel Castro wanted for himself, somewhere only he could go spearing. The protections for the Gardens of the Queen come in both remoteness and forward thinking. For this image, as I was shooting straight up and didn’t want bubbles in the frame, I had to hold my breath-taking careful note of my buoyancy Turtles make for strong subjects in silhouette shots. For an underwater photographer, it’s as rich as it gets.Īn American crocodile in Cuba: We had a glass calm day, so I was careful to not disturb the surface and try for reflections Large groupers and turtles are common and friendly. How often have you fantasized, “I wish I could dive this place 200 years ago-it must have been so amazing?” If you’re like me, a lot! For the Caribbean, this place is the Gardens of the Queen-a place where you are all but guaranteed to see a dozen reef sharks or silky sharks per dive (and sometimes both), where you glide through pristine mangrove creeks spotting crocodiles before splashing onto reefs densely covered in coral with tiny arrow blennies poking out. One beautiful example is Los Jardines de la Reina, or the Gardens of the Queen, a place so well protected it’s almost like going back to a time before shark fin soup, before bottom trawling, before we had seven billion mouths to feed, and before humans had poisoned, clear-cut, dredged, warmed, acidified, polluted, drilled, burned, and slaughtered most of the life and places life flourishes on this planet. We have all learned a lot about Cuba’s history and with America opening up relations, this small nation is in the spotlight regularly, but what does the future bring? Of course, no one can know for certain, but to me it looks very bright.Ī place rich in resources is rich indeed, and Cuba has done a better job than most at protecting their natural resources. Silky sharks joined us for many of our safety stops, often hanging around at 15 feet for 20 minutes or more
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