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By the Wind Sailors
A couple months back a friend asked me if I had any photos of Portuguese Man-of-War, P. physalis. I remembered having tried to capture images of the the Man-of-War fish, N. gronovii, a long while back. Upon searching my library I found a few images, captured with a go-pro 3, one of which actually worked for the publication. With that incident in mind, I had a great opportunity to shoot split images of Man-of-War during an otherwise quiet Florida Manta Project survey. I spent quite a bit of time, and a lot of frames shooting two Men-of-War. The second, pictured here, had a lovely school of the Man-of-War fish with it! Scenes like this remind me that the best photo opportunities often come from otherwise overlooked subjects.
Common Snapping Turtle in a Florida Spring
Every winter we make a few trips to the magical springs of central and northern Florida to swim with and photograph manatees. I love the manatees, but cannot resist the urge to explore and observe the other aquatic wildlife calling the spring home. On this day, this common snapping turtle, C. serpentina, was out in the open going about its day and was unbothered by my presence. I spent about three hours observing and photographing it. During this time I was able to observe some incredible behavior from scavenging dead fish, to breathing at the surface!
Moving Down the Coast
I filmed and photographed this manta engaged in traveling behavior with a drone. Why they choose to swim in such shallow water is still a mystery. It could be to avoid predators, enjoy the warmth of the water and sun, or take advantage of coastal current.
I have had few chances to collect aerial media in such good conditions. My hands still shake with nerves when offered such opportunities.
The Urban Crocodile
Florida is the only place in the world where alligators and crocodiles live side by side. The american croc, Crocodylus acutus, is present throughout much of the Caribbean basin. Florida has always been the northern maximum of its range, and historically crocs ranged up both of Florida's central coasts. Due to hunting and habitat loss, their numbers are diminished and in recent history the population has been confined to the southern Everglades. Recovery programs have allowed numbers to bounce back and their range to extend northward into urban areas. This croc was sighted within a greater Miami waterway. This overlap with human habitat is sure to cause tensions, but I hope that we can learn to share this environment peacefully.
Skye the Manta
This might be my personal favorite manta photo to date. I "accidentally" found this perspective while attempting to capture an up close image of this mantas mouth. I was swimming above the ray holding my camera in front of me, pointed down and back when I took the image. The ray was relaxed and unbothered by my presence throughout. I was trying to capture an image of the mouth to investigate what appears to be green freshwater algae stuck in the mantas tooth-band. Where he picked it up is a mystery, but the Florida Manta Project's work is continuing to learn more about the habitat use and inshore forays of the juvenile South Florida population, and it is possible he picked up this algae in an inshore waterway.
This image has proved quite popular and has been featured in multiple publications including on the cover of Marine Giants Issue 1, The Marine Megafauna Foundations Quarterly Magazine.
Raccoon Key with Approaching Storm
This image of Raccoon Key, in the lower Florida Keys backcountry, shows the interconnectedness of land, water, and life in South Florida.
The Everglades, Florida Bay, and the Florida Keys, are both desolate, and paradise in turn. This area has been on of my favorite places since I fished here with my father years ago. I have since traded out my fishing gear for a camera and have wanted to return to photograph Raccoon key for a long time. Two years in a row I let the opportunity pass. This year I made it happen despite an imperfect weather forecast.
Raccoon Key is a ten mile roundtrip from Cudjoe by paddle board. It was a tough 1.5 hour effort out with a crosswind and just when I got to enjoying the surroundings, the storm blew up between the boat ramp and me.
I have seldom felt so vulnerable as when on a paddle board, separated from my truck by a lightening storm. I had a beautiful, but hurried and difficult paddle back, only to have the storm dissipate on arrival at the ramp. Here's to another opportunity when I return!
Largemouth Bass at night
I captured this image of a largemouth bass in a river in northern Florida at night. I worked with my cinematographer brother in law on lighting and we used a 5 second shutter, a flash lit foreground, and continuous light for the background to achieve this effect.
The Urban Manta Ray
As featured by National Geographic!
Incredibly, given their size, Florida’s manta rays often go unnoticed! They definitely notice us though, and Jessica Pate’s Florida Manta Project is revealing that a significant number of local mantas are struck by boats and entangled in fishing line. These are just a couple of the threats that mantas face globally, all of which resulted in their being listed on the Endangered Species Act last year. Too often, “nature” is viewed as something as distinct and distant from human development. With this image of a manta swimming in a “hardened” inlet, within the bounds of human development, I am hoping to convey a sense a proximity, and increase awareness of our impacts. In this area specifically, mantas (and human safety) would benefit from boaters keeping a better lookout and proceeding at safer speeds. Fisherman should also avoid allowing mantas to swim near their lines and should not cast on these rays, which are protected.
Creating this image was challenge. This is the only time in four years of assisting with manta studies that I have seen a photographable manta in this area. To make the image I had to lay on the lip of the sea wall, extend my camera down as far as I could reach and carefully balance so as not to fall into the ripping current. I shot blindly, taking as many as 900 frames to get a good combination of manta below, and structure above. I used my canon rebel SL1, Tokina fisheye, and Ikelite housing to make the image. My camera was on manual, f11 and 1/320th. I used auto ISO, but would prefer to underexpose using a lower ISO if given another chance.
Reef Manta Feeding Frenzy!
This image serves as a memory of so many emotions for me. Mantas are among my favorite marine organisms and any encounter with them is a fantastic experience. This one was sublime. After having crossed the Eastern Pacific Ocean on a sailing yacht, we made landfall in a French Polynesian harbor. Landfall after three weeks at sea is always welcome, but nothing could have prepared me for welcome by hundreds of mantas! These rays circled the boat on anchor and twice we witnessed major feeding aggregations. The rays circled us, barrel rolled, and stack fed for hours. Incredible!
As a photographic experience however, this episode was challenge. For one, visibility was limited by the plankton rich soup in which the mantas were feeding. For another, I was out of practice with my camera having been kept busy by my vessel responsibilities as captain of the 112' yacht over the previous 4 months. Additionally, my time was limited. Over-excited, out of practice, and time limited, I went for glory trying to get stunning images of these rays. The split shot of a Manta and tropical island! Dappled light and a school of feeding mantas! Most didn't turn out. I would give a lot for another shot at those images and a week or more to focus on the art. Thats okay though! I'll take this image and savor the memory.
To create this image, I was on scuba in deep water, but staying just below the surface. I was manically adjusting my exposure as the rays swam in and out of the sun's setting light. I was shooting my fisheye lens at 10mm and in this image the exposure was set to ISO 200, F8, 1/125. I used two strobes at 10-2 at roughly 1/2 power.
Everglades Snail Kite at Dusk
The Everglades Snail Kite has been an elusive bird for me. I finally saw my first two years ago and have had good luck finding them since. This individual was photographed in a South Florida National Wildlife Refuge and has been persistent enough to allow for multiple efforts. Capturing this image did require time. I spent five separate evenings photographing the kites and though I have images that I like, I still have another in my mind that has proved as elusive as the kite.
This image was made with a Canon 7D mark i and a 400 mm 5.6 lens. To capture it, I observed the birds at a distance and then set up in an area frequented by them. I kept my movement and noise to a minimum so as not to harass them, though they certainly were aware of me. Eventually, the birds' confidence grew and they made many close passes. The challenge beyond getting close was getting the right light. They would fly up and down a canal that required shooting into the light or with the light as they passed. In addition, the low evening light changed rapidly and clouds would occasionally block the sun. I resorted to Auto ISO to adjust for the changing exposure.
Skinny Water Manta Ray
Divers travel around the world spending thousands of dollars to swim with manta rays in exotic locations. Who knew that they occur in our own backyard? I cannot account for why Florida's mantas have been overlooked, but when Jessica Pate began her Florida Manta Project in collaboration with the Marine Megafauna Foundation there was next to no scientific information about mantas in Floridas waters.
I believe that Florida's mantas have been overlooked because they use local habitats differently and because they occur in low densities. In other parts of the world mantas are regularly seen by divers on coral reef cleaning stations. As of yet, there are no known cleaning stations in South Florida and divers rarely encounter the rays. Where they do occur they are still not common and though researchers have developed a multi-pronged approach to locating rays, the average boater would be lucky to notice one.
Though we may not encounter these rays often, they definitely notice us... that is we are impacting them. One of the most interesting and positive research findings thus far is that South Florida's mantas appear to be juveniles meaning this area is an important nursery habitat where the rays are safe to mature. Another of the most interesting though negative findings is that the rays are heavily impacted by humans. A third of the rays documented have been entangled in fishing line, and many others appear to suffer from boat strikes. Even coastal development may alter this important habitat. Adding insult to injury these local factors are just a small part of the threats to mantas globally, including plastics and climate change. Around the world mantas are listed as threatened and if we want to keep our mantas in this wealthy and developed corner of the world we will need to support research and conservation like that being done by the Florida Manta Project and MMF (look both up on facebook!).
Once located, photographing mantas in Florida is challenging. Their behavioral state may range from interactive to avoidant. An interactive ray may approach a diver allowing for photographs. An avoidant one will easily out swim even a fit snorkeler. We carefully position ourselves in the water to intercept a ray and snap an identification shot. If a ray chooses to interact more photos can be made, but if the ray is avoidant we allow it to move on without touching, chasing, or in any way harassing it. These photos were made with a Tokina fisheye lens, a Canon Rebel SL1, and available light.
If you are lucky enough to encounter a ray, please be respectful, do not chase, touch, or harass it from the water, or with a boat. Keep an eye out while boating and fishing, do not cast at or hit large dark shapes in the water. It is little known that mantas, turtles, and even dolphins suffer from boat strikes just like manatees. And, as always, clean up trash and minimize single use plastics while outdoors!
Whats hiding just below the surface?
I captured this image of an American alligator on private property in the Big Cypress region of the Florida Everglades. I find that making up close images of predators is one part preparation and knowledge, one part bravery or stupidity, and many parts luck. Luck comes down to being in the right place at the right time with the right subject. I have spent decades around Florida alligators and have not had this opportunity before. I spent the day working as a camera assistant for a film production. I was a bit apprehensive on the way down to the Everglades as it was mid June when the heat and bugs were sure to get the best of us. Amazingly, it turned out to be one of the nicest days that I have ever experienced in the glades. The heat was bearable, and the bugs were kept at bay by recent rain and water levels. As a result it was both an active day for wildlife and a pleasurable day to work outside. Towards the end of the day our crew came across this alligator hiding alongside a trail. It was either an exceptionally tolerant individual or believed its camouflage to be perfect. It allowed us to work in its vicinity and then capture some sequences of it. Once our film work was complete, I was able to retrieve my personal camera and capture a series of stills including this image.
The image was made with a Tokina 10-17 fisheye lens and available light. The wide angle lens required my dome port to be within inches of the alligator. I preset my exposure to F8, to allow some depth of field, and a shutter of 1/125th to ensure no motion blur. I used auto ISO to allow me to work quickly with minimal adjustments. Working quickly was important to minimize stress for the subject and ensure that I got the shot before the gator decided it had had enough!
What's hiding here?
Some images interest me because of their striking or beautiful appearance. Others catch my attention due to their interesting content. On first glance, there is not much striking or interesting here, but can you pick out whats hiding within the frame?
At the center of the image is the eye of a buried freckled guitarfish, Pseudobatos lentiginosus. This was an exciting find during a dive at Blue Heron Bridge in Florida's Palm Beach County. Guitarfish are difficult to spot because of their habit of burying themselves for camouflage.
What is more interesting is that just to the right of the eye there is a another strange organism protruding from the sand. It is mottled, black and white, and took us some time and effort to identify. After talking with experts I learned that this organism is a marine leech of the genus Branchellion. These leeches can parasitize bony fishes and sharks/rays. This is the first record of these leeches in association with a guitarfish. Very cool!
To create this image I was shooting a fisheye lens. I used spot metering to meter a neutral tone of the background water and used my strobes in the "rabbit ear" positions, 11 and 1, to provide relatively even lighting of the bottom.
Nesting Leatherback Sea Turtle
Leatherback sea turtles are the largest of the 7 species of sea turtle, are vulnerable to extinction, and are a very rare encounter. They regularly nest along Florida’s East Coast during late spring and early summer, but finding them is still difficult. To make this image I accompanied professional researchers in the field. It is important to note that care was taken not to disturb the turtle. Sea turtles are sensitive and will abort nesting if harassed possibly leading to a loss of that egg clutch. As such this turtle, known to the researchers as Xena (first tagged in 2010), was not approached too closely and no artificial light was used in creating this image. These are important practices to follow if lucky enough to encounter a nesting turtle of any species.
Given the above conditions photographing this leatherback was a challenge. Without artificial light a long exposure was required. We chose a full moon for the attempt to ensure that there was sufficient ambient light, but even so I had to push my camera to its limits. At ISO 6400 with a one second exposure many shots contained motion blur and the image quality was dramatically reduced. This image at ISO 3200 yielded reasonable quality, but required a four second exposure. Many frames were wasted as the turtle moved, but finally, I managed to capture a long pause as she rested yielding a sharp image. I am pleased with the result, which contains a very special subject and also captures the beauty of an exquisitely calm night on the beach under the full moon.
To learn more about these turtles and contribute to research and conservation visit: https://floridaleatherbacks.com
Silky Shark and The Chicken of Shame
This image was challenging to create and also some of the most fun I have had while photographing. I took this photo while hanging off the back of our live aboard boat in Revillagigedo, Mexico.
At night, the lights of the boat attracted the sharks. We were not allowed in the water to photograph them and so I had to adapt. I spent three evenings lying on the dive platform at the stern of the vessel getting repeatedly dunked as the ship pitched and rubbing my elbows raw as I tried to keep up with the action.
To coax the sharks in closer another guest tied the boat's rubber chicken (which was normally used to shame anyone who forgot their mask) to a dive reel. He repeatedly cast the chicken out and retrieved it to create a stimulus the sharks would follow to the boat. We did not allow the sharks to capture or consume the rubber chicken.
Because I had to stay on the boat, I was shooting blind. I held my camera as far underwater as I could and aimed in the general direction of the approaching sharks. The other guests on board assisted by drunkenly shouting conflicting directions from the sundeck above. My focus light allowed me to rely on autofocus and my strobes lit the scene. It took hundreds of frames and some luck to produce this result. Occasionally I had to remove my hands and the cameras from the water when the sharks became too aggressive. Ultimately, I think the effort was worth the result!