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...

An Artist's House?

This was the side of a house in Papua. Any normal person walking by would think it was a mess, but I love the side of the house and the way it is painted...looks like an artist had his way with the painting...sure beats just a solid color of paint, don't ya think?

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...

Got The Blues

If you use Adobe Lightroom, you will already know how powerful that program can be for editing. These days, I rarely use Photoshop as most of my editing can be done in Lightroom alone. This image was processed in Lightroom. I was just messing around with the color sliders until I got the colors I wanted. The "before" version is at the bottom. The sky was really unusual during the sunset...it was very cloudy, and the sun was setting in the opposite direction reflecting light onto the clouds. I knew that I could bring out the color of the clouds at the end of the pier, but it took messing around with the color sliders to do that...

Robinson Crusoe

Last time I was in Papua, I had the opportunity to fly. I used to be a helicopter pilot, so once flying gets in your blood, it is impossible to get rid of the urge to "get up" again. My buddy, Max, has a "Drifter" which is an experimental aircraft...with an open cockpit, floats and two seats, it is a blast to fly. We took off from the water right in front of the resort, and flew out over the reefs.

This little island is one of many little "Robinson Crusoe" islands spread through out Raja Ampat. I kayaked to this little one where Max has built a small shelter to spend the night....talk about having your own private island....pretty damn cool.

Taking photos from the air was not as easy as I thought...especially with a prime lens. I switched back n forth between my 35mm and 18mm lenses....it got tough as the light started to go away, and since I was sitting in the back seat, it was difficult to get a shot unobstructed..but man, what a great day of flying...can't wait to get back to do some more....we saw Dugongs, dolphins, whales and Mantas all in one flight....unreal.

Happy Friday, and New Article Posted

Happy Friday! Hope you all have a terrific weekend...go out and GET LOST...

I wrote a short article about my trip to China this past Christmas...it was published on Steve Huff's website...go over there and have a read, and let me know what you think...

HERE IS THE LINK...

I left my photo that I was going to post today at home...so here is a nice sunset photo from the archives...

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!!

Sunset From The Cliff

Just a short hike up a small hill on Pulau Kri, there is a small bench where you can sit with a cold beer and watch the sunset. After the afternoon dive, I would take a quick shower, and go up to this spot...a different view every night...

Have a great weekend!!

I am off on vacation the next couple of weeks, so will be posting some photos from the archives...hopefully, I will return from China with some new photos!!

Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Sorido Pier

Not sure if you will like this or not...I am still playing around with Nik's Silver Efex Pro 2...what do you think?

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...

Papuan Kids

Bring out your camera in Papua with a bunch of kids around, and this is the kind or reaction you usually get...pretty funny...I like the two little puppies in the corner of the frame...

Hey, it's Friday!! That means the weekend is near...woo hoo!!

Have a great weekend!!

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!!

Papua Sunset

Another Healthy Reef

There is all this talk about the coral reefs dying around the world, bombings, cyanide poisoning, and coral bleaching...it is true, these things are still going on, but rarely is the good news being reported. There are healthy reefs around the world, and reefs coming back to life...there is some good out there, and it should be celebrated...

Sardines Reef

I don't know what it is about Bat Fish...they are just so cool, and fun to take photo of...some of them get real curious, and will come right up to you almost asking for their photo to be taken while others are shy and go a running when you approach them...I guess they are like people!

Have a great weekend!

In Hong Kong Waiting

I have been in Beijing for the past 4 days. The weather was the weirdest I have seen anywhere when it comes to pollution. When we arrived, you could barely see the ground, and aircraft would disappear seconds after take-off. It got worse later. The pollution index reached a staggering 496 at one point...as a reference, I was told that Seattle, Washington, at its worse reaches maybe 40...it was so bad, you could not see the buildings across the street. This was bad news for me in regards to photography, but I still got out to get some shots. Yesterday, early in the morning, it was the same super hazy day, but by 10:00, it suddenly cleared up...I mean REALLY cleared up....the index dropped to 8. It was like the entire city was under the screen of a huge Photoshop Photo, and some God in the sky erased all of the haze...never seen anything like it...really weird. The bad part is that we had to leave just as everything cleared up....arrrrgh....talk about frustrating...the worst 4 days in the city, and that was the time I was there...

In any case, I am sitting here in Hong Kong waiting for my flight back to Jakarta...the only photos I have with me are my recent trip to Papua...so, did a quick edit of this photo...don't know what it is with these hand gestures little kids love to do when they get their photo taken...it is like the gangs of New York has reached the minds of kids in Papua...

The Hunt

If I were a small fish, the guy on the block I would fear the most would be the Giant Trevali...those guys are always lurking about near a school of small fish, and they, with no notice, will suddenly dart into the school to grab a bite...

Have a great weekend!! I am now in Beijing, and will return late on Monday. I am hoping to get a cool HDR shot of "The Egg"...that very cool building in Beijing...