Archive for 2010

Dances With Seahorses

Sun, Jul 25th, 2010  |   Funny Stuff, Musings, People 5 Comments

Richard Smith is an eager young marine biologist and underwater photographer who lives in Brisbane, Down Under. He is writing his PhD thesis about pygmy seahorses, and from what I gather, he may actually even finish it.

I’ve only met him once, by chance in the Lembeh Strait last year, and I only had the opportunity to speak with him for half an hour or so.

He seemed pleasant enough, and he’s even planning a trip to dive in Japan with my friends in Izu.

It struck me as somewhat odd, however, that the dates he picked for his visit to Japan coincide with dates that I specifically told him I can’t possibly join him.

I mean…we share common interests, and we had a terrific talk in Lembeh, so why…I wondered…could he possibly be avoiding me?

After thinking long and hard about this conundrum, the proverbial light bulb went off in my head.

This short video clip of Richard explaining the mating rituals of pygmy seahorses to me when we met in Lembeh probably has something to do with it:

(In case it’s not obvious, the point of this post is that if you meet (or already know) Richard, you absolutely must ask him to do the pygmy seahorse mating dance. Even better if you video it and post to the www.)

Humpback Whale Mother and Calf

Fri, Jul 23rd, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 4 Comments

I’m sitting in Narita airport, bored out of my mind, waiting for my flight. Thought I’d post a humpback photo to pass the time.

This is a mother and baby photo I took in 2005, in one of the inner passages among the islands of Vava’u. The water was murky, but the female whale brought the baby right up to me, and the sun was kind enough to provide beautiful fill light.


Humpback whale mother and calf

Tonga Time

Thu, Jul 22nd, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures No Comments

In a matter of hours, I’ll be on my way south to spend more quality time with humpback whales in the waters around the Vava’u group of islands in the Kingdom of Tonga.


Tonga one Pa’anga note featuring humpback whale

According to friends who live there, the whales showed up a couple/ few weeks ago, and at least one baby was spotted last weekend. Hurray! I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a good season.

There are many things I’m looking forward to, including of course seeing friends, learning more about the whales, and hopefully getting lots of nice humpback images.

New for this year will be the humpback whale acoustics research project I’m starting with my friend Dr. John Potter, an endeavour that I hope we’ll be able to continue for an extended period of time.

I’ll also be continuing with my humpback whale calf ID/ count project, which has proven to be incredibly rewarding in terms of what I’ve learned and also the friends I’ve been able to make.

Input from several people last year, for example, took my verified humpback whale calf count for the 2009 season from 26 to 31, a substantial increase over what I was able to establish myself. (Thank you Paul/ Karen, Alexis/ Nathalie, Carol, Nonie, Hugh!)

Speaking of which…if you happen to visit Vava’u this year and want to consider helping with my calf count, please take a look at this PDF summary I prepared to explain my objectives and the information I need.

Actually, if you’re anywhere in Tonga and happen to get suitable ID photographs for humpback whale mother and calf pairs, please let me know. It would be interesting to document patterns of movement for whales among the various island groups in Tonga.

For those of you who are joining me in Vava’u…see you soon! The whales are waiting.


Female humpback whale making eye contact with me, while a male cruises below

C.N’a

Tue, Jul 20th, 2010  |   Musings, People, Places, Adventures No Comments

The countdown to Tonga has begun, and I’m scrambling around with more than the usual level of chaos, since I just got back from Bangkok and have had less time than normal to sort through my piles of stuff to get (somewhat) organised.

Vava’u has become like a second home to me over the years, and I particularly look forward to seeing friends and their families…including pets.

This is C.N’a:


Ever-curious, but camera-shy C.N’a

C.N’a stands for “Crow’s Nest”. Many words in Tongan have the ‘a syllable appended to the end. I don’t understand enough Tongan to know if there’s a meaning to the ‘a or if it’s for emphasis, but in any case, it’s pronounced “Sienna”.

There’s a touching story behind C.N’a. The short version is that she was one of the many stray dogs in the area, but different enough from the other dogs that it’s possible she was left behind by one of the boats.

In fact, she apparently visited the area in front of the Crow’s Nest, which is a bakery/ restaurant adjacent to the main harbour, each morning. The owners of the Crow’s Nest, Stephen and Tess, gradually befriended her, and at this point, she’s a permanent fixture, arguably the boss.

She apparently still hates being left behind though, and has been spotted chasing Stephen and Tess’s car down the main road when they inadvertently forgot her. That must be quite a sight!

C.N’a is very friendly, especially if you happen to have one of Stephen’s fresh-baked banana muffins with you. Stephen makes fresh bread and pastries every day, no doubt to keep C.N’a happy:


C.N’a’s caretaker and sometimes chef, Stephen

C.N’a is camera-shy, so it took quite a bit of coaxing to get her to pose. I suspect she can hear the high-pitch tone of the autofocus mechanism. I had to switch to manual focus to keep her from wandering away.

If you’re ever in Vava’u, stop by the Crow’s Nest to say hello to C.N’a and Tess (and yes…I guess Stephen too).

…back to packing

National Museum Exhibit in Tokyo

Mon, Jul 19th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Musings No Comments

I just received this snapshot of my photo of a sperm whale eating giant squid from a friend who visited the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo earlier today. The photo is from a trip to Ogasawara, Japan in October 2009.


My photo on display at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo

The special exhibit about marine mammals will continue until 26 September. I haven’t been able to see the exhibit yet, but I’ve received a lot of positive feedback.

If you’re in Tokyo and have time, it might be worth dropping by.

Incidentally, the same photo is also on display at the Natural History Museum in London, though friends tell me the sperm whale section is dark and difficult to find.

Thanks Michiyo-san!

Update 26 July: I received a couple more photos of the exhibit from another friend:


Crowd looking at the sperm whale exhibit


Another view of the display with my sperm whale photo

Thanks Wakae-san!

Trip Update: Ambon

Mon, Jul 19th, 2010  |   Places, Adventures, Trips, Workshops No Comments

If you’re contemplating a dive adventure later this year, there are still a couple of spaces open for my trip to Ambon.

The trip, which I’m running jointly with Wetpixel and Eric Cheng, is scheduled for 7 to 16 November. We’ll be staying at the new Maluku Divers resort, situated right on the best muck sites in Ambon.


There are lots of Coleman shrimp on fire urchins in Ambon!

If you’re a fan of muck diving and observing amazing critter life in shallow water at close quarters without any other divers around(!), Ambon is worth considering.

Ambon hit the news recently because of the unusual new frogfish discovered there, but from personal experience, I can say that there’s a lot more to see than just the frogfish (sightings of which are unpredictable).


Tiny cuttlefish hunting in shallow water

With so few divers around + relatively easy diving conditions, it’s not difficult to spend quality time with animals that are considered rare or difficult-to-approach elsewhere.

In short…the conditions are ideal for observing and documenting marine life behaviour.

Our plan is to do a lot of night diving, which means that the chances of seeing predation, mating and other fun stuff increases significantly. Up to this point, it has been difficult to do extensive night diving in Ambon, because there was no dive resort near the muck sites!


Some sort of cardinalfish with a clutch of eggs

Take a look at my 2010 trip announcement and the trip summary on Wetpixel for more trip information.

Here’s a multimedia collage I put together after my first trip to Ambon a couple years back.

Contact Dan Baldocchi to join the adventure!

Pasta’s Peaches

Sun, Jul 18th, 2010  |   Musings 3 Comments

Three years ago, I won a peach (桃) tree cutting playing rock-paper-scissors at a local festival, while taking my dog Pasta for a walk.


Pasta checking out the peach tree cutting I won

We planted the tree, and really didn’t do much else, but I always thought of that tree as “Pasta’s peach tree”, since she was so happy to be taking a walk that pleasant spring day, and was ecstatic that we won something (despite the fact that it turned out not to be a doggy snack).

Earlier this year, we finally saw fruits developing on the tree…three peaches to be precise:


After three years, we had our first three peaches

And today, we tasted the ripe peaches. Surprisingly, considering how little effort we put into cultivating the plant, the peaches were absolutely delicious…better, in fact, that store-bought fruits.


The first ripe peach

It’s been almost exactly two years since Pasta died, so this was a really nice way to remember her, and to take a little time out to reminisce about the many (mis)adventures we shared.

Incidentally, there’s a saying in Japanese that goes 桃栗３年、柿８年 which translates as “peaches and chestnuts three years, persimmons eight years”, meaning that it takes time for things to ripen/ come to fruition…the implication being that it pays to be patient.

Actually, most people probably don’t realise it, but that’s only the first line of a longer bit of folk wisdom. The full saying is:

桃栗３年、柿８年、
梅はすいすい１３年、
ユズは大バカ１８年、
りんごニコニコ２５年、
女房の不作は６０年、
亭主の不作はこれまた一生、
あーこりゃこりゃ

I won’t attempt to translate this, but if you happen to read Japanese, it’s rather entertaining…and totally true.

The End of Photography

Sat, Jul 17th, 2010  |   Events, Talks, Featured No Comments

Here is the presentation that I gave recently at TDEX on 10 and 11 July at the Queen Sirikit Convention Center in Bangkok (See…this is proof that I did more than just overeat while I was in Thailand!).

The 26.5-minute talk is entitled “The End of Photography”, and it’s a summary of my views on the implications of the switch to digital technology for photographers and other content creators.

To be clear…I’m not referring to pixel-counting, the pros/ cons of CF cards vs. SD cards, which computer to use, which processing software to use, or any other technical issue.

The primary point I’m trying to convey is that the switch from analogue to digital has far-reaching implications for all photographers, most of which we’ve collectively only begun to explore and appreciate.

I believe that the issues I set out are fundamentally reshaping the way we can (and should) conceive, plan and execute creative endeavours.

There’s one thing you’ll have to bear with if you watch/ listen to the presentation.

The plan was to have a video camera record the talk, so I could splice in some video footage to liven up the presentation video and also to highlight the occasions when I was pointing things out on my presentation slides.

As it turned out, the video camera wasn’t actually on when I gave the talk, so there are some “slow” sections during the presentation, when there’s no visual action to go along with my rambling, just a static slide.

Hopefully the content of my talk will prove so compelling and spell-binding that you won’t even notice.

In case you’re interested, I put the presentation together in Keynote (part of Apple’s iWork suite), recorded the audio with a Zoom H4n hooked up to a Sennheiser EW 122-P lavalier microphone via a sound board at the venue.

After the talk, I synced the timing of the slides with the audio track by using Keynote’s built-in Record function, and then used Final Cut Studio (specifically Final Cut Pro and Soundtrack Pro) to edit the audio.

Using Soundtrack Pro made a noticeable difference in audio quality, as the presentation environment was “challenging”, i.e., open area with lots of competing ambient noise, echo, random people walking by, etc.

Ayutthaya

Wed, Jul 14th, 2010  |   Funny Stuff, Musings, People, Places, Adventures 1 Comment

A couple of days after TDEX wrapped up, a few of us drove up to Ayutthaya. Actually, a couple of us drove. The rest of us sat in the back asking: “Are we there yet?” at 30-second intervals.

The primary goal was to have lunch at a restaurant called Ton Nam that’s famous for serving river prawns.


River prawns at Ton Nam restaurant, Ayutthaya

We also tried a thai dessert/ snack called roti sai mai, which is sort of like stringy cotton candy that you wrap in a thin roti. I’m not really a dessert person, but it was good, as you can see from the expression on Mean’s face:


Mean enjoying roti sai mai

To work off some of the calories ingested, we spent a bit of time walking around a couple of the temples, mostly Wat Mahathat and the reclining Buddha. If you live in Bangkok or have occasion to visit Thailand, it’s worth travelling to Ayutthaya to learn a little about Thai history. The first time I visited the old part of the city was over 20 years ago.


Aey and Mean at the reclining Buddha in Ayutthaya

It was a weekday during rainy season, so there weren’t many other people around. This gave us the perfect opportunity to conduct extensive tests of our photo and video gear…as you can see in the two series of gif files below.

Among us, we had a Canon IXY220IS compact camera, an Olympus Pen camera, a Panasonic GF-1, a Canon 5D Mark II and a Sony CX550V handycam…so we had to put all the hi-tech hardware to good use.

It probably says a lot about us that this was what we decided to do:



Despite appearances (particularly Eric’s Calvin-like grin), this was a serious camera test. Eric was running through us with the video camera set to capture slow-motion footage.

One of the clips actually turned out quite nicely. I’m sure Eric will post it once he’s back home…if for nothing more than to demonstrate that there really was a (somewhat) constructive purpose to his running a slalom course in the middle of the old city of Ayutthaya.

And of course, after getting back to Bangkok, we went for more food, starting with incredibly good Som Tam Gai Yang (green papaya salad, grilled chicken, plus other stuff) and sticky rice:


Eric Cheng with sticky rice

…followed by my all-time favourite dessert, mango with sticky rice, from the vendor on the corner of Thonglor and Sukhumvit:


Fresh mangos…for mango with sticky rice!

Eating so much in one day was certainly hard work, but someone had to do it.

Eric’s Adoring Fan Club

Mon, Jul 12th, 2010  |   Events, Talks, Funny Stuff, People 6 Comments

Eric and I gave two talks each at the Thai Travel and Dive Expo in Bangkok this weekend.

Here’s a snapshot of Eric showing a photo he took of flamboyant cuttlefish while we were in Lembeh back in March, using the Inon wide-angle macro lens:


Eric Cheng speaking at TDEX 2010

Both of us are accustomed to public speaking, so for the most part, things went smoothly…nothing unexpected or out of the ordinary…except, of course, for a spontaneous gathering of a gaggle of giggling girls expressing undying adoration for young Mr. Cheng (no doubt related to his adroit handling of the aforementioned phallic lens):


Eric enthusiastically explaining his mastery of all things long

Being the consummate professional that he is, Eric took things in stride (note the dopey expression on his face, visible even from behind), even deigning to pose for a group photo with his doey-eyed fan club after he had finished expounding on f-stops and lens angles:


Eric trying not to show how pleased he was with the situation

Despite relishing the attention lavished upon him, young Eric did appear somewhat uncomfortable at times, particularly during the photo session…when he was careful to keep his hands in his lap, lest he inadvertently infringe upon the modesty of one of the innocent young lasses around him:

It is, however, a sad fact of life that all good things must come to an end. The captivated co-eds soon lost interest in my friend, leaving him alone, staring into the distance with a forlorn, pensive expression:


Eric, after being abandoned by his harem

Actually, I was with Eric for the rest of the afternoon, but he seemed rudely disinterested in any attention I attempted to lavish upon him.

Go figure.

Khun Nat

Sat, Jul 10th, 2010  |   Events, Talks, People 2 Comments

I’m in Bangkok now, for the Thailand Travel and Dive Expo, which was postponed from the originally planned dates in May this year.

Visiting Thailand is always lots of fun.

Today…while not preoccupied eating/ digesting far too much food…I walked around saying hello to friends, including my fellow photographer Nat Sumanatemeya.

Nat Sumanatemeya

Khun Nat is well-known in Thailand, and he’s a terrific guy to boot. If you visit TDEX this weekend, be sure to check out the gallery of his images and DSLR video footage on display just before you enter the exhibition hall!

Purple Haze

Fri, Jun 25th, 2010  |   Places, Adventures 2 Comments

Some of the most amazing sights I come across in my travels are above water.

Take this sunset for example:

sunset in port moresby

I took this picture last year in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, just outside the yacht club. I’m a huge fan of diving in PNG, but I don’t think most people would associate the city of Port Moresby with the word “beautiful”.

Well, on this evening…just before we departed for the Eastern Fields…Port Moresby was certainly beautiful.

The entire city was bathed in a breathtaking, iridescent purple glow at sunset.