North Sulawesi

Hi everyone,

Just got back from a trip to North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Posted a blurb on my blog:

http://www.tonywublog.com/20061013/back-fr...h-sulawesi.html

and some photos up on Flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonywublog/se...57594326233290/

Still a lot of photos to go through. I'll post them to Flickr when I have more time

This was my first "for fun" trip to this area in many years. I had a blast. It's a really diverse area if you move around a bit to the different sides of the North Sulawesi peninsula. If you travel all the way there, it's worth the hassle of moving a bit to see the different sites.

Cheers,

Tony

Hi Tony,

Some very nice shots although the Barracuda really stands out for a me - a cracking photo. That must have taken a few shots to get it right.

Cheers,

Tim

Thanks Tim,

Yup, took about 1 hour to gain the barracuda's confidence to be right in front of it. Initially, it was only comfortable with me on its side where it could see me clearly.

It was hunting too, so probably didn't want a clunky diver scaring off its potential dinner. It kept missing, and every time it came back down to substrate level after a dash up to try to grab a fish, it seemed to allow me to get closer and closer. I had just gotten the fish lined up and focused on the eye when it opened up. Perfect timing.

Cheers,

Tony

Some very nice images.

Cheers

Todd

Great gallery!

The exposures on the white froggies are excellent.

The photo of the Ghost Pipefish eggs is very cool.

Tony,

Great trip report and photo's!

The Barracuda was really excellent, and the shot of the ghost pipefish eggs in pouch. Really cool!

Kathy

Exelent images and great report I really enjoyed reading it.

You have a great catch in the 'Sheshimi for dinner' frame.

Thanks everyone. Hope you all have a chance to visit this area. It's really productive for photography. I'm definitely going back for another fun trip soon.

Cheers,

Tony

Great pictures and report! things even look easy in your images, something like seeing Michael Jordan playing basketball, but some of them are once in a lifetime opportunity and you got them. I will be in the area next august and I hope I see half of the critters you saw!

Next time try new cameras above water!!

Great PIXS.

I'm leaving in two days for Sipidan and then onto Lembeh.

can't wait!

LChan — Have a great trip to Sipadan and Lembeh. Both are great locations.

davichin — I'm sure you'll see a lot in August. It's a really rich area! Yeah, I usually test cameras, housings, gears, everything before I go. Just didn't have time between trips, and of course, Murphy's Law hit.

Cheers,

Tony

Awesome! I had to look at your gallery twice.

You must be a "fish whisperer". Somehow you got your subjects to perform... especially the ambush shots.

Just wondering, on some of your shots like the pipefish looking straight at the camera, do you pre-plan your shots?

Hi Will,

Glad you enjoyed the photos!

I don't preplan necessarily, but I have shots in mind that I keep an eye out for. This fit the bill. I've been obsessively collecting shots of fish with their mouths open or full, and whenever I see a situation that looks like it might develop into something like that, I hang out to wait and see what happens. 90% of the time, nothing, but 10% of the time...

I think I am luckier than average in having encounters like this with marine life, both fish, and with cetaceans. It started a long time ago, in film days, with my obsession with documenting marine behaviour. But you know...I'll take luck whenever I can get it!

Cheers,

Tony