Spawning Hamlets in West Palm Beach

Caught these guys "getting busy" on an overcast afternoon on the Florida Reef Tract in West Palm Beach. Of course I had the 12-24mm lens mounted, but I still got some shots showing the mating behavior and the habitat:

 

 

And one with Eric and the hamlets:

 

]

 

I was really thankful to Alex for teaching me what to look for and I was also thankful to be able to share a view of this neat behavioUr with Eric. Oh, and the autofocus on the 1DmkII kicks butt!

 

Cheers

James

james,

 

Nice capture on several accounts, including background exposure.

 

I really appreciate you including the image of Eric in action. I've mentioned previously that imho an essay authored by you discussing strobe positioning would be a valuable addition to your beginners forum. The image of Eric with his strobes aimed slightly outward to minimize illuminating the water column between the dome and the subject would be a great start.

 

Being able to view the subsequent capture Eric achieved with his chosen lens and strobe positioning would be icing on the cake.......

 

regards,

b

Hi Bob,

 

I talked about this with Eric on the trip. We are going to try to set up a "topic of the week" feature here at wetpixel which contains some editorial content and some discussion content. Strobe Placement would be an excellent first topic.

 

And thanks for the KUDOS.

 

Cheers

James

I knew I should have come a day earlier Both are great captures James....I like the one with Eric the most

 

Karl

we talked about strobe positioning a lot while on board. there was much more to just pointing them outward, because we spend much of our time on sandy bottoms. have to raise strobes while on the bottom so as not to overexpose the areas close to you...

 

The image I took is BLURRY! I came in for one shot, and then had to go up for some reason before they would resume their spawning behavioUr. I can't remember why -- maybe I was out of air.

The image I took is BLURRY!  I came in for one shot, and then had to go up for some reason before they would resume their spawning behavioUr.  I can't remember why -- maybe I was out of air.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Hope I am not the only one that feels better when you get a blurry shot!!

 

but what kind of excuse is that? AIR? what do you need air for?

He wasn't out of air - he was cold. That wuss! ;-)

 

Cheers

James

Good skills, James.

 

I've never seen blues - don't get 'em here although they are in Florida and Belize - go figure! I really like the wide angle of the mating - great for an article. I must do some.

 

Giles finally got time off for good behaviour tonight so we were able to get down to Sunset House and do some more spawning shots. I was very pleased as I finally got some shots of a pair of yellowbelly hamlets - which are v rare here in Cayman. One of them is a probably a yellowbelly/shy hamlet hybrid (note the spot on its snout). Which is good as you can see it alternating male and female roles in these two shots.

 

I was feeling cocky tonight so I had a go at long exposures to burn in blue backgrounds to compliment the yellow of the hamlets and also the rock beauties. And to add a bit of movement blur to shot the action - using rear curtain synch.

 

Alex

 

p.s. I'm a wuss too. Giles is diving in a shorty and I'm in a 5mm! And its 28ËšC!

 

 

 

Good Show! So, since you don't have blues down there...I think you should use my shot in your acrticle - I need the fame and fortune! :-) Ok maybe a little fame and no fortune.

 

Cheers

James

NIce stuff guys, the only thing wrong with that shot of Eric is that silly little Horny Devil hat on his head...and still complaining about cold??

Alex: nice to see i am not the only wuss, water is 28 here too, but i'm in a 7mm...

 

I like your second shot best Alex, nice blur but still sharp on the eye.

 

James, i think after your Nikon to Canon changeover you may need the fortune too...but you won't get a fortune from this business...

He wasn't out of air - he was cold.  That wuss! ;-)

Oh yeah! I remember now. It was the HOLE IN MY WETSUIT in 70 degree water that made me go up. My memory must be going. When I wrote the air comment, I was thinking, "hmm. I don't remember being worse on air than James...?"

And to add a bit of movement blur to shot the action - using rear curtain synch.

*sigh* OH, to be able to use rear-curtain sync with manual strobes... (I mean, as a Canon user)

Here's the blurry photo I took (below). One forgets that 24mm is quite wide, on a full-frame camera. (shot with Seacam Wide Port (the small one), with Canon 24/1.4L and no diopter)

 

Image: 050326_133318_echeng7991.jpg

Maker: Canon

Model: Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II

CaptureDate: 3/26/2005 1:33:18 PM

EXIFVersion: 429496289.9

ExposureProgram: Manual

ISOSpeed: 400

ShutterSpeed: 1/50

Aperture: f5.6

ExposureBias: +0.0

Metering: Pattern

LightSource: Auto

Flash: OFF

FocalLength: 24.0

 

Hope I am not the only one that feels better when you get a blurry shot!! 

 

but what kind of excuse is that?  AIR? what do you need air for?

hehehe. Maybe next time, I'll save all the crappy photos I shoot and post a "worst of echeng" gallery.

Great captures. I am going a few days early and diving West Palm. Did you guys do Phil Fosters?

 

Alex, you never fail to amaze me with the unique nature and supurb quality of your shots. Impressive.

 

James as for fame and fortune, are you saying being the Inon artist didn't flood the phone with calls? Here I thought I was going do be famous after this.