NAD Lembeh

The Coconut Octopus is probably the most "human" of the cephalopods in terms of its problem-solving. While other species rely on speed or pure camouflage, these guys are tool users. On the open sand flats where there is nowhere to run, they’ve learned to scavenge for anything that can act as a shield. Seeing one "stilt-walking"—carrying two halves of a coconut shell under its body while shuffling across the silt—is easily one of the strangest bits of behaviour you’ll see underwater.

It’s a masterclass in making the most of what you’ve got. If they can’t find a coconut, they’ll settle for large clam shells or even bits of discarded plastic. They don’t just find these objects and stay there; they haul them for huge distances across the sand. Once they find a spot they like, they’ll dig a small depression and pull the shells together, tucking every te****le inside until they are completely sealed off from the outside world.

From a photography perspective, the "shell-peek" is a classic shot. If you rest quietly nearby and wait for them to get used to your presence, they’ll eventually push the shells apart just enough to look at you with their eyes. It’s a great way to capture the texture of the suckers and the sharp, intelligent look in their eyes without the animal feeling the need to retreat.

A challenge is catching them while they are on the move. They are surprisingly quick when they want to be, and trying to track an octopus that is essentially "carrying its house" while running on its arms is no easy feat.

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#水中写真 #ダイビング

The Ornate Ghostpipefish is easily one of the most decorative residents of the reef. They are masters of blending in with crinoids (feather stars), with bodies covered in intricate, skin-like filaments that mimic the fronds of their host. Unlike their cousins, the Robust Ghostpipefish, which look like drifting seagrass, the Ornate variety is a riot of colour—mixes of reds, yellows, and blacks that would be obvious anywhere else but makes them invisible against a busy reef background.

What makes their behaviour unique is how they "hover." They often hang upside down, swaying gently to look like a piece of drifting debris. This isn't just for protection; it’s a hunting strategy. They are "sit-and-wait" predators, using their long, tubular snouts to suck up tiny crustaceans that venture too close. They are often found in pairs, with the larger female carrying her eggs inside a specialised brood pouch formed by her pelvic fins—a distinct difference from seahorses, where the male handles the brooding.

From a photography perspective, these fish are a fantastic challenge. Because they are so thin and often hide within the branches of a crinoid, getting a clean, unobstructed shot is difficult. If you spot an individual or pair out in the open or against a dark background, this allows those vibrant patterns to stand out.

The eyes are small and often camouflaged by the surrounding patterns, so getting them sharp can be tricky. Using a narrow aperture (high f-stop) is essential to keep the full length of the snout and the ornate fins in focus. Since they tend to turn away from a lens, patience is the only way to get that perfect profile.

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#水中写真 #ダイビング

Most people only ever see flying fish as silver blurs skipping across the surface during a boat crossing, but encountering them on a blackwater dive is a completely different experience. At night, these pelagic specialists often hang just below the surface, suspended in the dark. Seeing them stationary in the water column allows you to actually appreciate their specialised anatomy—specifically those massive, wing-like pectoral fins that are usually quite motionless when they aren't in flight.

The "flight" itself is an incredible bit of physics. To escape predators like tuna or mackerel, they swim toward the surface at high speeds, breaking the waterline and immediately spreading those oversized fins to glide. They can cover dozens of metres in a single go, sometimes dipping their tails back into the water to get a fresh burst of momentum without fully submerging. On a night dive, however, you aren't seeing the glide; you’re seeing the fish in its "off" mode.

Photographing them in the blackwater is notoriously difficult. They are highly reflective, and their skin acts like a mirror to your strobes, making it very easy to overexpose the shot into a featureless silver silhouette. You have to be careful with your positioning; if you approach quickly, they’ll "bolt" and disappear into the darkness. The goal is to get close enough to capture the texture of the fins and the "whiskers" without triggering that flight response.

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#水中写真 #ダイビング