The Sentinel`s Keyhole. Stumbled upon this alignment earlier this year while exploring Utah and just got around to finishing the edit.

It`s been a whirlwind few months with back-to-back commercial projects, but I`m loving the downtime to catch up. Working on my next fine art prints collection right now and reliving my favorite shots from this year. What do you think? Should I include this one? 🤔

Tracked and blended using the Sony Alpha 1 and a 24-70 GM II lens with a Hoya Sparkle filter, and MSM Nomad star tracker mounted on my fav Slik Tripod.

🗿: f9 10s iso 500
🌌 : f3.2 120s iso 500

Rise and shine ☀️ Who else loves a good desert sunrise? There`s something so magical about watching the world come to life as the sun’s warmth washes over the horizon..

Ever been attacked by a sea turtle? The other day I was hovering in the blue scoping out the dive site 30ft (10m) below to figure out a shot and then in the distance I see this turtle slowly gliding towards me. 😍 I quickly change the settings on my camera thinking it’s about to be one of those magical moments where a beautiful sea turtle slowly glides by as it heads down to the reef. But nope, as she got close to the camera she launched at me attempting to bite the camera and then my arm. I moved the camera to create space between us while using it to protect myself from being bitten. Then gently redirected her past me. She swam off leaving me very confused. I’ve never seen that type of behavior from a sea turtle.

But even crazier, 30 minutes later I’m ascending up to do a safety stop and she comes out of no where trying to bite my leg! I quickly span around and used the camera to create distance and redirect her as I would with a shark. She stared at me for a brief moment then turned and swam off. It was the strangest experience.

Looking at the photos later, I noticed she had lots of algae on her. Sea turtles are normally pretty diligent about scrubbing their shells and body against rocks and reef to keep them clean. And her eyes also looked a bit foggy. I wonder if this poor turtle is having some health problems which could also account for her strange aggressive behavior. It breaks my heart to think of such a beautiful creature suffering. What do you think?

I captured this one shot right before I realized she was trying to bite the camera. Didn’t even fire any shots before that either that could have agitated her. Once I realized she was not being friendly I stopped shooting to not further agitate her. Hope she’s alright!

Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 in a @nauticamhousings

See those dark spots on this hammerhead`s chin? They`re not a beard - they`re parasites! Luckily, sharks like this one can visit cleaning stations where reef fish remove the unwanted guests. It`s a win-win: the fish get a free meal, and the sharks stay clean & healthy. 🦈

Have you ever seen a 70ft (21m) tall tornado of jacks? This behavior is actually part of their courting & mating ritual. The spiraling movement helps to improve genetic diversity in the large school by physically mixing the genetic materials, while also keeping it concentrated within the tornado.

This vortex that we spotted in Coco’s Island was one the tallest I’ve ever seen, rivaling even the infamous jacks of Cabo Pulmo. If you look to the right side of the photo you can even see the massive shadow it was casting into the ocean.

Shot on the Sony Alpha 1 using the Sony 28-60 f4 lens with Nauticam’s WACP-1. Captured using natural light at f6.3, 1/250s, iso 500