Time is such an interesting concept when you think about it. From our human point of view we tend to hyper focus on the minutes and hours making up our days. For the temples of Cathedral Valley, these must seem like milliseconds do to us. This area in Utah was once part of a vast tidal flat that millions of years later would become the largest sand sea to ever exist on earth. So large that 160 million years ago it actually dwarfed the dunes of the Sahara Desert by upwards of 300,000 square miles.

Recently I reconnected with an old friend that I haven’t seen in over 20 years. We happened to be crossing paths in southern Utah, so I suggested we go for a little adventure to catch the sunset at Temple of the Sun and Moon. As the sun set behind the mountains we came across this path in the grass leading out to the temples. Thankfully Luis & Lauren were down to quickly play models and ran down the path so I could capture this shot.

Much love to Lauren & Luis for playing impromptu models! Safe travels and hope to see you again soon! Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using their 24-70mm GM II lens with @sliktripods and a polarizing filter from @hoyafilterusa. Captured at 50mm, f11, 0.6s, iso 100
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#templeofthesun #cathedralvalley #capitolreefnationalpark #capitolreef #sunset #sunsetlovers #landscapephotography #adventure #overlanding #nationalparkgeek #nationalparks #sonyalpha

One of my favorite shots from watching the Milky Way rise over Canada’s Icefields Parkway. If you paused what you were doing for a moment you could hear the glacial waterfalls flowing from high up in the mountains across the lake.

Captured as a 10 shot stack at f2, 13s, iso 6400 on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using Sony’s 20mm F1.8 G lens with a @hoyafilterusa Sparkle 6 filter and @sliktripods

#milkyway #icefieldsparkway #banffnationalpark #bowlake #nightsky #milkywaychasers #nightscape #nightphotography #nightscaper #stars #astrophotography

Counting down the days till I can get back in the water with these gentle giants of the Revillagigedo! There is something incredibly magical about looking into the eyes of a 15+ foot wide curious oceanic manta ray as it slowly glides up to you as if it wishes to initiate a conversation. These remarkable creatures have not only the largest brain of all fish, but also the largest brain to body size of all fish.

I’m working on something super special with my buddy @matthewunderwater and the @oceansnation family for you to experience them firsthand! Want to be the first to find out how to join us? Drop a comment below!
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#mantaray #manta #scubadiving #oceanicmantaray #socorro #revillagigedo #dive #oceanlover #uwphotography #ocean

Stoked to be getting ready to head back to one of my favorite places on earth! Can you guess where it is? 👨‍🚀

Shot as a 10 shot stack on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 24-70mm f2.8 GM II lens on @sliktripods Pro CF-834 at f2.8, 15s, ISO 6400.

Symbolically ravens conjure vastly different ideas and emotions from one culture to the next. Many see them as a bad omen or tied in some way to death. While others, such as some indigenous cultures of the Pacific Northwest tell stories of how a raven created our world and brought light to the darkness.

I’ve always been curious of these interesting birds, not for the reasons above but because of their incredible curiosity and intelligence. Watching how they interact with each other and the world around them is beyond interesting. Once when living in London I watched 2 ravens work together to lift roofing tiles so they could take turns feeding on the insects they found underneath the tiles. Recent studies have even claimed that a 4 month old raven could be as intelligent as an adult great ape! Which would put them as one of the most intelligent animals on our planet.

PS- For my bird experts out there, I’d love to know more about the beak color of this raven. Since they are normally all black, is the golden/grey color just the reflection of the light around this one? Or maybe something it was eating as you can see the same color as dust below the beak? I’ve also read of many weird sightings of Ravens in the U.S. with golden/yellow beaks but no one seems to know why. 🤔

Shot handheld on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using Sony’s 100-400 GM lens at 1/500s, f6.3, iso640 and @hoyafilterusa NXT Plus circular polarizer filter.
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#raven #ravens #birdphotography #birds #getoutside #wildlifephotography #yellowstonenationalpark #birdlovers #birdwatching #corvidsofinstagram #nevermore #closeupphotography #birdportrait #sonyalpha #nationalparkphotography #yournationalparks

Have you ever seen a thresher shark? Thresher sharks consistently hold a spot in my top 3 favorite sharks. Is it there incredible tail used like a whip to stun their prey? Or their mysterious migratory patterns that have scientists scratching their heads? Nope. While there are so many interesting facts about threshers, the thing I love the most is how they always seem to look like they just got caught doing something they’re not supposed to do. 🤣

Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 in a @nauticamhousings using natural light at 1/200s, f7.1, iso 640.

#thresher #threshershark #shark #sharkdiving #sharks #sharklover #savesharks #uwphotography #uwphoto #wildlifephotography #animalportrait #visitphilippines #diving #scubadiving #underwater

A couple weeks ago I had just finished setting up camp and getting settled in for the night when I received an alert that there was a small chance the aurora could be seen. On a whim, we packed everything back up and headed out to find a clear view of the north sky. And.. there was nothing but some faint green glow on the horizon. But we were already out, so I decided to head to Lake Louise to shoot the Milky Way with my fingers crossed the aurora might show herself.

As I stepped out of the jeep, my jaw dropped as I looked up to see the sky pulsing and dancing with light. I quickly grabbed my camera and ran down to the lake front to capture this shot of the iconic lakeside Fairmont Chateau.

The night turned out to be one of the fastest moving and craziest auroras I’ve seen! Even with using a 2s shutter I couldn’t capture the detail in the aurora because it was moving so fast across the sky. It was such a mind blowing experience. One I definitely won’t forget any time soon!

Captured on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using Sony’s 24-70 GM II lens mounted on @sliktripods Pro CF-834 at f2.8, 2.5s, 1250 ISO
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#auroraborealis #lakelouise #aurora #lakelouisecanada #nightscaper #banff #banffnationalpark #nightsky #nightphotography #alberta #explorecanada #northernlights #aurorachasers #albertaaurorachasers #visitbanff #visitcanada #nightskyphotography #nightscape

Daydreaming of being back in Idaho’s Sawtooth Range 🌅

Did you know this young humpback calf is worth millions of dollars to us humans just in its ability to capture carbon?

The current population of great whales, the largest whale species on earth, is estimated to be over a trillion dollar asset to us humans just in terms of ecosystem services and helping fight climate change. If whale populations were able to recover to their pre industrial whaling levels this number could triple! 🤯

Whales help our planet in numerous ways such as by sequestering carbon, stimulating plankton growth (in case you’re wondering, more than 50% of the oxygen you breath comes from those little guys), and ocean biomixing. But best of all, they do this just by living their natural lives. Want to learn more about whales? Check out the PADI Whale Defender course written by yours truly and marine mammal biologists Mario Escalari & Maru Marcias.

Shot in Vava’u, Tonga on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1.

A few weeks ago I was able to spend a night at the historic Mission Fire Lookout deep in the forests of Montana. Although the current lookout tower was built in 1959, there have been fire lookouts in this location since 1921. Rising above the forest canopy the 360 degree views of the Swan Range, Mission Mountains, and Swan Lake from inside are incredibly beautiful.

This shot of the stars circling Polaris behind the Mission Lookout is made up of 720 individual photos stacked and blended together over the course of roughly 4 hours. The moon was rising in the east as the night went on so in the timelapse of it you can see the moon light washing down the forest and tower. 🤯 Let me know in the comments if you want to see the timelapse video!

Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using their 24-70mm GM lens mounted on @sliktripods Captured at f2.8, 10s, iso 6400