Yesterday morning was mind blowing…

I woke up at 4am to head out in search of the elusive thresher shark. As the sun was just breaking the horizon we donned our two Sidemount tanks and hit the water. I’ve done thresher dives a few times over the years, but yesterday was unlike any thing I’ve seen before. Even our guide Armin was blown away by the action and said it was the best he’s ever seen it. For 2.5 hours there was not a single minute that we didn’t have thresher sharks around us. At some points we had upwards of 6 threshers curiously circling around and checking us out between breaks at their cleaning stations. It easily ranked as one of my top 10 dives of all time. 🤯

Shooting threshers can be a difficult task due to a combination of diving in low light conditions just after dawn and not being allowed to utilize strobes or video lights to help protect these very special sharks.

Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 in a @nauticamhousings using natural light and custom white balance at f8, 1/250s, iso 640. Massive thanks to the awesome team at @evolutiondivingmalapascua for an amazing few days on the water.

#threshershark #thresher #shark #savesharks #sharklover #uwphoto #sharkdiving #bealpha #sonyalpha #lovephilippines #malapascua

What would you like to learn about photographing sharks? 🤔 🦈 Sharks are one of my favorite animals to photograph. Today I’m working on a new shark photography presentation for the upcoming @diveninjas Red Sea trip. But thinking maybe I should also add it as an article to my blog after the trip!

Shot in the Bahamas for @paditv @gopro and @aggressorliveaboards on the Sony Alpha 1 using Nauticam’s WACP-1 and @backscattervideophoto ‘s new Hybrid Flash.
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#reefshark #shark #sharkdiving #sharklover #sharkphotography #uwphoto #bahamaslife #sonyalpha

One of the hardest underwater shoots I’ve ever done was probably trying to capture florida manatees at dawn in near zero viz water. This was taken during the 2021 Unusual Mortality Event where 1100 manatees, more than 10% of their population, died in just one year. Learning about what was happening to them and how most of it was human influenced made me put a ton of pressure on myself to try to capture the best shots I could no matter how horrible the conditions because I really wanted to show the world what was going on with these incredibly gentle & curious creatures. It was a beautiful experience to finally share the water with them but also incredibly heartbreaking knowing many were starving to death and being wiped out from human activities.

Shot on the the @sonyalpha a7R IV using a @sigmaphoto 15mm fisheye lens in @nauticamhousings
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#manatee #florida #floridasprings #uwphotography #sunray #sunrise #savethemanatees #underwater #wildlifeconservation #manatees #uwphoto

Never in my life would I ever have expected to capture the aurora lighting up the sky in the red rock deserts of Utah.

When I heard there was a chance to catch the aurora so far south I quickly drove to Arches National Park hoping that being high up on the plateau combined with it being a certified Dark Sky park would give the best chances to capture the aurora. And wow… soon as I stepped out of the jeep I could see the sky glowing red and pink. It was an insanely beautiful night that I still can’t believe was real. Have you seen the aurora before?

Captured on the Sony Alpha 1 using their 20mm f1.8 G lens with a Hoya Sparkle filter at f1/8, 2s, iso 1600
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#auroraborealis #archesnationalpark #visitutah #utah #aurora #northernlights #arches #darkskypark #nightscaper #nightscapes #nightsky #moab #nightphotography #redrocks #sandstone #nightskychasers

Which is your favorite to watch - sunrise or sunset?

Personally I love sunsets. There’s something special about watching the sky ignite after the sun has already sunk behind the horizon. And then seeing twilight slowly wash all the color away into the night as the stars seemingly become visible one by one.

Captured on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 with a 24-70mm GM II lens at 24mm, f11, 0.6s, ISO 100 using a Slik Tripod and Hoya EVO polarizer filter.

#sunset #canmore #albertacanada #bubblegumclouds #sunsetlovers #skyporn #adventuretravel #hikingadventures #sunsetphotography #visitalberta #visitcanada

Yesterday it dawned on me that my 5 month adventure living away from the ocean is quickly coming to an end. In just a few short weeks I’ll be back to work in the ocean with upcoming projects in the Red Sea, Raja Ampat, and Mexico. As stoked as I am to get back into the water and see all of my finned friends and teach more humans about the beauty that lies beneath the waves, I also realized how much I’m going to actually miss the wild landscapes of the high desert and mountain regions I’ve been wandering through these past months. But more importantly I will miss that feeling of freedom to be on my own time and schedule to chase whatever ideas my heart desired in that moment.

The feeling of living wild I think is something that’s always drawn me to photographing marine megafauna and large predators like this great white shark. Daydreaming what my life might feel like without every minute of the day planned, schedules to keep, work to complete, or endless to-do lists to finish.

Shot on the @sonyalpha A7RIV in a @nauticamhousings at f7.1, 1/320s, iso 640 at Isla Guadalupe, Mexico.
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#greatwhiteshark #wildandfree #shark #sharklover #sonyalpha #mexico #guadalupeisland #greatwhite #todaysthought #animalportrait #underwater #sharkdiving #uwphotography

Tucked away near the border of Utah and Northern Arizona lies one of the most magical places on earth. To reach it you leave the comfort of paved roads and take a 90 minute drive down bumpy dirt roads and deep sand filled trails followed by a short hike in. On my first visit it quickly became one of my favorite places I’ve ever seen. Ever since then I’ve been trying to find a way to go back. Finally a few weeks ago after waiting a year and a half I was able to return.

As the sun sets on this alien landscape it gives way to some of the darkest and most star filled night skies on our planet. A true to testament to why organizations like @darksky_intl are fighting so hard to cut down light pollution and preserve our planet’s night skies.

Captured on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using a 24-70mm GM II lens with @sliktripods at 24mm, f2.8, 13s, ISO 6400 for 10 shots then stacked to reduce noise.

#nightsky #milkywaychasers #milkyway #nightscapes #nightscaper #arizonahiking #nightphotography #whitepocket #vermillioncliffs

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