Photography
I find it almost crazy that you can just push a button and stop time. Pausing life for a moment to investigate or replay just a single moment, or even a fraction of a moment. In the past couple years photography has gone from just pushing buttons to a full blown passion for me. I feel that it is such a powerful tool for conservation, especially when combined with today’s media platforms. You can capture jaw dropping encounters and bring the beauty and mystique of our oceans to humans that have never had the chance to even glance across the ocean. To me, that power is almost surreal. Not only can we bring a voice to those who can not speak for themselves, but it means we can inspire even those living the furthest from the ocean to fall in love with it, and all of its beautiful inhabitants too.
Jay is a full time professional photographer & cinematographer. He is available to hire for commercial photo or film shoots in Baja or any where around the world. To date he has worked on projects in over 30 countries across the globe for a variety of magazines, brands, and media outlets. For information on his current availability, rates, partnerships, or to pitch a project please send a message here.
Make sure to follow Jay Clue on Instagram for more pics! If you are interested in purchasing a print or licensing a photograph, please contact us for more info.
So proud of our ninja family today! 🤩🥰 A million thanks and so much gratitude to all the ninjas out there that have supported me and @diveninjas over the years. I’m completely blown away by the outpouring of love. You ninjas have made my heart melt. On an industry scale, I’m also super humbled to see that a small conservation focused dive shop can win awards like this. It shows that divers around the world want to see businesses that are doing more to help protect our beautiful oceans. And for me that is the greatest award of all. Much love ninjas! 🥰🥷
Earlier this year while diving with mantas we spotted a big mess of ghost fishing gear entangled around a dive site in one of Mexicos most magical marine parks - the Revillagigedo Archipelago. Annie and myself told the the mantas we’d be right back, and started working to entangle the long bits of rope and weights. Soon after a few of the other divers joined in to help and we were able to recover the entire length of it. Thankfully before it ended up wrapped around one of the beautiful creatures that call this island home. This is what I love about our dive community in Baja. Yeah, we all love to encounter amazing wildlife, but protecting them takes precedence over everything else.
Want to get involved and help us clean up debris in Los Cabos? Check my stories today for info or shoot a DM to me or @diveninjas The next clean up is October 2nd.
A big thanks to @anniecardosoo and the rest of the team on the @nautilus_liveaboards Undersea Hunter for helping keep these special islands magical.
Nurse sharks might not be what most imagine when thinking of sharks. But personally I love the shape of their face and their speckled skin colors. The two barbels below their nostrils are actually sensory organs that help them find prey. Once they find a tasty snack, they’ll actually suck it in like a vacuum cleaner and crunch down on it. While they may be known as ‘the couch potato of sharks’ due to their relaxed lifestyle - they can actually crush clams & other shells without any issue or even use their suction skills to pull an adult conch straight from its shell. 🤯 Want to learn more about nurse sharks and maybe even see some young pups? Join me this December for a special trip to learn all about the sharks of Bimini from the brilliant scientists & researchers at @biminisharklab ! We’ve just had 1 lucky spot open up - DM me for info!
And stretchhhh! Getting ready for the weekend with a little salty sea pup yoga session. It’s Less than 2 months until the next Above & Below photo workshop in La Paz with my buddy @stanmoniz Can’t wait to play with these mischievous sea doggos and whale sharks!
Shot on the @sonyalpha A7R iv with the @sigmaphoto 15mm FE in a @nauticamhousings using @seaandseaimaging YSD3 Lightning strobes. With support from the awesome ninjas at @backscattervideophoto and @scubadotcom
Seeing the sky ignite as the aurora dances over Canada’s Northwest Territories is something that is almost impossible to put to words.
It looked like the aurora was dying down as we set up our tripods on the shores of this beautiful lake recommended by my awesome friend @lindsayvician . But then just as I began to think it was over, a wave of green & pink began to charge across the lake. I quickly set Sony’s in camera intervalometer to shoot a timelapse as more waves of green began to ignite until the entire sky was set ablaze reflecting off the lake below. It was surreal and ranks as one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
Created from 246 photos shot at 1 second intervals at f2.8, 2 sec, and iso 640 with the @sonyalpha A7s III using the Sony 24-70mm GM II lens on @sliktripods Pro CF-635 tripod with a PBH-535AC Ball Head then compiled in Davinci Resolve and slowed down 25% using Davinci’s neural engines & speed warp features.
These past few days chasing the Aurora in Yellowknife have been surreal. Filled with gorgeous landscapes, endless lakes, interesting culture & history, amazing new friends, and such warm hospitality.
The other night we set up our gear on the shore of a lake far outside of town and began patiently waiting only to see that the Aurora started to kick off behind us. So we frantically jumped in the car and headed back south finding this awesome spot just as the skies were igniting greens and purples. I quickly got my tripod out and snapped this shot as we watched the Aurora dance across the sky reflecting off the lake with the sun still setting below the horizon. Such an unreal experience in such an incredibly beautiful land.
Settings: f2.8, 6 s, iso 640 at 24mm
Captured on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 24-70mm G Master II lens on a @sliktripods Carbon Fiber PRO CF-834 tripod.
Exploring tropical nightscapes on Cat Island. Whenever I look up to the Milky Way glowing in the dark night sky above I feel like it beckons you to consider our place in the universe and reminds us just how minuscule we humans really are in the grand scheme of things.
Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using a @hoyafilterusa starscape filter. Shot planned with @photopills
As a photographer and diver I’ve always found something really interesting about the surface edge of the ocean. Not only for the beautiful reflections it creates, but how it also marks this soft barrier between our human world above and the liquid world below. Slipping just below this barrier it’s as if time slows, the endless noise above is slowly drowned out, and the stress from our daily lives washed away. It’s incredible and inspiring how just moving a few inches below can change so much…
🧜♀️: Thank you to @saaya.imai for helping me bring this idea from my mind into reality.
📸: Captured on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 with the Sony 16-35mm G Master lens in a @nauticamhousings using natural light at f8, 1/320, ISO 100.
One of my favorite shots from the past 12 days exploring the Philippines. On a last minute hunch from our guide I swapped to my wide angle lens and a few minutes into the dive this massive tornado of jacks at least 20 meters (65+ ft) tall came spiraling in towards the wall from the blue. I love seeing massive schools of fish. They’re not only mesmerizing to watch but a reminder of the abundance of life that could be in our oceans. Imagine what incredible encounters existed in our oceans centuries or even decades ago.
Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 16-35mm GMaster lens in a @nauticamhousings .
Massive shout out to the entire team on the Philippines Aggressor for making it such an amazing trip. Highly recommended jumping on one of their Visayas itineraries!
When born, the Barbigant’s Pygmy Seahorse is only 2mm long (.07 inch). Even when fully grown these little ninjas are only 2.4cm (.94 inches) long. Their color matches the color of the gorgonian sea fan they live in - either pink or yellow. So not only are they extremely tiny, they’re also super camouflaged to match their surroundings. They’re so hard to see that they were discovered by accident when a biologist collected a sea fan to study in the lab. 🤯
Captured with the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 90mm Macro GMaster lens in a @nauticamhousings with @seaandseaimaging YS-D3 Lightning Mk2 strobes while in Philippines with @aggressoradventures
Striped marlin are like the cheetahs of the ocean. These incredible fish are estimated to swim at speeds of over 50mph (80km/h). But they’re not only fast they’re remarkably agile and skilled hunters. Marlin will circle schools of fish, such as mackerel, herding them together into tightly packed bait balls as they drive them towards the surface before rocketing into the schools picking off fish one by one. But why push them to the surface instead of just using their incredible speed to chase them down? The surface creates a barrier essentially cornering the school and limiting the directions they can move. It’s also believed that the warmer surface waters might aid their hunting by causing the prey to lose stamina and speed. Have you ever seen a marlin while diving?
Exploring Los Cabos just before dawn… One of the things that made me fall in love with Baja was just how surreal the night skies are. Some of the darkest skies on earth can be found here packed with millions of stars and clear views of the Milky Way. Most days neon sunsets welcome the night until fiery sunrises ignite the sky the next morning.
Shot on the @sonyalpha A1 using @hoyafilterusa starscape filter and planned with @photopills
Look at those fins! 😍 One of my favorite shark experiences so far this year was diving with a group of 8 oceanic white tips off the coast of Cat Island, in The Bahamas. These critically endangered sharks were once known as Sea Dogs by sailors because they would follow their ships. The population here are huge compared to the oceanics I’ve seen in other places. And not only that, there’s so many of them! In most places I’d feel super lucky just to see 1 or maybe 2 on a dive. At Cat we were surrounded by no less than 6 at a time. 🤯 It’s amazing to see so many of such a critically endangered species in one area.
I can’t wait to go back next year! Swipe to see our guide, Pauline’s face when number 7 arrived.
Shot on the @sonyalpha A1 in a @nauticamhousings with @seaandseaimaging D3 strobes. Massive thanks to @greenwoodbeachresort for hosting us!
Just wrapped up an awesome project filming with the @padiaware & @paditv team and my brother @stanmoniz We spent the week not only showing them the beauty of Cabo, but also the inspiring stories behind some of the incredible humans living here that are trying to make a difference for our oceans.
This female silky stopped by to visit us riddled with mating scars one day during the shoot. Yet she was still so full of energy and curious of us. While floating above her in the blue, I couldn’t help but to think it’s an almost a poetic metaphor for the conservation minded community here in Los Cabos. More often than not we may feel beaten and torn apart; yet we all remain hopeful and keep pushing forward in our own ways trying to better preserve & protect these waters that have given us all so much.
Did you know Baja has more islands than the rest of the entire country of Mexico combined? I’m excited to be working on some new shoots in Baja this week. It’s been a few months since I’ve gotten to explore my own backyard from behind the camera. There’s always something very special about shooting an area you live in as you tend to take it for granted seeing it every day and can start to forget just how lucky you are. But shoots like this force you to reopen your eyes and remember why you fell in love with this magical rocky strip of desert you call home.
A Bottlenose dolphin investigates his reflection on my camera dome… read on for the full story.
Recently I had an encounter where 2 bottlenose dolphins seemed to have separated me from the rest of our group in the ocean. They started making quick very close passes before spinning 180 and coming straight back towards me. At first I felt a bit confused and a little nervous by the behavior. But then I noticed something very special… I realized I could see them turning their heads and their eyes tracking the large glass dome of my camera. This went on for a good 10 minutes or so, with the dolphins getting closer and slower; as I could only imagine, they realized I didn’t pose any threat to them. I am so happy I shot it in 4K 120 so you can actually see their eyes and head move to track their reflections on the dome. I had no idea this was even something they did until Kel, researcher at Dolphin Communication, explained it to me. It was such a beautiful encounter, and shows how our human brains can easily misunderstand what we are seeing and confuse what we think are signs with actual reality.
Eureka Dunes are some of the tallest dunes in North America climbing from a dry lake bed to a staggering 680ft (207m) tall. Located in a remote part of Death Valley National Park they seem to almost tower above the mountains behind them as you stand at their base. As we began the trek up a powerful wind swept through the valley turning the dunes into almost sandstorm like conditions. It was surreal and the higher we climbed the stronger the winds became. But when finally reached our destination at the top a large dune the view was jaw dropping. Watching the sun set behind the mountains while waves of blowing sand danced off the ridges carving the dunes into their tell take shape is something I definitely won’t forget anytime soon.
Massive thanks to my brother @stanmoniz for showing me this spot and always inspiring me to explore different forms of photography.
Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using a 16-35mm GM lens with a @hoyafilterusa EVO Antistatic polarizing filter
Just wrapped up an amazing 2 weeks in the Bahamas with lots of super curious dolphins and awesome humans. It’s always such a beautiful experience to interact with the pods here in the wild. This year we had so many different interactions including watching Atlantic Spotted dolphins chase & play with random fish like they were toys, learning that bottlenose dolphins really like to look at themselves in the big glass dome on my camera, and even seeing the 2 different species socialize and play together.
Def need to send a big thank you to Kel from @biminidolphinresearch for teaching us all about the dolphins of bimini and their research. As well as a massive thanks to Captain Peto, Renell, Kathleen, and Brandon for making our days on the water so awesome.
Want to learn more about how you can help these incredible creatures stay wild and not be kept in captivity? Check out my friends over at @emptythetanksworldwide and @dolphin_project
🧜♀️: @saaya.imai
📸: Shot natural light on the @sonyalpha A1 in a @nauticamhousings with a Sony 16-35mm GMaster lens.
Before & after editing.
A little look at how I shoot some photos flat using a custom white balance profile when I want a specific color range to pop; then bring it to life with a quick edit in Adobe Lightroom after. Want more behind the shot posts or photography tips? Let me know on the comments below!
🧜♀️: @saaya.imai
📸: Shot on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 in a @nauticamhousings and edited in Adobe @lightroom Settings: 16mm, f8, 1/640, ISO 320
Ready to kick off another beautiful weekend in the Bahamas.
The wreck of the SS Sapona has a crazy history. From being involved in rum running to its ties in the first big mystery that made the Bermuda Triangle infamous - this concrete ship has some stories to tell. I love freediving here in the morning watching those warm Bahamian sun rays dance through what’s left of her hull. Pro tip - while most that visit spend their time on the wreck itself, there’s actually a beautiful sea grass bed filled with snacking turtles & sea life just a short swim away. Ask your guide to show you how to get there.
🧜♀️: @jfur07
📸: Shot using only natural light on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 16-35mm G Master lens in a @nauticamhousings
Love those Bimini blues! I’m back in Bimini this week and we’ve had some incredible conditions. Really calm winds have made for super hot days, but awesome water conditions to play with surface reflections! Yesterday we found some very curious spotted dolphins that almost felt like they were trying to model for the camera before switching to super excited hyper dolphin mode spiraling around us and rocketing up to the freedivers like heyyy funny looking land creature, want to play? I love encountering dolphins in the wild and seeing how they interact with humans. Wild & free as they should be.
Shot using natural light at 1/500, f9, 320 ISO on the @sonyalpha Alpha 1 using the Sony 16-35mm GM lens all safe & sound inside a @nauticamhousings thanks to the awesome ninjas at @backscattervideophoto
Super excited this morning to see my marlin shot made the July cover of @scubadivingmag !! 🤯 Can’t say much more now, 🤫 but I hear there is an awesome 10 page feature article by the amazing @alexandraunderwater about Baja’s annual Striped Marlin Sardine Run with some shots by yours truly. 😍 The new issue will be hitting newsstands and your mailboxes soon! Def send me a pic soon as you get your hands on it ninjas!