Papua New Guinea

Mushroom Coral

The Arches, Ningau Island. Mushroom coral, 2x life-size on the negative. If you look at this and see the animals, then I've failed. Look at the intricate whorls, at the delicate shading. Imagine something primal.

Nikon F4, 105mm Nikkor f/2.8 Macro lens, Nikon 2x extender, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/32, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Hawkfish

Spotted hawkfish, Jayne's Ridge, Kimbe Bay. Aren't those dorsal tufts fantastic?

Nikon F4, 105mm Nikkor f/2.8 Macro lens,2x extender, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/32, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Clownfish

So you say that your anemone decided to close up and left you out in the cold? And you say that this clumsy-looking photographer came too close for comfort and hung around long past the point where any polite person would leave? And you just had to stand and pretend like you weren't scared to death? Is that what's troubling you, fella? P's Knob, Father's Reef.

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/16, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Blue Stripe Fang Blenny

Blue Stripe Fang Blenny, Walter's reef, Ningau Island. This little guy reminds me of Opus, my favorite character in the defunct comic strip Bloom County. I was so taken that I went through half a roll of film on him. I've recently been accused of Photoshopping (there is hardly a word that cannot be verbed) the smile on his face. Not true!

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/16, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Harlequin ghost pipefish

Susan's Reef, Kimbe Bay. Harlequin ghost pipefish with a sea squirt in the background.

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/16, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Tunicate

The Arches, Ningau Island. Tunicate detail -- didennum rolle for you biologists. These little guys seem to be just a thin, flexible membrane over some central element. The dark area at the upper right is the opening, which would be circular if the water were still. These things sway with the current in a way calculated to tantalize the macro photographer (that would be me) who's trying to work with maybe a 1/16 inch depth of field while dealing with the same (but inevitably out-of-phase) current and surge as the tunicate.

Nikon F4, 105mm Nikkor f/2.8 Macro lens, 2x extender, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/32, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
White Worm

Leslie's Knob, Father's Reef. Some kind of worm, rippling in the current.

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/22, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Two Hawkfish

Father's Arches, Father's Reef, Kimbe Bay. Those of you who have spent a lot of time at this web site know about my fascination with long-nosed hawkfish. That fascination kept me going during the dive briefing that explained that we were going to hand-over-hand down a rope until we got to a shoal whose top was at 85 feet on our third dive of the day, but that we'd probably see a fair number of long-nosed hawkfish. My brain said cool it, but the thought of hawkfish drove me on. The shoal was lovely, a lush island in the blue, and the hawkfish were there in profusion. I was in heaven -- and probably a little narced.

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite AI/n strobes, f/22, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Christmas Tree Worm

I have lots of pictures of Christmas tree worms. When I first got a housed camera after years of using the Nikonos for macros and having the goal posts scare everything away, I went nuts. After a while, I noticed that there wasn't that much to the pictures, except to prove that the worm was there and so was I. So I stopped. But on the PNG trip, something made me sidle over to this worm, and I'm glad I did.

Nikon F4, 105mm Nikkor f/2.8 Macro lens, 2x extender, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/32, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Coralamorph

Oto Reef, Kimbe Bay. Attracted by the lime-green rim around the mouth, I was all lined up to make a picture of this coralomorph, when a gobie plunked himself down on it. How could I resist?

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/22, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Cuttlefish

Norman's Knob, Father's Reef. North end of a Papuan cuttlefish going south.

Nikon F4, 105mm Nikkor f/2.8 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/11, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Batfish

This picture was made on Krakafat Reef (aka Laura Shoal -- why is it that most of the Kimbe dive sites are named for women?) When we were there the vis was generally pretty awful, but on this dive it was OK (by PNG standards -- 60 to 80 feet would be a great day in Monterey Bay). We had a great dive here (see the tuna and trevalier shots elsewhere), and at the end, we were cooling out at about 60 feet before launching ourselves into the current to catch the boat when this school of batfish showed up. Well, I was enchanted. My enthusiasm was only slightly dampened when we got to the surface and a school very much like these were skulking around the stern waiting for handouts.

Although I wasn't noticing it at the time, there's some interesting stuff going on in the background of this picture. See the clown triggerfish on the right at the top of the golden crinoid? And the school of trevalier in the background. Then there's the immense anemone looking like a misplaced rug.

Nikonos III, 15mm Nikkor f/2.8 lens, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/8, 1/60, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Spanish dancer eggcase

Barney's Bommie, Garove Island. Spanish dancer eggcase. I love these things, but many of my photographs have proven to be disappointments, with the background showing through the diaphanous matrix, or the lighting too flat, or something. This picture captures the mystery of these pink veils left by animals you hardly ever see.

Nikon F4, 200mm Nikkor f/4 Macro lens, Aquatica Housing, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/22, Kodak Royal Gold 100.
Tuna and Barracuda

Krakafat Reef (aka Laura Shoal), off Garove Island. A huge yellowfin tuna followed us most of the dive, and posed nicely in front a school of barracuda.

Nikonos III, 15mm Nikkor f/2.8 lens, 2 Ikelite 200 strobes, f/8, 1/60, Kodak Royal Gold 100.

Use your keyboard right and left arrow keys to move through the pictures.