Green Sea Turtle

Subject

Green Sea Turtle

 

Location

Apo Island, Philippines

 

Equipment

Canon Camera, dual inon strobes, wide angle lens

 

Dive

5 meters (16 feet at depth) during a day dive

Every time, you go to a great dive location, you want to come back because there is something you always miss.  I believe this to be especially true for wide angle photography.  I wanted to come back to Apo Island to get photos of huge green sea turtles.  I made the request for a shallow dive exclusively for the turtles this time to capture some up-close intimate shots.  These turtles weigh in at 136 kilograms (300 lbs) or even more.   They can be seen in the coral surrounding the island.  The corals can be big as cars.  All this hard and soft coral is a refuge for green sea turtles.  The coral also acts as a natural filtration system for the ocean so the water is crystal clear in this area.  The bright clear skies penetrate the shallow reefs to give them the necessary light to grow and flourish.  These combinations create great opportunities for photos.  When the turtles are sleeping or resting in the corals you can get within inches of them for great wide angle photography.  When I was approaching this turtle, I wanted to shoot below him to get the full effect of the reef and the water clarity.  The wide-angle dome was able to capture all of this, with only being 6 inches from the turtle.   I did not need much of my light coming from the strobes because the maximum depth of the dive was only 15-20 feet (5-7 meters at depth).  On this one dive, I was able to encounter ten green sea turtles.  The turtles were very cooperative and I am forever thankful for these opportunities.  Because the biodiversity is so intense in these areas, I will keep coming back to get more images and stories. 

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