just below the surface

Gallery: WildlifePosted January 16, 2010228 views5 comments

This is a rather old photo, from an encounter with a young Mediterranean manta ray. We were in the Ligurian Sea (northern Italy, not far from France and Cote d'Azur), coming back from a search for Cuvier's beaked whales onboard a fast dinghy, and on our way to the coast (but still a few miles offshore) we found this young and curious manta ray who started playing with the boat, swimming back and forth for several passages... and then finally left. The photo was taken from onboard the dinghy while the manta ray was passing nearby, just below the sea surface. Nikon D100, 80-400 @185mm, 1/350, f/10.

Comments

5 comments

Comment posted by Cam Held on January 16, 2010 at 7:09 PM

Cool Antonello,
I like the way the shallow water over its back ripples. Really cool shades of blue too. I just wish it had some part of it really sharp though, but obviously that wasn't possible. Great shot!
-Cam

Registered on November 12, 2009, 59 Posts, 398 Comments

Comment posted by Brian Schrayer on January 16, 2010 at 9:17 PM

This is very nice Antonello. I like how the ripples on the water echo the movements of these animals as they move through the water.

Registered on May 28, 2004, 114 Posts, 2890 Comments

Comment posted by Vincent Grafhorst on January 17, 2010 at 3:11 AM

This is art! As photographers we are always trying to create unique images and that is exactly what you achieved here Antonello. Splendid image! I do not mind at all that there is no sharp part, the softness is what makes this so artistic. I am just curious whether this was how you captured the image in camera or whether a lot of photoshop work created that artistic look. A bit more room on the right for the tip of its fin would be a slight improvement IMO.

Registered on February 24, 2006, 504 Posts, 7203 Comments

Comment posted by Ant on January 17, 2010 at 4:01 AM

Thanks for the comments! Sharpness is not excellent, I know... the manta ray was swimming very fast and changing its depth under the surface while circling around the dinghy, and the old 80-400 is not a fast focusser... And yes, more room on the right would have been better, I may have other shots but am not sure, will check (as I say, an old image). As for Post-Processing, not much, just contrast (curves), sharpening and saturation, global adjustements to extract the image from the original, quite flat file...

Registered on April 13, 2009, 27 Posts, 474 Comments

Comment posted by Ken Archer on January 17, 2010 at 9:14 PM

This is super sweet as it is here!!! A work of art!

Ken Archer

Registered on October 28, 2004, 222 Posts, 6683 Comments