Join us as we adventure off the coast of Isla Mujeres, Mexico. Sit back and let our underwater photography transport you to the beauty of the ocean depths.
The last week of July, my son Nate and I embarked on a trip sponsored by Backscatter, an underwater photography retailer, to observe the world’s largest aggregation of whale sharks. Our days began with a 45-minute boat ride out from the island in an attempt to find our moving/floating target. The target was a 300-meter floating cloud of Bonita eggs. Did you know that Bonita fish return to the Isla Mujeres coast to spawn every year and in turn, the whale sharks return here to feed? The eggs shift the deep aqua-marine water a touch green as these giant creatures slowly swim through, gulping thousands of gallons of water and filtering out the minuscule bits to fuel their massive bodies.
Let’s Jump in the Water!
The first morning we discovered 75 dorsal fins slowly slicing through the water, the excitement and awe were palatable. Whale sharks are the largest fish in the ocean, growing up to 45 feet long. What appeared equally amazing was not only that we were graced with such large numbers of these gentle giants, but there were just as many giant manta rays. The anticipation of being able to capture images using specialized underwater photography cameras is hard to describe!
Since Manta rays are one of my favorite creatures, the amount of time we were able to spend with them as they danced, played and jumped was the icing on the cake. The scale, elegance, and grace of these creatures simply can not be captured in still life pictures, but I’ve left a taste of what it was like. If you have the opportunity to do this, it is an amazing experience.
Most of all, if you ever have the opportunity to do this, go! It was an amazing experience.
These pictures are amazing!!! They look tranquil and magically at the same time, you are great at what you do!!!