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Sean HowardEagle Ray Flying through the Ocean Space
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Chase Darnell"SOLO"
Spotted Eagle Ray North Wall, Grand Cayman
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Chase Darnell"Stand Strong"
Secretary Blenny popping out to say hello!
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Chase Darnell"Glide"
A Hawksbill descends after catching a couple breaths on the surface.
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Dusty Norman"Cling Love"
A Red Cling Fish protecting small eggs on a gorgonian hanging out over the wall.
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Chase Darnell"Smoke Stack"
A Spawning Sponge releases what looks like smoke into the water column.
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Chase Darnell"Green Snow"
A Sponge spawning on the edge of the wall.
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Chase Darnell"Showtime"
Manta's are a rare sighting here in Cayman. We were greeted by this fairly large Manta this spring. I didn't have to swim much as he literally came straight at me, and then right over my head.
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Dusty Norman"Spot Light"
An Octopus protecting his prized conch shells.
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Dusty Norman"Sluggin"
The bloom of Leech Headshield Slugs at the Doc Paulson this year offered up loads of this color guys this year.
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Chase Darnell"Sand Storm"
A Stingray explodes from his resting place and throws up a lot of sand.
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Dusty Norman"Dragon Eye"
A small Golden Tail Morray says hello.
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Dusty Norman"Sun Shrimp"
A rare find for us here in Cayman. This is a Sun Anemone Shrimp.
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Dusty Norman"Hiding Out"
It is always crazy to see what these little Blenny's look like under light and a macro lens. Most of them boast some amazing color and brilliant patt;erns making them an awesome subject.
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Dusty NormanBlacklined Cyphoma
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Dusty Norman"Blending"
Up close with a Neck Crab.
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Dusty Norman"Spikes"
Super close up of a Whip Coral.
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Chase Darnell"View from the Bottom"
The Wall on this site has so much life. Massive sponges and sea fans all full, healthy, and colorful.
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Chase Darnell"The Pace"
A diver keeps pace with an Eagle Ray to grap the perfect shot.
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Dusty Norman"Green Eyes"
A first time find for me here. I am having trouble identiyfing this crab just from our ID books. Not a bad day at the office, find something completely new to me and snag some good shots.
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Dusty Norman"Size Matters"
This shot was possible with the use of a 100mm macro lens stacked with a Subsea =10 Diopter.
Black Coral Shrimp with eggs.
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Dusty Norman"Fin Up"
A close up of the same Blenny. Triple Fin's color and patterns make them one of my favorite little fish to find.
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Chase Darnell"Clarity"
Some days the visibility here in Cayman really makes you sit back and enjoy.
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Dusty Norman"The Ladder"
A Whip Coral lit from the back.
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Dusty Norman"Lettuce Slug"
Finding one of these Sea Slugs on a nice colorful backdrop is rather rare. I was happy to take advantage of the colorful opportunity.
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Chase Darnell"Hiding in the Flowers"
This Red Cling Fish found a very pretty patch of Gorgonian to cling to.
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Chase Darnell"Turtle Face"
Sometimes the friendliness of the Hawksbill here in Cayman really blows my mind. I love having these encounters were the subject seems interested in you. Maybe they really do enjoy getting their photo taken.
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Dusty Norman"Perch"
A Triple Fin Blenny resting on a Gorgonian Branch.
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Chase Darnell"The Globe"
Eagle Rays dancing in the sun rays.
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Dusty Norman"Turtle Eye View"
Swimming with the turtles.
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Chase Darnell"Friends Fly Together"
Flying out into the blue accompanied by these two Spotted Eagle Rays was nothing less than a sublime experience.
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Dusty Norman"Ruffles"
A Lettuce Sea Slug on a Rope Sponge.
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Chase Darnell"Colorful Moments"
A large Triple Fin Blenny. I generally see these guys on Brain Coral so it was nice to find one on a different back drop.
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Chase Darnell"Glowing"
A close up of a Roughhead Blenny.
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Chase Darnell"Red Cling"
A Red Cling Fish doing what it does best. Latched on to a Gorgonian Branch.
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Chase Darnell"Spread Your Wings"
A Large Triple Fin Blenny resting on a sponge.
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Dusty Norman"Curl"
An Arrow Blenny with a green algae background.
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Dusty Norman"Arrow Eye"
A very hard subject to photograph. The size of a normal Blenny, but spends all of it's time free swimming.
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Dusty Norman"The Arrow"
A Red Lined Arrow Crab resting in a bunch of Whip Corals.
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Chase Darnell"Sand Driftin"
I love the separation the sand gives the Shark. They blend in so well with the reef, so I was very excited to see her cruise over this sand patch.
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Chase Darnell"Glow"
I noticed the interesting color of this sponge and new I wanted a shot. I was able to isolate my strobes onto just that sponge and the glowing sun behind the coral head gives this a very dramatic feel.
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Chase Darnell"Does He See Me"
This Blenny was very cooperative. I used the +10 Diopter for this shot, so was glad he trusted me enough to get the big rig right up on him for this shot.
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Chase Darnell"Puzzle Piece"
A Small Blenny lines it self up perfectly with the groove on a Brain Coral.
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Chase Darnell"Sky High"
A Spotted Eagle Ray flies overhead on the North Wall of Grand Cayman.
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Chase Darnell"Apex"
Encounters of the Apex variety.
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Chase Darnell"Overhead"
A Spotted Eagle Ray trusting me enough to fly right over my head. I try to let the Rays come to me, as I feel the calmer you can stay the more inclined they will be to come in for a close look.
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Chase Darnell"Twist"
When you see the Sharks body coil up prepare to see the true speed and power of these beautiful animals. It only takes a split second for them to dart away out of sight.
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Dusty Norman"In the Branches"
This Decorator Crab really blends in well with all the Gorgonian Polyps that surround him.
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Dusty Norman"Trumpet Eye"
A Trumpet Fish blends in with a Gorgonian.
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Dusty Norman"Basslet Smile"
A Portrait of a Fairy Basslet. A very color, but quick moving fish, so it becomes a challenge to get a subject to sit still long enough to focus. The vibrant color of the small Basslet makes it worth the wait.
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Chase Darnell"Aerials"
The Turtle dive always leads to awesome imagery.
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Chase Darnell"Sharpnose"
I love the facial markings of the Sharpnose Puffer. Finding a curious subject is key for this type of image, as these guys can be quite timid.
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Chase Darnell"Fuzzy"
I wanted to emphasize the bright color eyes of this Roughhead Blenny so I used a wide open f/stop to achieve a narrow focus on his eyes.
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Dusty Norman"Trapeze"
A Wire Coral Shrimp perched on a branch of wire coral with a deep blue background.
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Dusty Norman"Arrow Portrait"
A Redlined Arrow Crab sitting on a healthy patch of coral.
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Chase Darnell"Hazy"
A Roughhead Blenny with a soft background. I really like how the wide aperture isolates these Blennys.
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Chase Darnell"Dancing Fairies"
Two Fairy Basslets on a black background.
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Chase Darnell"The Chase"
Encounters like this is why we dive the North Wall.
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Chase Darnell"Munchin"
A Hawksbill Turtle digs into some sponge.
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Chase Darnell"Orange Escape"
An Orange Elephant Ear Sponge down the wall on the North Side of Grand Cayman.
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Dusty Norman"Field of Flowers"
A Landscape view of coral polyps.
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Dusty Norman"Colorful Surroundings"
A Banded Coral Shrimp sits on a very vibrant sponge.
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Chase Darnell"In My Face"
Close up of a Blenny.
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Chase Darnell"Bearded Face"
A Bearded Fire Worm posing for the camera.
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Chase Darnell"Next in Line"
This Filefish must have been enjoying his morning cleaning, as these guys are usually to timid to let divers approach.
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Chase Darnell"Stare Down"
A Roughhead Blenny shot with a +10 Diopter.
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Chase Darnell"Clean Green"
A Green Moray gets a little cleaning session from a Cleaning Gobe.
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Chase Darnell"Goldy"
This golden fish was so small. It is sitting on a Purple Rope Sponge on the edge of the wall.
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Chase Darnell"Orange Crush"
I loved the colors that this Triple Fin had chose to sit around,
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Dusty Norman"Glowing"
A blenny isolated with a bright background.
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Dusty Norman"Purple Arms"
I love the color of the Pederson Cleaning Shrimps arms, especially when matched with a black background.
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Chase Darnell"Hairy Face"
A portrait of a Neck Crab sitting on a purple rope sponge.
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Dusty Norman"Gobe Face"
An Orange Sided Gobe resting on a yellow sponge.
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Dusty Norman"Reaching"
A Bearded Fireworm inching his way off a rock.
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Chase Darnell"High Five"
A Hawksbill Turtle throwing up his fin in the shallows on the North Wall.
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Chase Darnell"Dive"
A Hawksbill Turtle dives down from the surface with the sun at his back.
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Chase Darnell"Look into my Eyes"
A close up of a Lobster in the swim through at Creole Cliff.
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Chase Darnell"Floating"
Divers passing a sun lit gorgonian.
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Chase Darnell"Spread Your Wings"
This Eagle Ray let me get so close to him. We were swimming out off the wall in the blue water, which allowed me to achieve a blackout background.
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Chase Darnell"Shooting for the Sky"
This Eagle Ray was begging to have his photo taken. Some days it all just goes your way and those are the days that take your experience to the next level.
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Chase Darnell"Air Space"
A Spotted Eagle Ray soars over head under the sun rays.
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Tanya Houppermans'Into The Woods' - A mutton snapper swims through the coral reefs of Grand Cayman
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Chase Darnell"Seahorse Sponge"
With all the action of of capturing the amazing movements of this group of Silversides I couldn't help but see this Orange Elephant Ear sponge closely resembling a Sea Horse.
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Chase Darnell"Game On"
As the Silversides pack tightly around the outcroppings of this pinnacle the circling Bar Jacks above plan their next move.
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Chase Darnell"Hiding in the Colors"
A large group of Silversides packs together amongst some healthy and colorful sponge life.
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Susannah H. Snowden-SmithSilversides! Photo 1 of 2
Silversides huddle together along the north wall on Grand Cayman. Seconds later they raced in formation across the colorful sponges, completely covering them - See Photo 2 to see the silversides covering the sponges!
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Susannah H. Snowden-SmithSilversides! Photo 2 of 2
Silversides race across the north wall of Grand Cayman, completely hiding the colorful sponges and wall behind them. See Photo 1 to see the silversides and colorful reef seconds earlier!
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Chase Darnell"Loggerhead Youngster"
This is by far the smallest Loggerhead Turtle I have encountered while diving. That being said he still probably had a fin span of around 4 1/2 ft. meaning he wasn't actually that small.