Lizardfish and Coral Fluorescing

Cherie and I regularly night dive now that we have discovered the amazing world of fluoro diving. Roaming the reefs in the darkness with our fluoro lights revealing spectacular corals and new species of fluorescing marine life adds a whole new dimension to our diving life. Our fluoro lights have revealed this Variegated Lizardfish, a deadly predator upon other fish; they lay in wait and ambush unsuspecting victims that have no hope of breaking free from rows of needle sharp teeth. One can only wonder what this fish is communicating with its fluorescing behaviour.

Photo Data: Location: Visayas, Philippines. Genre: Macro. PhotoData: Nikon D800, Nikkor 60mm lens, Seacam Housing, Dual Seacam Strobes, and Manual Exposure Mode. ISO 1600 Exposure f16 @ 1/60th sec. Image by Kevin Deacon.

Photo Hints: To shoot fluorescing subjects you need the right tools added to your camera system. You will need an Excitation Filter fitted to your focus/spotting light or a specialised fluoro light and a Yellow Barrier Filter fitted to your face mask. Your camera lens is fitted with a yellow barrier filter and your strobes are fitted with excitation filters. Now you are ready for fluoro image capture by night. Our Photo/Dive centre imports and stocks all this equipment so we can help you set up your own system. EQUIPMENT CONSIDERATIONS: The secret to the success of this shot is the incredible 36 Megapixel sensor of my new Nikon D800. As fluoro light is weak compared to white light it is helpful if you can utilise a high ISO setting. Large sensor cameras like Nikon D800 can be used at very high ISO sensitivity levels yet still provide a sharp image with plenty of resolution and no noise despite the very high sensitivity. This provides another tool that can gain us the edge in producing amazing images. Such options are expanding the parameters of how we use our cameras to shoot subjects and provide new opportunities to improve our images.

Interesting Facts: Fluorescence in corals has been known for decades but rarely observed by divers until recently as we now have the portable fluoro lights necessary to reveal fluorescence. Since we have been taking fluoro lights into the sea we have become pioneers in the field of research by discovering many forms of marine life that also fluoresce.

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