Photo of the Week: April 09, 2012

Hi Gang!

Being roughly 2,500 miles from the nearest major body of land, the Hawaiian Islands are the world’s most highly isolated island group. Largely due to this isolation,  approximately 24% of Hawaii’s fish species are known only in Hawaiian waters. That is a remarkable statistic, and it provides substantial support for Hawaiian divers that tell us that if we dive with them that we are highly likely to see a lot of fishes that we simply won’t see anywhere else in the world

This week’s POTW is an image of one of those endemic species, the Hawaiian lionfish (Pterois sphex). Like all lionfishes, the Hawaiian lionfish is a member of the family Scorpaenidae. The Hawaiian lionfish is usually encountered in lagoon areas and on seaward facing reefs. The species is primarily active at night when it hunts primarily for a variety of crustaceans. During the day Hawaiian lionfish typical hide in the latticework of the reef.

As is the case with other lionfishes, the spines are venomous. Hawaiian lionfish are not at all aggressive toward divers, but they will defend themselves if harassed or if a diver accidentally tries to settle on an unseen specimen. Hawaiian lionfish attain a maximum length of just under nine inches.

The species makes an excellent subject for underwater photographers for several reasons. One, it is an endemic species. Two, it is always nice to have a collection of images of potentially dangerous subjects. And three, Hawaiian lionfish are attractive animals.

I captured this week’s POTW with a 60 mm lens mounted on a Nikon D300 camera. The camera and lens were used in a Subal housing. I used a pair of Ikelite DS 125 strobes to light the shot.

Once I discovered the fish, creating the photograph was relatively easy as long as I did not cause the lionfish to turn away from me. Once a lionfish decides it doesn’t want anything to do with your camera, the odds are you aren’t going to get a good shot. So, I was especially careful to move slowly and deliberately as I set up my shot. In fact, I set the controls on my camera system and strobes before I moved into place to compose my shot. This helped me minimize my movements when I was close to the fish, and that strategy helped enable me to capture this week’s POTW.

I hope you enjoy this week’s POTW, and that before too long that you too get a chance to see a Hawaiian lionfish on a dive with Captain Steve!

See you next week!

Marty