Capturing the Moment

   One of the greatest spectacles in nature is watching animals work together to hunt. I have seen a pack of 13 lionesses taking turns to wear down a huge bull cape buffalo, and I've seen orca making an easy meal out of a speedy dall's porpoise, but something gets me every time I witness humpback whales bubble net feeding here in Alaska.    I had heard reports of a couple separate groups of bubble net feeders working southeast Alaska but until last night I had been unable to locate them. When I saw 4 or 5 whale blows very close together I had high hopes, and it paid off. We took the Safari Quest in for a closer look and sure enough, 7 whales erupted from the water in a tight formation as the surrounding birds flew in to grab the fish spilling out of the huge mouths of the whales.   We stayed with the whales for around an hour before having to motor on south but the entire encounter summed up the essence of traveling through Alaska. Hear we had these a...

  I've spent years watching, researching, and photographing North Pacific Humpback whales from Hawaii to California to Alaska. Now for a change I get to go out on a whale watch in Brier Island, Nova Scotia on a different ocean to try and find North Atlantic Humpback Whales. While they are still the same species, (Megaptera novaeangliae), the Humpbacks in the Atlantic have quite a bit more white on their body than their North Pacific counterparts. Although I think the South Pacific population may be the most white of the bunch. The populations have been separated for long enough to develop some differences but only noticeable by a well trained eye.    We drove down from Digby to Brier Island to head out with Brier Island Whale Watch on a small zodiac tour. You have to time the two ferries right to make it to Brier Island on time, so we gave ourselves plenty of room for error. In fact so much time that we got to the shop early enough to go out on the first trip of the ...

Breach 1 of 4 Breach 2 of 4   This season working amongst the Hawaiian Islands has culminated in some incredible whale watching this past week. I was able to see almost every activity in the book including repetitive breaching, competition pods, and even a mother teaching a young calf. Breach 3 of 4 Breach 4 of 4    It is nice being on a bigger boat so when the typical trade winds kick up the whale watching doesn't have to stop. It almost always seems that the whales get a little more playful in the windy white caps. It certainly was like that on this day. This was right before three solid days of gale force winds descended upon the islands. Good thing we got this in when we did. Mom and Calf: Teaching Moment Mom and Escort   This once again proves to me that so far Maui in Feb-March is the funnest whale watching in the world. These humpbacks are just so acrobatic it is something not to be missed.

Breaching humpback whale, ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) in front of Ma'alaea Harbor, Maui, HI  Photography can be a job for some and a way to make memories for others. While it is partly both for me the true draw of it is the challenge. Getting the lighting, focus, and other settings right is a challenge that can always be bettered. Going underwater unleashes all new challenges for a photographer with less light and suspended particles to deal with. But a nature photographer takes all of this to the next level of difficulty. When your subject is a scared fish, or stalking lion, or a lightning fast humming bird all of the other challenges of photography have to be mastered before you can really come home with some good pictures. But even with a great mastery of the basics, getting to know the animal you are photographing is essential if you want to be ready to capture that apex moment.  Whales are one of my favorite animals to photograph. They are very difficult to capture si...

    Winter is an exciting time here in Maui. Humpback whales are showing up in increasing numbers every winter to mate and have babies. While the humpbacks are here they perform incredible acrobatics, the males will fight to impress the females, and the mysterious whale song can be heard from miles away if you dunk your head just a bit under the ocean.   One behavior that I rarely see is called a spy hop. This is where the whale slowly rises its rostrum (head) out of the water. Scientists presume it is for the whale to look around at their surroundings hence the name 'spy hop.' It is a rare behavior here in Hawaii. In fact in all my time with these whales over the past three winters I have only seen this a handful of times. That was until these two whales pictured here.   On a special day out on the water in Maui you may have a chance to be mugged by a humpback whale. This is when a whale swims towards the boat and comes within the 100 yard zone. It is un...

This is something I get to share with people every day during the winter out here in Maui. Well, this exact thing of a whale breaching out of the water is a bit rarer site than that, but getting to see humpback whales is an every day sighting. This is a baby humpback, probably only a few weeks old, launching itself out of the water only 80 or so yards in front of our boat. By the time I snapped this picture the guests on board were locked and focused on this whale as you can tell. Pretty easy to wake up excited in the morning...

Did I mention the whales are here! It is winter time in Hawaii which means Maui has become the epicenter for whale watching. Humpbacks travel 2,500miles from the Alaskan feeding grounds to mingle, mate, and have babies here in Hawaii. The shallow waters off leeward Maui are thick with Humpbacks this time of year. It is a bit nerve racking for boat captains like me but also very rewarding. If you were wondering what time of year is best to see the whales it is now through March.   Whale watches are going out all day, but guest are also seeing whales on snorkel trips, dinner cruises, even kayak trips! What makes this area the best whale watching area in the world in my mind is the fact that these whales prefer near shore waters so they are very close, being Humpback whales you can see some incredible acrobatics out of the water, and the sheer density of whales here right now makes it seem like whale soup! Every day out on the water is different. Being a naturalist and cap...

 Sometimes being lucky and being prepared seem to go hand in hand. As Heidi and I were out enjoying a beautiful Maui winter morning on our two person kayak we saw a young whale, not too far off, playfully waving its white pectoral fins in the air. As we sat there entranced by the playful newborn we noticed it was slowly getting closer. As it did I slowly lowered my waterproof camera into the water, pointing it towards the baby. As the baby neared our kayak I was amazed just how big these calves are. They truly are every bit as big as a small car. That is when a much, much larger dark shaped emerged below us. This calf's ever protective mom had been hiding nearby the entire time. But with the calf so close to the kayak she figured now was the proper time to swoop in and take the calf off to safety. Heidi and I were both shocked to see the mom turn right towards our kayak and swim 10ft underneath us with baby in tow. Just as quickly as we came upon these whales they were gone, leavin...