Capturing the Moment

Lionfish   What a wonderful world underwater can be. Making our way out to Sulawesi Island after 2 plane stops, driving another hour to the port village, and then a 10 minute boat ride to Lembeh Island makes me wonder in amazement at travelers that would come to these places 50 or 60 years ago. The world is truly at our fingertips now. I can only imagine what travelers in 50 or 60 years from now will think about us. Maybe they will be shocked that we would spend days traveling to these places when all they have to do is teleport. Pygmy Sea Horse Common Sea Horse   Sometimes the destination makes the journey worth it and many times the journey itself is worth it all on its own. Lembeh is a bit of both. The drive across Sulawesi is through little villages and past giant volcanoes covered in forest. Ribbon Eel Snake Eel But underwater is how Lembeh really shines. The variety of fish in these waters is mind blowing. You can see a lot of reef fish you might se...

Indonesia is a hot spot for biodiversity, especially underwater. Hundreds of nudibranchs, colorful sea slugs, can be found in the near shore waters here. And no place can boast quite the variety as Lembeh. In the Lembeh Strait nudibranchs are a common occurrence on almost every dive. However it took some time for me to realize that while I was seeing nudibranchs on every dive I was almost always seeing different species. For an underwater photographer these snails without shells are perfect models. Bright colors, beautiful patterns, frilly gills, and slow movements make nudibranch enthusiasts travel the world just to see them. Hopefully after taking a look at some of these nudibranchs you will see my inspiration to continue the search. Luckily I can continue the search back home in Hawaii and as long as you live near a coastline you can search as well. Nudibranchs are found in every ocean from cold to tropical waters.  

If you have heard about muck diving then at some point you have probably heard about the Lembeh Strait. Lembeh is a little island off the east coast of Northern Sulawesi in Indonesia. In between the two pieces of land is a fairly protected body of water that has become known as the best place in the world for muck diving. Nudibranchs, sea horses, octopus, cuttlefish, and of course frogfish are just some of the wild and crazy sea life you can see here. Hairy Frogfish Clown Frogfish I was not prepared for how many different kinds of frogfish I would see. These are just a few of the frogfish that I saw during my 10 dives here in Lembeh. Check out all the different colors, patterns, and sizes.