Pygmy Seahorse

Photographing this 1cm tall chap presented significant technical

challenges: he lives (perfectly camouflaged) on a huge seafan standing

free of a vertical reef wall in a constant current on an archipelago near

Sulawesi in Indonesia. Finding him is the first problem! Then is the

difficulty in maneuvring myself and my big camera system close enough

(approx 10cm working distance) without touching anything. He was less

shy than others, who usually turn away abashed at the attention and

the small light which assists my patience-trying attempts to autofocus

in the dark blue gloom. Due to his vulnerability, I limited myself to taking

a maximum of 3 photos as advised by the consciencious guides.

Exposure is achieved in manual mode with both strobes set manually in

1/2 stops, the lower dialled down for fill. Several species of pygmy are

known, each is coloured and textured to match its chosen coral home.