Azores and Tonga

Next week I am traveling to the Azores, a group of islands off of Portugal to contribute to a book sponsored by the Whale Dolphin Conservation Society. I am looking forward to the experience and making new friends. From Pico, I will travel to Tonga. The flight will take over 38 hours, not to mention 44 hours of lay overs in Boston, LA, Nadi, and Tongatapu. Once in Vavau, I will lead a small group of photographers on an expedition to swim with and photograph Humpback Whales.

The goal of our trip is to create images of humpbacks without changing their behavior. We will not motor up in a boat and drop in on the whales. Instead we will watch, and observe their behavior. When appropriate, enter the water and float near them. Previous trips taught me that whales are curious and will swim by us to get a look.

Diving to Mozart

Recently I had the chance to dive with Daniel Opitz, the producer of a film called the Humpback Code. Danny uses a rebreather and it was incredible to see a diver without bubbles. The fish were not afraid and let him get quite close. While that was great to see, what made the dive really interesting was Danny likes to listen to music while diving. So, before we descended he lowered a speaker system into the water and turned on his ipod. As we were diving on the wreck of a replica whaling boat that used to be a floating museum, it seemed appropriate that the music was Mozart. I was 90 feet deep and could hear the music well. The music was also heard by an Atlantis Submarine full of tourists. The pilot could not believe what he heard and made two passes. The whole dive was surreal and one I am not likely to forget.