Anilao Shootout Winners - Part I
Anilao Shootout Winners - Part I
The best photos taken on the first leg of our 2012 workshop to Anilao, Philippines, in dSLR and compact.
By Scott Gietler
The second annual UWPG / Bluewater Photo Anilao 2012 Photo Workshop took place in two parts, one trip after another, at the Crystal Blue Resort in The Philippines. We dove four times a day in the incredible warm waters, searching for unique critters, and we were not disappointed. Rare and beautiful macro subjects lurked around every corner, and needless to say we got some great shots.
Photo pro and trip organizer Scott Gietler and trip co-leaders Mike Bartick and Matthew Meier gave daily presentations on underwater photography technique, marine life and post-processing.
Take a look at the best photos from our first trip! Here we have the winners for both dSLR and compact; macro, wide-angle, behavior and portrait.
To read a few stories from the workshop, check out our trip testimonials. Also, be sure to sign up now for our Third Annual Anilao Photo Workshop, taking place in May of 2013!
You can now see Part II of our Anilao shootout with more winning photos, here!
Critter Sightings
The question is not what we saw, it is what didn't we see? We were met with blue-rings, mimic & wonderpus octopus, multiple Rhinopias, multiple hairy frogfish, dozens of non-hairy frogfish, dozens of seahorses, pygmy seahorses and ghost pipefish, mandarin fish, pregnant seahorses giving birth, mating flamboyant cuttlefish, bobbit worms, more than 1 mantis shrimp with eggs, a hundred species of nudibranchs, and endless varieties of shrimps & crabs.
DSLR: Macro Winners
First Place, Colmani shrimp, taken by Suzan Meldonian
Second Place, taken by Nayan Savla
Third Place, Starfish, taken by Sydney Hoerler
Fourth Place, taken by Peter Cave
DSLR: Wide-Angle Winners
First Place, taken by Peter Cave
Second Place, taken by Kathy Cave
Third Place, taken by Chris Nursey
Fourth Place, taken by Lani Timbrell
DSLR: Behavior Winners
First Place, taken by Debby Wright
Second Place, Flamboyant Cuttlefish, taken by Bruce Shafer
Third Place, Mimic Octopus, taken by Peter Cave
Fourth Place, taken by Eric Leibscher
DSLR: Portrait Winners
First Place, Ribbon Eel, taken by Charles Wright
Second Place, Frogfish, taken by Charles Wright
Third Place, Phyllodesmium nudibranch, taken by Bruce Shafer
Fourth Place, taken by Lani Timbrell
Compact: Macro Winners
First Place, Mushroom coral pipefish, taken by David Thompson
Second Place, taken by Caetllonn Seadjwyc
Third Place, taken by Ken Rosen
Compact: Wide-Angle Winners
First Place, taken by Michael Strole
Second Place, taken by David Thompson
Third Place, taken by Michael Strole
Compact: Behavior Winners
First Place, fighting Octopus, taken by Michael Strole
Second Place, Mantis shrimp with eggs, taken by David Thompson
Third Place, Chuck Dreyfus
Compact: Portrait Winners
First Place, taken by Chuck Dreyfus
Second Place, taken by David Thompson
Third Place, taken by Caetllonn Seadjwyc
Photos taken by Scott Gietler
Even though Anilao is famous for macro, it also has some great wide-angle opportunities. I thought I'd share a couple of my favorite wide-angle shots with everyone, taken with my new Sea & Sea YS-D1 strobes. - Scott
Lionfish and sunball. F22, 1/250th, ISO 100
Trumpfish on a wreck
Beautiful reef at Beatrice, with lots of Anthias
Further Reading
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