Honorable Mention, Wide-Angle

David Salvatori

"Mom and Son"  Shot at Dominica Island with Nikon D800E

David won a week-long Bahamas liveaboard adventure with Blackbeard's Cruises!

The story:  A sperm whale swimming gently and quietly with her calf in the calm and warm waters in front of the island of Dominica, Western Caribbean. Swimming with sperm whales here is an activity strictly regulated by the Dominican government, and only a few permits are issued every year. Only free diving is allowed, and taking underwater pictures can be possible only with ambient light (no strobes). All these precautions are taken not to disturb too much the habits of these gentle giants. Encounters with sperm whales are very common here, but the sperm whales are very shy so 90% of the time they dive deep as soon as people get into the water. Only a few times they allow people to swim with them, and in one of those occasions we were lucky enough to take some amazing pictures.

Location:  Dominica Island, Western Caribbean

Camera:  Nikon D800E, Sigma 15mm fisheye lens, Seacam housing, ambient light only

Settings:  f7.1, 1/100, ISO 400

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