Last night whilst diving and absolutely freezing, I was about to call it quits and get out. Until my dive buddy flashed his diving light in my direction trying to get my attention. I could tell he was super excited so I swam over to him to find him pointing at one of the ocean's most venomous creatures, the Blue Ringed Octopus. We've been doing night dives nearly every second night looking for these critters. Usually we find one on a dive but the conditions have been murky or there is a ton of shrimp that are attracted to the diving lights and ruin the photograph, but not last night.
The water was extremely clear and there was no shrimp - it was perfect. I'm stoked with this picture of the Blue Ringed Octopus rising it's tentacles trying to intimidate me. It would have the upper-hand in a fight thats for sure, a sting from a Blue Ringed Octopus would paralyse me and is usually fatal if not treated as soon as possible. Don't let the photo fool you either, it was only an inch or two in size, making it one of the smallest Blue Ring's i've seen.
I'm hoping to go back and dive this very spot on Sunday night with a home made snoot. Where are you photographing this weekend?
Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 100mm Macro, Aquatica water housing
1/160, F20, ISO 320