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Photo Of the Month – Oscar Ramirez
In the underwater photography industry, we are exposed to stunning images on a regular basis. Once in a while, we stumble upon a photo that really captivates us and takes our breath away.
This month we are featuring Oscar Ramirez’s photo from Raja Ampat!
About The Photo
Raja Ampat’s underwater biodiversity and seascapes are like no other. Hard and soft corals, fish and plant species embellish and fill with colors all around the place. Captivated by the beauty of this dive site, while still keeping my buddies at eyesight, I swam a little farther than where the pre-dive planning called for. At some point, I turned back in order to reunite with the group and found myself cruising through such an attractive passageway; the sunbeams were able to illuminate the bottom, and a garden made of corals and gorgonians laid on the base of the wall . It was just irresistible using this scenery to create a vertical image. Moved back and positioned myself toward the the shadows next to the wall, using the strobes to light the base of the structure. The great visibility allowed for the natural light to break all the way through the shallow path. Two shutter clicks after capturing the composition I envisioned, I was fortunate to get a school of fish decorating the scene as a bonus in the image.
Equipment used: Nikon D850 in a Nauticam housing, Sigma 15mm f/2.8 fisheye lens, 2x Sea&Sea YS-D2J strobes.
About the Photographer
Oscar Ramirez is an underwater photographer based in Southern California. My passion is the ocean, and I cherish every moment around it. It started with scuba diving and developed into underwater photography, which continues to grow my sense of belonging with the ocean, and to better know it and understand it. I feel amazed with the ocean beings, patterns, colors, and all the components of this immense realm. Marine life has been the main driver for me to be more involved with the ocean, which in turn has led to approach my life in a different way, creating awareness because of the closer look, the first-sight effect.
Through underwater photography, I strive to convey an idea of how important and influential is every single creature, plant, ecosystem, regardless of their size, in our planet’s health and balance. My local diving spans between the Coronado Islands, in the USA/Mexico border, and the kelp forests of the Channel Islands National Park.
I have also had the opportunity to capture images in Indonesia, Arctic, Hawaii, the Caribbean, Florida, as well as several locations in Mexico. I truly enjoy taking photos of all marine life ranging from the tiniest pygmy seahorse to sharks or cetaceans, as well as seascapes.
Gear:
Nikon D850 in a Nauticam housing.
45 degree viewfinder.
9-inch dome port.
2x Sea&Sea YS-D2J strobes.
Sigma 15mm f/2.8 fisheye.
Nikon Nikkor 105mm f/2.8.
Nikon Nikkor 16-35mm.
Follow Oscar
- Featured Underwater Photographer – Becky Kagan Schott – March 20, 2023
- Featured Underwater Photographer – Florian Scarlat – March 13, 2023
- Featured Underwater Photographer – Martin Nobs – March 5, 2023
1 comment
Awesome!