Monterey Bay Aquarium

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Photographing in an aquarium presents a few challenges: tripods are not allowed, the light is low, and the constantly moving subjects are encased in thick, fingerprint-smudged glass. In the reef exhibit (my favorite), the vibrant colors of the corals and other animals grabbed my attention. I cranked up the ISO to get a faster shutter speed, leaned my lens against the glass to steady the camera, and shot this Bat Star and Tube Anemones.

This was taken with a fish eye lens (seemed appropriate)
attached to my iPhone.

Did I mention the vibrant colors?

In the kelp forest, the Pacific Sardines swim in an endless circle.

Watching Jellyfish is a mesmerizing experience. It is difficult to take your eyes off their constant, undulating motion. Remember lava lamps? Instead of long, trailing tentacles, the translucent moon jellies use a short, fine fringe to sweep in plankton and fish eggs. WARNING: "Plastic bags that end up in the ocean often look like jellies to animals that depend on these drifting creatures for food. Thousands of turtles and birds die each year after swallowing indigestible wads of plastic mistaken for jellies."

The rare Leafy Sea Dragon, a close cousin to the Seahorse, is now my favorite ocean animal. their long, leaf-like appendages provide perfect camouflage in seaweed beds. They're nearly impossible to spot as they slowly sway back and forth with the current. I spent a long time waiting for it to move into the open. Can you imaging being such an exotic creature?

I deleted many more photos than I kept from this afternoon of shooting. Scores were out of focus, blurry, too dark to save, or I caught only part of a darting fish. But I left the building in awe of the remarkable diversity of life that has evolved on Earth. It is a privilege to be a part of it. You can see more aquarium photos on my Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/suebrazelton/