South West Rocks, NSW, is a favourite dive site of mine, but I’ve only recently started taking my camera with me on dives. Underwater photography can be difficult due to the fact you lose light the deeper you descend, and with many species like this Grey Nurse Shark found quite deep, it can be quite the challenge to capture them.
When I took this shot I was using a rebreather, a breathing apparatus that absorbs the carbon dioxide of a user's exhaled breath, allowing the reuse of the oxygen in each breath. Using a device like this lets you get closer and interact better with marine life.
Despite the teeth, Grey Nurse Sharks are quite placid and I was definitely not on the menu. I love how they are so graceful and I wanted to capture this feeling in my photo.
I used my DSLR with a fisheye lens to capture the shark rounding the wall, sending a school of fish darting everywhere. The camera is enclosed in a Nauticam underwater housing, allowing me to access all the camera controls, and I also have a large glass dome port attached to the front of the housing. To help with the limited light at 19 metres deep, I used two INON Z240 strobes.
Nikon D800e, 15mm fisheye @ 15mm, 1/250s @ F/9, ISO 300. © Nick Terry
