The Stories of My Best Shots #27 Salps in Sydney

Salps are sessile (not moving around, like anemones or corals) invertebrates which feed by filtering the seawater. The waters off Sydney are full of the most beautiful species of them. When diving, these serve somewhat as a backdrop – they are always there, growing in bunches, not the least elusive. This lets many divers become jaded towards the beauty of these animals. Not me.

A nature photography book I really like is ” John Shaw’s Nature Photography Field Guide”.  He recommends to be very selective when shooting flowers or mosses or salps – things which are abound in the particular natural environment you are in. Don’t take the first one; look for a really nice healthy and intact bunch. Then, get your camera in a plane parallel to the plant or (in this case) animal and create some interesting diagonals by orienting the camera.

That’s what I did with these salps. I’m quite satisfied with the outcome.