messing about in Dean's Blue Hole

new entry in the series 'very serious freediving vids'

Georgina and the many shapes of the Blue Hole

Igor Liberti told me about this spot in the Blue Hole, where you can take enormous overview pictures of the whole thing (when the conditions are clear and the visibility is good). He's taken so many great pictures there that they're calling it Iggy's spot. I went down there to take pictures of Georgina a couple of days ago, and what struck me -once i got over the slightly scary doomy feeling of having a massive stone roof hanging over your head at 15 meters deep- are the shapes the hole can make. From some angles it's almost square



but it can also be oval



and there even are triangles



i adore Iggy's spot now, for its mystical, slightly gloomy character, and that sense of almost ghostly space and light it can give you. Hope you enjoy the set

hauling the whole hole

Underwater yoga with Brittany Trubridge

It's fascinating, all the facets that make for a good photo; sometimes all you need is good light, or a good location, or someone doing something interesting, or someone visually striking. And then there's the equipment, and the framing, and countless other things, which makes me think luck also has something to do with it.



Now i was lucky enough a couple of days ago to do some shooting with Brittany Trubridge, an extraordinary yoga teacher here on Long Island, Bahamas. Not only is she freaky bendy in that way yoga teachers are, but she's also a very fun presence to be around, lots of positive energy, and she's the kind of pretty that can only come from inside out. And she's married to William Trubridge, world champion freediving, and you cannot be married to him without picking up a thing or two about breath hold. So we did an underwater shoot.



Since i have no clue about yoga and am new to underwater photography, so i'm largely depending on Britta to make it work. And man, does she ever. Even though she's never done this underwater before, she does one fantastic pose after another, looking quite serene while her sinuses are getting flooded -unbelievable.



And the Blue Hole cooperated as well: the visibility was turned to 'endless' and the light was out to play



there were so many shots that just worked and Britta and Georgina had so many good ideas that we left with an amazing bunch of pictures. Hope you enjoy them:

freediving with reefsharks

paradise and sharks

Paradise is hardly an absolute term, isn't it? For me it constitutes this:



but for my sister, with who i share essentials like eyebrows and sense of humor, that dark hole would represent hell -especially if she knew that a barracuda lives there. That same mean looking bugger only enlarges my joy of the place.

She would very much enjoy the other side of the Blue Hole -most would, i'd imagine



but then there are people who love the snow and ice covering most of Europe right now, and would be bored beyond tears here.

And then there's sharks. Some of my best friends refuse to go swimming in any open water type environment because they have nightmares about sharks. First time i ever saw a shark in the water, i swam straight at it to investigate. It's not that i'm brave or stupid (well, that's up for debate, actually), they just don't strike me as dangerous. You pick up on vibes from animals, they're honest in their postures, and sharks are really good at telling you what's up. So when i saw these guys in the water a couple of days back, all i felt was thrilled and honored. Check out how fluidly they glide and how delicately the light plays with their skin



So for me, sharks belong in paradise. But more importantly, they belong outside paradise as well, and there they are being hunted. They have a vital function in the sea, besides being beautiful and majestic, and need all the protection they can get. If you have a moment, please help protect sharks:

http://www.sharkangels.org/
http://www.bite-back.com/
http://www.sharktrust.org/
http://www.sharkalliance.org/

Cornelis Verhoeven - the detour of words

Today would have been my father's 84th birthday. I miss him a lot, and often, but i never quite know how to express that. The essay i've put on his blog today explained a little to me why that is the  case. Part of it is this:

"We continuously need new words to express old experiences. And especially within the expression of those elemental experiences lurks the kitsch. This is what makes them inexpressible."

The rest of the essay, 'The detour of words', can be found here:

http://cornelisverhoeven.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/the-detour-of-words/