I was helping undertake research on the long-snouted seahorse in Studland Bay, Dorset, with the charity the Seahorse Trust. Seahorses are very rare in the UK, and while they are recorded every summer in Studland Bay, they often remain elusive, typically staying well camouflaged in the dense seagrass beds. It took over an hour of searching a small area where a pair of seahorses was known to be living before we finally found one of them. It was incredibly difficult to see, staying well hidden (causing me to nearly run over it with my fins!). I wanted to get a shot that not only showed the seahorse but also the seagrass habitat they rely on so instead of using a close up 'macro' lens I decided to use a wide angle fisheye lens. This gives a greater field of vision and a deeper depth of field. Seahorses are very sensitive to flash photography, so I also turned my flash off, adjusting the white balance manually to compensate for the loss of red colour which occurs underwater. I carefully positioned my camera a few centimetres from the seahorse to allow it to fill up the frame and took the shot.
Following these successful dives at Studland Bay, my images were used by various charities and scientific reports such as the MCCIP (Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership).
http://www.mccip.org.uk/special-topic-report-cards/fish,-fisheries-aquaculture-report-card-2012/regional-snapshot-now.aspx
