Lembeh diving 2014

Did you know clownfish bite? I didn’t. Vicious little beasties!

Time yet again for the annual “It’s my birthday” adventure!

Once upon a time I made a lot of comments about not wanting to go muck diving. But I was kind of bored…I wouldn’t say I’m hooked on muck diving now by any means, but it’s winter in Australia, and anywhere sunny sounded nice!

Again, I stayed at Kungkungan Bay Resort. Love the place! Only downside was that when I arrived, their Nitrox compressor was out of commission, so I had to dive air. Not the end of the world, but definitely affected my no deco time. A mechanic was flying in from Jakarta just as I left, so I wouldn’t be concerned about future trips. Just bad luck.

The macro lens thing…I have to admit, not a fan. I bought a +8 diopter not too long ago, specifically because of my last trip to Lembeh and everyone telling me I needed one if I was to ever return. This was my first time diving with it. To be brutally honest, there were so few cases where it was actually needed. Just shooting using the standard flat port on the Recsea housing was more than sufficient. The critters we saw were small, but not that small!

Was a fun trip though. Not quite as awesome diving wise as last time – certainly didn’t see anywhere near as much. But that’s just the luck of the draw I suppose.

Pregnant mantis shrimp

Wonderpus!

Nudibranch – Spotted Hypselodoris (if my critter ID book is correct)

Harlequin shrimp playing

Harlequin shrimp

Random garbage photo. Puffer in a paint can.

Snapping crinoid shrimp – I think!

Mantis shrimp inside a tin can.

Common seahorse

Hairy frogfish. Not sure if it’s a more specific type.

Whip coral shrimp. Ugh, you have no idea how hard these things are to photograph. That’s my pointer stick for scale.

Banded coral shrimp

Coconut octopus