Michael Rothschild

To be a successful photographer of underwater sealife, you need some of the same talents as a hunter.  You need to understand animal behavior to capture a moment.  A great photo may be the result of hours of patiently waiting for just the right composition.  And if you don’t know the animal’s traits, you won’t get the shot no matter how good your gear and image making skills are.  A circling shark, a ducking blenny, a territorial damselfish defending his rock.  Anyone can push the shutter button; knowing the animal lets you make art.
 
All of these images were taken in the shallow waters near New York City.  Photo one shows the sticky podia (tube feet) of a sea star, navigating over a rocky bottom.  Photo two is a group of nudibranchs feasting on their favorite meal, the flower-like and sessile (but carnivorous) animals known as hydroids.  Photo three is a pair of cunner (aka bergall), who are fighting, mating, arguing, or maybe singing karaoke?  And photo four is a very pretty bed of mussels, of various sizes, with their inhalant and exhalant siphons on display as they filter the water for food and oxygen.