>> Jade Hoksbergen

I think it’s an exciting time in history. Underwater photographers are shocking not just divers, but marine biologists too, with stunning images of some extraordinary critters seen during their blackwater dives. Blackwater diving allows us to encounter a vast new world of life – a world we associate with submarines and remotely controlled vehicles, a world so different to the one we know. Through this type of diving, we witness a phenomenon widespread in our oceans called diurnal vertical migrations. Planktonic organisms, which are otherwise found in the deeper depths of the ocean, rise to the oceans’ surface during the dark hours for reasons still unknown to us, despite research starting from the 1870s.

Larval lionfish by: Jade Hoksbergen

WHEN

April 2019

WHERE

Moalboal, Cebu, Philippines

HOW Nikon D7200, Nauticam housing 60mm lens

(left: f/22, 1/125s, ISO 400) (right: f/22, 1/200s, ISO 320)

The size of some creatures seen on blackwater dives stand as a contrast to the scale of mystery they represent.

Blackwater diving makes me feel like I am given a special opportunity to encounter and discover this otherwise inaccessible new world. In this world, I see translucent and neon creatures. I see delicate spirals, spiked gems and glittering globes. When I am on a blackwater dive, I feel compelled to photograph every organism I see for they all seem so alien. It’s the sense of discovery that makes blackwater diving so appealing, and although I have only just started, I can say that I am hooked!

Not only do these organisms provide many underwater macro shooters a whole world of new subjects to shoot, but they also enrich the air that we breathe. Nearly half of the world’s photosynthesis (a process by which carbon dioxide gets converted into oxygen) is done by marine plankton (both phytoplankton and zooplankton). They may be small, but the role they play in the health of our planet is indeed monumental.