September 14, 2011 Neptune Memorial Reef
 

http://cellar.org/2011/neptune-memor...21_990x742.jpg

Photograph by David Doubilet, National Geographic

via National Geographic

Gorgeous. That would be a cool dive spot.

Sigh. I love the ocean.

I thought it looked really small (only half a metre high) until I noticed the diver, then I had a moment of dizzyness as my brain adjusted to the correct scale.

Cool place.

At first, I thought it was an image of an aquarium.

I would not want swim around dead people.

Death + scuba diving. Not a good mix.

I love the ocean AND I love dead people.

I'm so there. ;)

The photo looks fake. Lights are weird. Why so many fishes in front of the camera and none further on?
Light on the diver looks weird.
Visibility strangely rendered.
...

for me it's a photoshop.

This does not mean the picture is not nice, it is definitely appealing to me as a final stand...

Fish school. The school happened to be closer to the camera?

As to the lights, it's in the ocean. Water does funny things to lights.

What say our professional photographers?

As one with advanced open water scuba certification, I think it looks pretty normal.

Looks normal to me too, and there are fish in the distance, but it's a bit darker there, so they blend in.

I sea dead people.

I personally know the photographer. He used to live in my house and work at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Until his interest in photography got noticed. He quit the Aquarium and went on to do photography full time.

I don't think that with his talent he would need to photoshop an image to get it noticed.

I wonder if the dead people sea us?

Nice and all that.
But just stick me in a hole in the ground.
No coffin, no wrapping, no furore.

I believe I am a creature of Earth, and to earth I should return.
And not accelerate any else's demise by using up resources.

I'd like to be thrown into the ocean, whole, and let the sharks eat me. Give back to the part of the earth I've had an affinity for my whole life.

In lieu of that, a hole in the ground would be nice...like you said no coffin or anything.

Both these things are frowned upon.

How about just thrown into the bushes?

If we had them in this country I would so go for that.
The best I can hope for is a badger's den.

The dead sea everything.

It does look surreal but it's not fake. That's me in the photo.
 

Welcome to the Cellar, Neptune.

The light in the background is a huge lamp like is used to light a stage, made water tight. The grunts are very curious fish and are drawn to the motion.

There were thousands of photos taken, over 3 days, for this one picture in NatGeo, 40 minutes were dedicated to photographing this one scene.

No dead people. Cremated remains mixed with cement in shapes like starfish.
 

Neptune, thank you.

(Can I say I told you so?)

WELCOME. I must hear more about your diving experiences. I haven't been in years.

Remains of what? Dead people.

Good point.

Where do I start? I've been working on this project for 8 years and have logged nearly 900 dives there. It's the dives that give us trouble that we remember, like having your regulator mouth-piece come off without your knowing or the boat turning 180 on the mooring during a storm too heavy to see the boat...
Things like forgetting the weightbelt or running out of air stop being memorable after the first few dozen times.

Welcome Neptune Reef. I am delighted to see you here, I hope you'll stick around.

Oh, great shot, great shot. I'm an unstoppable snapshotter (not photographer) and I love looking at others' pictures. I've taken a few in and under the water and I have a little appreciation for just how freakin complicated it is to do it, never mind do it so well.

Nice to meetcha.

Thanks CM. The article that goes with that photo from the Feb. issue of NatGeo is here: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/20...arrigan-text/4

Dolphins.

Should we explain that to Neptune?

no, don't