Dolphin leaping © Naomi Stolow.
This photo of a Short Beaked Common Dolphin was taken just off the coastline close to where I live. I am most proud of it because (a) it is only now and then that I can actually get out on the sea. (b) When I can get out, the dolphins are not always there and (c) photography is a nightmare when one is bobbing about at sea on a small boat, trying to focus with a long lens, with waves and wind and sea-spray to contend with, not to mention that dolphins refuse to give any indication of where they are about to pop up from sea's surface. When they finally do leap into view they are so incredibly fast.
Dolphin leaping
Most times I've ended up with thousands of photos of the tops of tails or just the waves where the dolphins have been, however I was particularly pleased with this image.
Not only had I got the camera settings right for that precise moment, but I also had the lens pointed at the right bit of sea, getting the important parts in focus. I captured the dolphin just as it was leaping out of the sea towards me. It was perfectly lit by the sun and the boat was in the exact right spot to make it all work (thank you, Devon Sea Safari!). There is an energy to the image that I hope shows the power and might of the dolphin as it leaps towards the viewer with the curious way that dolphins look at people.
