No - sorry, today's shot was not taken during a dive trip. I sure wish I could come back with something this nice from a dive, but as you can see to the right, my most recent encounter got a little too close...

This particular green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) makes its home at one of the North Carolina Aquariums. Which means that this shot was taken through several inches of acrylic - which is always a challenge.

Technical Data: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II at 37mm, 1/60 sec at f/5.6, ISO 400. No post production. North Carolina Aquariums, Manteo, NC.

Why This Photo: I have always liked aquariums, and sea turtles are favorites of mine, need I say more?

What Works: The close-up of this turtles face is very pleasant with the eye of the turtle resting right on the intersection of one of the thirds, with the rest of the turtle taking up the remaining thirds. The colors are vibrant and true to life, while I managed to reduce reflections in the acrylic (though there are still a few) and the blurred background eliminates distractions.

What Doesn't Work: The focus is just a tad soft, and it might have been nice to get some sort of catchlight in the eye of the turtle. And the flipper in the background is a minorly distracting convergence (though not terrible) - perhaps a slightly different angle could have resolved that.

I do have to be honest and say that this photo was taken way back when I had no clue what I was doing (so to speak). I was using pre-programmed modes, and hadn't learned much in the way of technical or artistic ways to take photos. So this was just a combination of luck and the experience I had learned from photo books.

Either way - it is still a very nice shot that has earned a place on our wall and is one of my favorite photos. I often wonder if I could duplicate or improve upon it now with the experience I have gained - hopefully someday I will be able to find out.

- Bill