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WINTER 2014
the capital city of Honiara), and what little agriculture
occurs is organic by culture and necessity. Whatever
reasons conspire to preserve the ecological integrity
of these islands, this was a trip that awakened a joy of
diving in all of us aboard — a significant accomplishment
given our group of 20 well-traveled and admittedly jaded
underwater-photo enthusiasts.
THE CRUISE
An overnight 30-mile steam from Honiara took us to the
Russell Islands
, a pair of volcanic islands surrounded
by numerous smaller islets. Following an uneventful
checkout dive for weight adjustment and, no doubt, a
surreptitious diver assessment by the crew, we visited one
of the most iconic dives in the Solomons,
Leru Cut
. Some
very large sea fans and soft corals punctuated the wall
there, but in comparison with the lavish decoration we
would see on reefs we visited later in the tour, the obvious
reason we were there was to experience the morning light
filtering through a gigantic crevice in the face of the island
(see Table of Contents, Page 4). Diver silhouettes taken
at this site have graced numerous magazine covers over
the years; this is a dive definitely worth doing — if for no
other reason than the photographic potential that can be
realized with the collaboration of a willing and able model.
For those seeking abundant marine life or a fantasy of soft
corals, there are other dives.
Our next dive, at
Mirror Pond
, was far more diverse.
There is a swim-through tunnel that exits into an
idyllic pond in the interior of the island; it’s rimmed by
tropical vegetation, and it’s slick calm (hence, “mirror
pond”). It was in this winding passageway many years
ago that I saw my first saltwater crocodile underwater.
They’re apparently still seen here on occasion. I don’t
know exactly what year that was, but I know I was
still shooting a Nikonos V with a 15mm lens because
I remember wishing I had a bigger housing between
the croc and me. Nothing particularly threatening
happened, but you can’t spend much time in that part
of the world without hearing stories of how ferocious
“salties” can be. In Australia they kill around three or
four people each year — about like great white sharks,
but every great white I’d ever seen was from the safety
of a sturdy cage. Still, I had to try to get the shot when
I had the opportunity, so I edged ever closer, finally
getting to within about 10 inches of the crocodile’s snout
for a series of close-focus wide-angle photos.
This time there was no such drama, but upon exiting
the crevice I was reminded how beautiful the shallow
reef was in this spot. It was also unique compared
with the reef structures we saw throughout the rest
of the tour. Large, isolated bommies arose from a
plateau the size of several football fields that dropped
off along a vertical wall. Fish particularly well suited to
foraging among the intricate corals, such as longsnout
butterflyfish, were particularly abundant here.
VISIBILITY
The information provided on the Bilikiki website
prepared me for reasonable but not extraordinary
water clarity: “Visibility will range from 75 to 125 feet
with occasional sites with much better visibility, and
yes, you will have dives with visibility less than 75 feet.
The Solomon Islands’ waters are very nutrient rich.
They support the entire food chain, from microscopic
creatures to major predators. Because of this, visibility
may be less than that of some other world-famous dive
sites, but for this same reason you will find a multitude
of large and small critters to observe and photograph.”
Clear water is becoming a tough commodity, as
evidenced by trips catering specifically to macro
photography and by many destinations where the water
simply isn’t as clear as it once was. I was first struck by
the extreme horizontal water clarity in the Solomons
upon exiting Mirror Pond, and while we would later
do some dives with marginal visibility (mostly when
diving inside lagoons to visit World War II wrecks),
we enjoyed 80- to 120-foot visibility on average. My
wife was along on this trip, which meant I had a skilled
and willing subject, so I shot a lot of “wide-angle with
model” photos. But nothing reveals particulate matter
like the black of a wetsuit. The ultimate affirmation of
water clarity may be how much time I have to spend on
an image in postproduction, spotting out backscatter
against black wetsuits. I spent very little time after this
trip. I can only speak about the conditions when we
were there, and there no doubt are seasonal variables
that affect water clarity, but I was very pleased.
A highlight of Solomons diving is the sheer drama and
velocity of the fish action at
Mary Island
(Mborokua).
Comprised of two separate but adjacent reefs,
Barracuda Point
and
Jackfish Point
, this region is
notable for immense schools of chevron barracuda and
bigeye trevally jacks. The boat typically ties off above an
underwater canyon between two reef structures, and the
dinghies drop the divers toward the seaward end where
the current tends to concentrate the schools of fish
and sharks. Large titan triggerfish, turtles and myriad
butterflyfish populate these reefs as well, but when the
swell of silver passes near it’s hard not to get caught
up in the visual surge. Under normal circumstances
the jacks and barracuda remain nicely polarized, with
masses so extreme they can fill even the widest lens. An
aggressive approach from a diver will scatter them, but
