08
2 Long Beach Oil Platforms
These oil platforms aren’t pretty above the surface,
but don’t let an underwhelming first impression
fool you: This is an extraordinary dive site. These
structures are smothered with Technicolor
invertebrate marine life like anemones, mussels,
starfishes, and sponges, and they’re inhabited yearround with equally multihued marine life, including
cabezon, garibaldi, sheepshead, and sea lions. Better
yet, they lie smack in the middle of the open ocean,
so anything can be seen here – bait balls, fabulous
pelagic invertebrates, Mola molas, and even the
occasional whale are all possibilities.
These structures are
smothered with Technicolor
invertebrate marine life
09
3 Channel Islands
National Park
Of California’s eight Channel
Islands, only five – Santa Barbara,
Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa
Rosa, and San Miguel – are
encompassed by the national
park, and each is so different from
the next that it would take an
extended visit to experience what
they all have to offer. From the
clear blue waters and towering
kelp forests of Anacapa and the
playful sea lions of Santa Barbara,
to the fabulous macro life of
Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa, and
the rich, anemone- and starfishcovered reefs of San Miguel, the
Channel Islands National Park is
a vast destination that’s able to
delight the most jaded shooters.
08 A darkly coloured
cabezon blends into
the mussel-covered
shallows of the oil
platform
Equipment & settings:
Canon EOS 5D Mark III,
Sea & Sea housing,
8–15mm lens at 15mm,
dual Sea & Sea YS-250
strobes, f/11, 1/160s,
ISO320
09 A diver examines
a typical San Miguel
Island kelp forest scene
with a large sunflower
star in the foreground
Equipment & settings:
Canon EOS 7D, Sea &
Sea housing, 10–17mm
lens at 10mm, dual Sea
& Sea YS-250 strobes,
f/11, 1/125s, ISO320