One of Lembeh’s reefs.

While the Lembeh Strait is renowned for muck diving, it does have some patches of coral reef. The reefs aren’t large, but they are quite pretty, and experts say they display a very rich diversity of corals and related marine life.

Most of the time, when taking pictures on dives, you’re trying to capture that perfect shot of some fish or sea creature, which can be quite a challenge. As any diver with a camera knows, fish love to mess with photographers, always turning away the moment you press the shutter button. Yes, I have lots "butt shots" of fish. But sometimes, you see potential shots that aren’t about a specific animal, but all about the composition. I saw a fair number of these in Lembeh, where there are a lot of "baby bommies" – a small rock with some young sponges, corals and anemones growing on them. Here’s a sample of what I’m talking about:

A baby bommie

I’m back home in Bangkok, sorting through all the material collected diving around North Sulawesi. While I’m updating the dive guide, I thought I’d post another picture of one of the many strange things photographed around Lembeh:

A Spiny Devilfish "walks" along the sandy bottom

The first sight of this guy was quite intriguing, since it was indeed "walking" along the bottom. I wondered if maybe it was a shrimp that looked like a scorpionfish, but once back on the boat I confirmed it was in fact the Spiny Devilfish.

Thanks again to Two Fish Divers and their guide Franz for a great trip.