Scuba-ing at 1.5 meters of water

Yeap, you heard me right... the following five shots were taken while yours truly was scuba-ing solo in 1.5 meters of water...


This is probably some kind of scorpionfish... size, maybe 15 cm... it was just sitting still, waiting for a prey to come along, I suppose...


I would like to call this specimen 'Lemon damselfish'... there are loads of them hovering in shallow waters... movements are very jerky, as if in excitement... size, 10 cm?


Enjoyed watching these gobies come in and out of their burrows with their companion shrimps...
Here, I visualized this guy basking in the shallows with its very own 'Mt. Fuji' in the backyard...


In 1.5 meters of water, you use almost no air... so there was plenty of time to observe these goatfishes feeding at the bottom... they use their barbels to stir up the goodies... this specimen is called 'Dash and dot' goatfish... hmmm, pretty self explanatory... size about 20 cm...


This cute little fellow was swimming all the time... it is a juvenile fish which will grow up to be what is called the Harlequin sweetlips... its swimming action is very pronouced and rather sluggish... I followed this guy around the reef and each time, it will return to a fixed spot which is probably its 'home'... size was about 10 cm...

Feather-stars, damsels, spider-crab, batfish and puffer

Befriended a family from Italy on our last dive trip...
(Leonardo, here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure... and there are more to come...)
The above is one of my favorite shots of late... a leather coral being sandwiched by two feather stars of yellow and black... this is a rather common scene in tropical waters...


Damselfish (Indian Dascyllus) hovering over a colony of finger corals... about 10 centimeters they were? Was diving solo at the house reef... enjoyed remaining as motionless as possible (except for the breathing of course) while watching these cute little guys...


Spider crab sitting comfortably on a deflated bubble coral... it was not bothered at all with my photographing... size is minute, let's say, about 2 centimeters across?


Circular batfish with scuba tank... we were levelling off at 5 meters, waiting for the boat to arrive when a school of these graceful guys came by... and they were not afraid to come close... size was about 40 centimeters... and they looked pretty meaty... slurp...


White-spotted puffer amongst finger corals... was diving solo again in about 1.5 meters of water at the house reef when I caught this fellow cruising by... about 20 centimeters...

Sunrise, sand, ships...

Waking up early offers a refreshing opportunity to observe the seasonal movements of the rising sun...
Here, we could see the sun rising off Shodoshima, literally translated to mean the Island of the Red Beans...


Along my way cycling to and from work, I get to enjoy these kind of scenes...
This stretch of the beach is quite rubbish-filled... arrrggghhh...
Yet, this is not stopping those folks from having a good time...


A few meters from that beach is this one...
Hmmm... would have loved to jump in for a dip myself...


I enjoy shooting pictures of ships during misty days...
This ferry boat is heading for the Osaka area...


This is another of a large number of ferry boats that ply the sea-lanes in my neighborhood...
Those pandas... nope, the ship is not going to China...


PS: Just got back from two weeks of vacation in Malaysia...
Weather there was much cooler than the hellish Japanese summer temperatures...

Lionfish, sponge, moorish idol..

Shall be flying off to Sabah tomorrow morning...
And heading to one of the islands for some, oooh... diving...
Can't wait...

Meanwhile, have to be contented with looking at these pics... found this lionfish specimen at the housereef near a resort I went some time ago...

The vicinity was just all sandy... quite a bit like a dessert... sloping gently to the depths... and this guy was just there, relaxing... looking at me at the corner of its eye...

This cute little fellow is a different specimen... a so-called Spotfin Lionfish... it has two 'spears' rolling right out from its eye area... watch it now...

And they are telling me this is an animal? Actually, a sponge, so to say... humans used to harvest such sponges for the domestic and the beauty industry... they are supposed to have pretty immense water suction capability...

Ah... anthias... can never get tired of gazing at these little fellows darting here and there... they are such a pretty sight for the eyes...


And the speedy, speedy Moorish idol... wanted to shoot its characteristically long dorsal fin (?) as well but... forgive me...

Catch the Rainbow

Used to listen to Deep Purple quite a bit while growing up...
Their guitarist left and formed his own group, Rainbow... thus the above title song...

Days in Japan lately are hot as hell...
While gardening on weekends, my sweat literally 'rains' from within...
The real rains, meanwhile, are few and far in between...



So, was quite lucky to get caught in a drizzle while cycling home one evening...
And woah... stopped right on my tracks upon catching this big R... two, actually, if you care to observe...
Rainbows are rarely seen at where I live...



This particular rainbow seemed to be just about two kilometers or so from where I stood...
See how it shone 'in front' of those table-top hills?



The setting sun cast a golden glow on the metalics of the bridge...
At the bat of the eye, I caught this cyclist breezing by...



Closer to home, was beckoned by this pretty sight...
The island you see was previously used as a rehabilitation center for lepers until recently...


Meanwhile, yours truly shall be heading back to Malaysia for a short holiday...
Shall be cruising the oceans in East Malaysia before zooming back to my village...
Shall also drop by KL briefly before 'hitching' a ride back to Japan in early September...