News

“Capturing Critters in Lembeh,” Lembeh Resort’s annual underwater photography and videography workshop, concluded another successful event this weekend, with visiting photo pros Alex Tattersall, Ethan Daniels and Martin Edge making macro dreams come true for another enthusiastic group of participants.

Once again, some superb imagery has been produced by the workshop partcipants—plus a handful of respectable captures by Alex, Ethan and Martin, as well. The Lembeh Strait didn’t disappoint either, serving up an enviable smorgasbord of incredible critters, from octopuses, frogfish and seahorses to crabs, shrimps and nudis.

Read the press release below and check out just a few of the awesome images from the event.
 

PRESS RELEASE

Capturing Critters in Lembeh 2017 – It’s a Wrap!

This year’s prestigious Capturing Critters in Lembeh Underwater Photography and Videography Workshop featured photo pros Alex Tattersall, Martin Edge and Ethan Daniels alongside Lembeh Resort’s own in-house photo pros. This heavyweight team of shooters hosted a week of workshop presentations, one-on-one guidance meetings with participants, group critique and feedback sessions, and of course, epic dives at the most iconic dive sites in the Lembeh Strait.

Capturing Critters is a weeklong workshop (with three-day optional advanced add-on) and is now in its 6th year. Unlike other pro workshops, participants spend time with at least three different pros for a broader perspective on how to improve their underwater imagery and footage. The 7th annual event is scheduled for December 5th–12th, 2018, and will feature Brandi Mueller, Brent Durand and Tobias Friedrich together with Lembeh Resort’s photo pro Frederic Juneau.

The images that have been produced over the last seven days have been amazing and are a testament to the power of the Capturing Critters Workshop, the dive guides at Lembeh Resort, and the incredible marine life of the Lembeh Strait.

The workshop participants have dived some of Lembeh’s most iconic dive sites, including Nudi Falls, Nudi Retreat, TK, Hairball, Police Pier, Bianka, Aer Bajo, Serena Besar and Air Prang (to name but a few). These sites offer true black sand muck diving, coral and muck combinations, and also shallow coral reef. The critter sightings over the last week have been equally as impressive. Just a few of the highlights included blue ring, coconut, long arm, starry night, wonderpus and mimic octopus; giant, painted, hairy and warty frogfish; pygmy, flamboyant and broadclub cuttlefish; estuarine, thorny and pygmy seahorses; peacock, golden and pink eared mantis shrimps; bobtail squid; stargazers; whip coral, harlequin and a plethora of other shrimps and crustaceans; and the list of nudibranch species just goes on and on!

Participants have been treated to three pro presentations a day and highlights have been Martin Edge’s “Camera Settings for the Sea,” Ethan Daniels’ “Tips and Truths about Underwater Photography,” and Alex Tattersall’s “Making Masterpieces.” Alex is also the founder of Nauticam UK and came to Lembeh Resort armed with a rather large box of treats for participants to try out during the week!
 

Alex Tattersall, who carries out workshops around the world, has had an epic week and is already thinking about when he can return to Lembeh Resort: “Lembeh has, as always, exceeded expectations with its diversity of outstanding marine life. The dive guides and staff at Lembeh Resort have been equally impressive in their willingness to ensure an outstanding experience for all involved. I cannot emphasize enough what a wonderfully diverse and fascinating place the Lembeh Strait is. Each visit I’ve made to this unique place has thrown up a myriad of surprises underwater—photographically it is incomparable. I’m already thinking about my next trip to Lembeh Resort.”
 

Ethan Daniels rounded up the workshop week by commenting, “It's always great to meet and get to know people who are as passionate about exploring the underwater world as I am. The Capturing Critters in Lembeh workshop brings people together from all over the world who are like-minded, inquisitive, adventurous, and appreciative of the natural settings we find underwater in Lembeh. It is also fun for me to assist with and watch people trying new imaging and processing techniques and see their improvements in lighting and composition over the course of just a few dives.

“Lembeh Resort is set up perfectly for photographers as well as divers who just want to enjoy the unique variety of critters found in Lembeh Strait. The dive sites are literally just minutes away from the fantastic food, staff, and atmosphere found only at Lembeh Resort.”
 

Martin Edge has been teaching underwater photography for 30 years and is still as passionate as ever about taking underwater images and sharing his techniques and knowledge with others: “Lembeh Resort has been designed around underwater photographers and has some of the best dive guides in North Sulawesi, many of which are underwater photographers themselves. The fully equipped modern camera room can accommodate everyone and at Lembeh Resort; the diving, dining and organization are second to none.”

We are extremely excited to see the images produced in next year’s workshop. If you are planning your 2018 trip to Lembeh, the Capturing Critters Workshops are extremely popular and places sell out a long time in advance. If you’d like to book a place for 2018 (December 5th–12th), featuring photo and video pros Brandi Mueller, Brent Durand and Tobias Friedrich, contact Lembeh Resort.