Articles

The fantastic face and beard of the shortnose batfish, a rare sight along the coast of Bonaire
 

Daan Kleinbussink is a Dutch underwater photographer based in “Diver’s Paradise”—the beautiful island of Bonaire in the Dutch Caribbean. Over 15 years ago, he began diving on Aruba and was instantly hooked. In no time, he became a divemaster, and not long after that, a dive instructor. A few years and approximately 3,000 dives later, he picked up an underwater camera for the first time. You could say he was a bit late to the party—but from that moment on, every dive became centered around photography!

Like many an underwater photographer, Daan began with a compact Olympus TG-5 and shortly thereafter upgraded to a Nikon D500. After a few years ripping around with the D500, he most recently moved to a Nikon Z6III. In 2022, he entered a photo competition organized by Duiken magazine—the largest diving publication in the Netherlands and Belgium. Following the competition, the magazine’s Chief Editor approached him, and for over three years now, he has been writing a monthly column titled Photoschool, in which he shares the knowledge and skills he has picked up over the years. In addition to the column, he also contributes travel articles to the magazine.

Daan describes his photographic style as simple and straightforward. He aims to showcase the beauty of the underwater world in an honest and authentic way. This is also why he has a particular fondness for ambient light photography. For him, it’s about capturing marine life in a respectful manner—while also, when possible, highlighting elements of the animal’s natural environment.
 

A huge school of scad swarms over a shallow reef, Bonaire
 

A school of spadefish hang out just off the side of the SS Thistlegorm, Egypt
 

Straight down the barrel of a Red Sea anemonefish, Egypt
 

An expertly camouflaged crinoid shrimp hides in the recesses of its host, Indonesia
 

A diver inspects one of the famous motorbikes on the wreck of the SS Thistlegorm, Egypt
 

A porcelain crab shelters in its stingy anemone home, Indonesia
 

An itty bitty Bargibanti pygmy seahorse, Halmahera, Indonesia
 

A supremely well-camouflaged Denise’s pygmy seahorse, Halmahera, Indonesia
 

Anthias swarm around a coral outcrop in Ras Muhammad National Park, Egypt
 

A beautiful nudibranch with a flashy yellow skirt scoots along the bottom, Indonesia
 

An incredibly rare sighting around much of the Caribbean, a striated frogfish lit moodily, Bonaire
 

A split shot of Curaçao’s most famous wreck, the Tugboat, Curaçao
 

To see more of Dan’s underwater work from Bonaire to the Red Sea, and places in between, please give him a follow on Instagram.