Articles

A post-larval ornate ghost pipefish, an extremely rare sight in temperate waters, Rockingham, Australia
 

Our latest DPG Photographer of the Week, Henry Carrick, feels fortunate to have grown up exploring the land and seascapes around Perth, Western Australia. Childhood days spent fishing and snorkeling sparked a lasting fascination with the diverse marine life found in local waters, much of which is rarely photographed. Today, he balances documenting species on iNaturalist with creating more artistic images that showcase their natural beauty.

Henry began underwater photography with the Olympus Tough series before upgrading to the Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark III for greater image quality and creative control. While much of his work focuses on macro photography, he also enjoys the challenge of ultra-wide compositions using the Olympus 8mm f/1.8 PRO Fisheye.

Although many Australian photographers are drawn to tropical destinations such as Ningaloo on the northwest coast and the Great Barrier Reef on the northeast, Henry is most captivated by the reefs of southwestern Australia, where opportunities for discovery remain abundant. His favorite memories include night dives at Busselton Jetty (about 150 miles south of Perth on the shores of Geographe Bay), diving beneath the aurora australis at Greens Pool (in the Great Southern region of Western Australia), and encounters with weedy and leafy seadragons off Esperance (further east along Western Australia’s southern coast).

Alongside his photography, Henry is undertaking a PhD at the University of Western Australia, researching how parasitic lifestyles have driven diversification in marine snails. He hopes his images will help document Perth’s marine fauna and highlight the ecological importance of often-overlooked invertebrates.
 

A diver gets up close and personal with a weedy seadragon, Rockingham, Australia
 

Close-up details of the aptly-named mosaic sea star, Cape Naturaliste, Australia
 

A western seahorse, bathed in the late evening sunbeams, Perth, Australia
 

A head-on perspective of a whimsical leafy seadragon, Perth, Australia
 

A bigheaded gurnard rests on the rocky substrate beneath a popular jetty, Perth, Australia
 

During winter months, small amphipods show up en masse, here roaming the surface of a cushion star, Swan River, Australia
 

Baby gobbleguts—fantastic name!—peer out of dad’s mouth, Rockingham, Australia
 

A close-up view of beautiful and intricate octocoral polyps, Perth, Australia
 

A ram’s horn snail grazes on algae in a tannin-stained lake, Perth, Australia
 

A miniscule but insidious parasitic snail feeding on the arm of a feather star, Perth, Australia
 

A massive sponge adorns a wall beneath a tropical sun, Esperance, Australia
 

A pair of juvenile squids patrols the sand flats at night, Perth, Australia
 

A beautifully-colored southern bobtail squid resting on the sand, Fremantle, Australia
 

A charismatic nudibranch, Polycera janjukia, perches on a blade of kelp and appears to look at the photographer, Rockingham, Australia
 

To see more of Henry’s lovely work, please give him a follow on Instagram.