Articles
A pair of pale octopuses mate on the sandy seafloor, Victoria, Australia
Imogen Manins grew up close to the water in Melbourne, Australia, where days spent snorkelling fostered an early curiosity about the underwater world. Although the ocean has always been central to her life, it was not until the last few years that she finally fulfilled a long-held ambition to become a scuba diver.
Imogen’s photographic journey followed a familiar progression, beginning, as many of us do with a GoPro, before quickly upgrading to an Olympus TG-6, before moving up again to an OM System OM-1, which she has been shooting for the last two years. Comfortable in both the wide-angle and macro realms, Imogen returns to the same dive sites time and again, most often exploring the piers of Port Phillip and Western Port Bay. The work featured here offers a glimpse into the extraordinary diversity of marine life found in these local waters.
The repeated immersion in familiar places has allowed her to develop a deep understanding of the dive sites, the marine life, their behaviors, and seasonal changes. Through her photography, Imogen aims to share her experiences of her corner of the Great Southern Reef—a remarkable yet often overlooked temperate marine ecosystem.
Alongside her work underwater, Imogen maintains a career as a professional cellist. While the worlds of music and underwater photography may seem far apart, both require discipline, patience, and attentive practice. She credits each pursuit with strengthening the other, enriching her creative life both above and below the surface.
The intricate details of a mosaic sea star, Victoria, Australia
An Aussie endemic, the southern blue devil, a welcome sight on wall dives, Victoria, Australia
Victoria's most famous marine resident, the weedy seadragon, this one hovering over a seagrass meadow, Victoria, Australia
A pot-bellied seahorse with an impressive hairdo, Victoria, Australia
A pot-bellied seahorse absolutely lost in the sauce (surrounded by a huge cloud of tasty mysid shrimp), Victoria, Australia
A very pregnant short-headed seahorse beneath a jetty, Victoria, Australia
The world's second-largest octopus, the Maori, clambers over a piling, Victoria, Australia
The stunning details of a Tosia australia seastar, Victoria, Australia
A pregnant pot-bellied seahorse, bathed in sun rays, Victoria, Australia
A pair of Verco's nudibranchs go their separate ways, Victoria, Australia
Sponges, ascidians, and colorful algaes grow on a dock piling, Victoria, Australia
A juvenile seahorse cruises through the water in search of a new perch, Victoria, Australia
To see more of Imogen's underwater work from around Australia, please give her a follow on Instagram.
