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Photographer of the Week – Olivier Martinez
By Matthew Sullivan, October 4, 2024 @ 11:00 AM (EST)

A small Doto ussi spotlit while it feeds on a cluster of hydroids, Bali, Indonesia

 

Some underwater photographers are generalists and photograph anything and everything, whereas some are much more specialist. New DPG Photographer of the Week Olivier Martinez certainly falls into the latter category. While he has some wide-angle images in his portfolio, as his feature here will elucidate, macro photography is where his heart lies.

Olivier's first foray into the underwater world was in the mid-1990s in the Maldives. From that first dive, his life changed and he had only one desire—to be underwater as much as possible. In 2008, Olivier founded his own dive travel agency, Asiaqua, specializing in arranging dive trips around Southeast Asia. Despite that, it was not until several years later that he picked up underwater photography. A move to the Philippines provided him with endless photographic opportunities, especially as a lover of macro and supermacro subject matter.

Olivier says his credo is to present underwater animals in creative and beautiful ways in their natural environments without manipulation or causing stress, while respecting their way of life and their habitats. His skills with a camera, especially with regards to macro photography, have garnered him several international awards and an ambassadorship with Marelux.

 

A whip coral shrimp, brilliantly camouflaged in plain sight, Bali, Indonesia

 

The well-known 'donut' nudibranch, Bali, Indonesia

 

A pair of Doto slugs have a meeting of the minds atop a clump of aglae, Bali, Indonesia

 

A Trinchesia genus nudibranch photographed with slow shutter, Lembeh Strait, Indonesia

 

A ghost goby perched on a seapen and photographed with a creative lighting technique, Bali, Indonesia

 

One of the world's most unusual and sought after nudibranchs, Melibe colemani, Romblon, Philippines

 

Smaller than a grain of rice, a small shrimp perches perfectly on top of a small algae stem, Philippines

 

An intricately patterned Cyerce kikutarobabai crawling over a rock, Bali, Indonesia

 

A miniscule Oxynoe slug crawling to the tip of the algae upon which it feeds, Bali, Indonesia

 

A well constructed image blends the foreground nudibranch and the background, beautifully, Bali, Indonesia

 

A small Eubranchus nudibranch seemingly strikes a pose for the camera, Bali, Indonesia

 

A small shrimp, perfectly adapted to living in and around coral polyps, Romblon, Philippines

 

An extremely small and adorable flavor of Shawn the Sheep, Philippines

 

Perfectly mimicking the soft coral upon which it lives, this nudibranch is a master of camouflage, Anilao, Philippines

 

To see more of Olivier's fantastic macro work, please give him a follow on Instagram and visit his website, www.martinoo.com.

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