Articles

A moon jelly, seemingly emanating sun rays, California, USA
 

Certain locations around the world seem to spawn good photographer upon good photographer. A perfect example of that is Monterey Bay, where our newest Photographer of the Week hones his skills with a camera. Born and raised in Monterey, Brandon Huelga was scuba certified in 2008, but it was only in the last few years that he rediscovered a real passion for diving. In just the last year, he has discovered that he “suffers” from an addiction to underwater photography!

Brandon considers himself fortunate to have the world-famous Monterey Bay in his backyard. The staggering diversity and density of life in the bay is an underwater photographer’s dream, and he spends as much time as possible exploring the kelp forests in search of wonderful subjects and beautiful images. Recently, Brandon has been making forays up into the mountains in pursuit of freshwater subjects such as Lahontan trout and shiners—subject matter seriously underrepresented in underwater imagery.

Brandon says that for him, underwater photography is fulfilling physically, technically, creatively, and most importantly, emotionially. His father passed away in 2021 after over 20 years running a dive shop that he founded in Monterey. While Alessio Huelga never got to witness his son’s underwater images, Brandon says whenever he gets to dive and make pictures, he feels he is carrying on his father’s legacy. His hope is that he can continue to develop his skills behind the camera and use his photographs to show others the awe-inspiring beauty that we are fortunate enough to have on this planet—and perhaps propel people towards protecting and preserving it.
 

An iconic California fish, the sheephead, swims through tall stands of kelp, California, USA
 

Gray reef shark pups sheltering down in the reef, Hawaii, USA
 

A small kelp perch pleasingly photobombing a slow shutter kelp image, California, USA
 

A true pelagic shark, the oceanic whitetip, as seen from above, Hawaii, USA
 

A kelp forest scene in the Channel Islands, California, USA
 

Looking dramatically different than its final form, a larval blenny found on a blackwater dive, Hawaii, USA
 

Urchins have almost completely devoured all the kelp that should be covering this rock, California, USA
 

Beautifully colored details of a Navanax slug, California, USA
 

Posed pleasingly in corraline algae, a small crevice kelpfish eyes the camera, California, USA
 

A Lahontan cutthroat trout, surrounded by shiners in a mountain stream, California, USA
 

One of the most iconic and recognizable nudibranchs, the Spanish shawl, California, USA
 

The delicate beauty of a tube dwelling anemone during a night dive, California, USA
 

To see more of Brandon’s work, please give him a follow on Instagram and visit his website, www.huelgaphotography.com.