Late one night, over deep water, Michael was following a flying fish. By day, they move extraordinarily fast, but at night they swim slowly just below the surface. He tried various shutter and flash settings, all the while keeping track of his small subject. ‘I wanted to create a sense of movement,’ he says.
By rapidly beating their forked tails, flying fish such as this juvenile propel themselves in the water until they take off at the surface. By holding their long, pointed pectoral fins out stiffly, they can glide in the air for several hundred metres, away from underwater predators.
USA / Brazil
Michael is an award-winning photographer and author specialising in marine wildlife and environmental issues. For the last 25 years he has travelled extensively, photographing diverse aquatic animals and habitats and humanity's impact on them. His images have appeared in many publications including BBC Wildlife, National Geographic Magazine and The New York Times.
Help us harness the power of photography to advance scientific knowledge, spread awareness of important issues and nurture a global love for nature.
