Jason Heller Photography Blog

I led an underwater photography expedition to  Socorro during humpback calving season, and now I am totally hooked after my first underwater encounter. It was one elusive encounter. The whales were all around us frolicking on the surface – we could hear their beautiful songs underwater, in some cases they sounded like they were all around us, but yet outside of sight. It was a magical experience. Then we had the chance of snorkeling with this calf and its mother (you can see the mother’s face behind the calf, it was huge). I had only a few seconds to get the shot and the calf was emerging from slightly murky water at depth.

While not the best image in the world, it is a precursor for more to come. I am hooked and plan to dive with these leviathans in Tonga next year to get the shallow close encounters required to get the images I really want. Words can’t describe the awe of swimming next to these large animals.