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Ben Poch of Dallas, Texas

October 18, 2006
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Ben Poch

Congratulations Ben Poch on being named Photographer of the Week
Ben Poch Ben Poch
from Dallas, Texas
Age: 21
Years Diving: 10
Damselfish
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Damselfish
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: This damsel would not leave me and my camera alone. This picture was actually one of about fifteen. It just all came together on this one shot.
Eagle ray
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Eagle ray
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: I realized too late that this eagle ray was swimming parallel to me about 100 feet to my right. I only had the chance to take one picture and this is how it came out.
Cup coral
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Cup coral
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: This shot was one of about twenty-five with cup coral being the subject. Cup coral is extremely difficult to focus on because it is so intricate and only comes out at night. This was taken underneath the town pier at night.
Grouper
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Grouper
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: Most of the time, grouper will run into the coral as you get close. I was lucky enough to find the one grouper that let me get off about ten shots before he swam away. This grouper was a fantastic subject.
Gorgonian coral
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Gorgonian coral
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: Just a beautiful shot of a Gorgonian coral. Bonaire has an abundance of Gorgonians; the only problem is lighting them. This shot was lit by two 200 watt Ikelites.
Cowfish
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Cowfish
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: Just what was happening here, I don't know. But as I was photographing, a seahorse, I looked to my left and found two cowfish swimming together, only they were changing their colors like mad.
Plume worms
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Plume worms
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: These two guys were just sitting there together. I took the shot and got it perfectly.
Green-purple anemones
Location: Bonaire
Fish ID: Green-purple anemones
Camera: Fujichrome Velvia 100
Comments: This is truly a story of "you only get one chance." I was in a hurry to get a double reef system and was swimming across a barren sandy stretch when I saw something under a lone rock. As I swam onto the other side of it, I found these two little anemones just hanging out together. This is the only shot I got of them.