Big-fin reef squid laying eggs on a mooring line – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Squid like these reef squid are often seen laying eggs in the same places time and again, such as mooring lines.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Tokina 10-17mm, 1/320 sec, f/9, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

A coconut octopus hiding inside a Coke can – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Small octopuses such as coconut octopuses like to make homes from all kinds of trash and other items they find on the seabed, so it's worth looking closely at these things as you may get a nice surprise.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Nikon 105mm, 1/125 sec, f/6.3, ISO 160.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

A mating pair of blue-ringed octopuses – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Be aware of an individual cephalopod rapidly flashing bright colors, as it could be signaling to another individual in the area, and an indicator that courtship, mating, or fighting could be about to happen. However, it could also serve as a warning (to you) of its venomous nature if it feels threatened – the blue-ringed octopus is the second-deadliest animal in the ocean!

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Nikon 105mm, 1/125 sec, f/8, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

Pygmy squid feeding on a small shrimp – North Ari Atoll, Maldives. This tiny pygmy squid is just 2 cm big, and a close-up wet diopter may be required with your macro lens to achieve decent magnification.

SETTINGS: Nikon D2X, Nikon 105mm, 1/125 sec, f/25, ISO 100.

Adam Broadbent/ Scubazoo Images

A baby flamboyant cuttlefish hatching from its egg sac – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Flamboyant cuttlefish (and other small cuttlefish) often lay their eggs inside old coconut shells, under wooden logs, inside bottles etc. If you're able to go back to these spots repeatedly, and have a heck of lot of patience, you could be lucky to capture a shot of them hatching.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Nikon 60mm, 1/160 sec, f/22, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

The eyes of a wonderpus octopus and its arms in the background – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Wonderpus octopus have beautiful stripes on their arms, and move most elegantly 'dancing' across the seabed often with their arms in elaborate coils, providing some wonderful backgrounds and compositions.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Nikon 105mm, 1/160 sec, f16, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

Three courting pharaoh cuttlefish – Sanana Island, Maluku, Indonesia. When you encounter two or more large cuttlefish, stay nearby observing them and it's likely that courtship or mating can occur.

SETTINGS: Nikon D2Xs, Tokina 10-17mm, 1/160 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100.

Jason Isley/Scubazoo

A pair of coconut octopus prepare to fight each other – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. Here, the water was quite dark and the octopus were 'in action' as they fought for a few seconds every few minutes. I used a slower shutter speed to brighten up the background water, as well as to capture some motion in the animals.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Tokina 10-17mm, 1/25 sec, f/13, ISO 160.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

Big-fin reef squid at night – Mabul Island, Sabah, Malaysia. Eye-contact is key to close-ups like this, so be sure to focus sharply on the eye. The dazzling iridescence of reef squid make them great subjects on night dives.

SETTINGS: Nikon D700, Nikon 105mm, 1/250 sec, f/22, ISO 200.

Jason Isley/Scubazoo

A mating pair of mimic octopus (smaller male, and larger female) – Lembeh Strait, Sulawesi, Indonesia. When shooting behavior, use a high f-stop for a greater depth-of-field.

SETTINGS: Nikon D200, Nikon 60mm, 1/125 sec, f/16, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

Broadclub cuttlefish swimming over reef – Mantanani Island, Sabah, Malaysia. Using a slower shutter speed and panning with the moving cuttlefish gives the image interesting motion blur.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Tokina 10-17mm, 1/20 sec, f/16, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo

A poison ocellate octopus in a defensive pose on top of an old shoe – Lembeh Strait, Sualwesi, Indonesia. When a cephalopod displays a threatening, defensive pose like this, it's time to back off and leave it alone. Use that time to review your images and adjust camera settings, before deciding whether you need to approach it again and attempt more shots.

SETTINGS: Nikon D300, Tokina 10-17mm, 1/160 sec, f/9, ISO 200.

Christian Loader/Scubazoo