Soltsea Photography

28/11/2025

26/11/2025

Topside view of the star of the show 🌌

Whale sharks wear a constellation across their backs - and funnily enough its not just because it looks so pretty! These iconic spots might act as a camouflage - to break up their silhouette. For young whalesharks especially, this will help them blend into the water and avoid predators! Each spot pattern is completely unique too - like a fingerprint.

Using photo ID (a software originally adapted from NASA’s star mapping technology), researchers can track individual whale shark sightings. When combined with tagging data, this provides a more comprehensive understanding of their movements, behaviours and habitat use!

26/11/2025

Wide awake ➡ drifting off…
This turtle was giving me a sleepy goodnight halfway through our encounter 💤
Turtles often rest tucked under ledges or on the seafloor, slowing their heart rate to just a few beats per minute so they can hold their breath for hours.

26/11/2025

Whale sharks often cruise just below the surface, lucky for us because it means we get to alongside them! But they don’t spend all of their time up here - they love a good deep dive and can dive to over 2km deep.
Up at the surface, they bask in the warmth to help regulate their body temperature, and feast on rich plankton blooms in the water column. A perfect blend of sunbathing and snacking ☀️👙🍿

26/11/2025

We ✨love✨our bow riding dolphins (or dol-friends) 🐬
The bow provides a pressure wave, a little pocket of energy that dolphins love to surf with barely a flick of their tail. Whether they do it for energy conservation or curiosity and playfulness; it is definitely one of my favourite interactions
Especially on a glassy day! 🤌🏼

26/11/2025

A tale of two corals; half still clinging to life, showcasing an eerie blue hue… the other half, brown and covered in alge. Dead.

The reef is here is changing fast, and unfortunately scenes like this are becoming too common. It’s a stark reminder of the marine heatwave and mass bleaching event that hit Ningaloo hard at the beginning of this year.

26/11/2025

Earlier in the year, most whaleshark swims were in super shallow clear water. Definitely my favourite backdrop 😍

26/11/2025

the sweetest little leopard 🐆

this guy happily sat pretty while I trialled with a different lense! I love the close up detail that came out, you can see each little dermal denticle 🥺

Shark skin might look smooth from afar, but it is actually made up of these tiny, tooth-like scales. These dermal denticals reduce drag, allowing sharks to glide silently and efficiently through the water 🥷

26/11/2025

The star of the show rising from the deep blue on board by

Unlike whales, whalesharks don’t breathe air; instead, they extract oxygen through gills and can spend most of their lives cruising the depths. In fact, whale sharks only spend around 10% of their time near the surface, which makes swims like this incredibly special.

This individual had taken a deep dive, but surprised us by turning back up on a near-vertical ascent - surfacing right next to our group!

26/11/2025

Striped catfish have always been a favourite of mine to photograph! They are known for their distinctive black and white stripes, but the way they sweep across the reef in their tightly packed schools steels the show for me!

Juveniles form dense balls for protection, while adults become more solitary with age. These bottom-dwellers use sensitive barbels (whisker-like organs) to detect food in the sand and, as juveniles, move in a mesmerising dance across the sea floor 👯‍♀️