Fish Flying Fish, 10 48’ 48” N 161 52’46”W

[Bryan wilburn]

We’ve been at sea for two days on the way to Australia and yesterday we spotted Flying Fish for the first time. They make for a rather difficult target, as they pop out of the water and are gone in around 30 seconds. After shooting around 500 frames of water I managed to catch a group jumping near the ship and finally got a few good images.

They “fly” by first jumping out of the water then thrusting with their tail to gain speed. Flights are upwards of 160’. They average between 7 to 12 inches, with a wingspan on the order of 18”. The live between the surface and a depth of around 200’. Maybe we’ll get lucky and see some open ocean birds hunting them.

Canon R5 Mk II 100-500, 500mm f13 1/5000th ISO3200, 100% cr

 

[Bryan Conner]

I got to see some flying fish off of the coast of Florida in the Gulf of Mexico years ago and it was a very special moment. I remember seeing them and not really recognizing what they were at first. I wasn't sure of what I was seeing because it didn't really register in my brain that I was seeing fish "flying".

 

[Bryan wilburn]

The first time I saw one pop out of the water it looked like a silver streak. First day was really frustrating. Second day I worked out how to shoot them and managed to get a group near the ship.