STUART PHILPOTT'S COLUMN: Trigger Happy

I have always been a big fan of UK diving. Portland, near Weymouth happens to be one of my favourite spots, especially the Royal Adelaide wreck. I must have climbed (and cursed) up and over Chesil beach more than 200 times in full kit with camera in hand. The harsh cardio workout seems to discourage most divers from attempting this shore dive but be assured its well worth the pain and suffering. From a photographers perspective this is a spectacular site. There are so many macro opportunities, including tompot blennies, velvet swimmers, cuttlefish, congers, lobsters and much, much more.

At the end of August a very special event takes place. Grey triggerfish come up the Gulf Stream and are sighted all along the South West coast. The Royal Adelaide seems to be a hotspot of activity and at times it’s possible to see more than a 100 triggers congregating at the small wreck site. 

In my mind, being surrounded by so many triggerfish is a unique experience and one I wanted to share with other divers. In 2011 I organised a Triggerfish Photography Workshop in association with Scimitar Diving. On this particular occasion I wimped out and used a hard boat to access the site. I was joined by seven enthusiastic underwater photographers and to my relief we had flat calm seas and blue skies. Underwater visibility was a disappointing five metres but considering there had been no diving activities for the past two weeks due to rough weather I couldn’t really complain.

Give us a kiss!

I used a macro 60mm lens, keeping the distance to subject at around 20cm. I wanted to show how close the triggers can get and I think these images have captured the scene quite nicely. The face belongs to local diver, Martin Rishton. At first Martin was slightly overawed by the triggers ‘intimate’ advances but he soon relaxed and enjoyed the moment. This particular trigger had no fear of divers and was bumping masks and nibbling regulators. Grey triggers are non aggressive and do not attack divers unlike their more infamous relatives the titan trigger.

Happy to model, the triggers are perfect for photography practice

Most of the group got some great shots and videos. My main job was to act as guide and model during the dive so I wasn’t really concentrating on the best possible compositions. In hindsight I wish I had used my wide angle lens so I could have got more of the surroundings in the picture but then again with only five metres visibility the backscatter might have posed more of a problem. The close-ups of the trigger’s teeth and mouth are my favourites. I like just having the mouth in focus. My camera settings were ISO 160, aperture F7.1, shutter speed 1/80th. I have made a few tweaks in photo editing software, mainly removing backscatter and there has been some burning and sharpening up. None of the images have been cropped.

Mouth close-up

If you have any questions on the Royal Adelaide wreck, my one-day Trigger Workshops, photo editing or UK photography in general please email me at adventurediving@yahoo.co.uk. My 2012 Trigger Workshop dates are planned for 1-2 and 8-9 September.

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