MYSTERIOUS WHALE DIE-OFF

Alarming news about the Southern Right Whales (Eubalaena australis) in Patagonia, Argentina ( http://tinyurl.com/ybfppus ) where hundreds of these baleen whales have died for unknown reasons in recent years. We have photographed animals from this same population in Gulfo Nuevo on Peninsula Valdez. View our dramatic photos of southern right whales - underwater pictures of bus-sized adults and curious, playful calves; tail flukes at sunset; breaching shots; and more on our web site . Our collection of whale photography is one of the strongest in the world, with many species represented.

e: brandoncole@msn.com
w: www.brandoncole.com
t: 509-535-3489

STRIPED MARLIN PHOTO ON FRONT COVER OF MARLIN MAGAZINE

One of our Striped Marlin (Tetrapturus audax) underwater photographs from offshore Mexico was just published as the front cover of Marlin magazine, February 2010 issue. We have a strong collection of dramatic photos of billfish such as sailfish and marlin feeding on sardine baitballs .

e: brandoncole@msn.com
w: www.brandoncole.com
t: 509-535-3489

SCUBA DIVING PHOTOSHOOT IN RAJA AMPAT, INDONESIA

Our bags are packed. In a few days we will be jetting to Sorong, West Papua on the eastern fringes of Indonesia. In underwater photography circles, the Raja Ampat archipelago is the place to be right now in terms of coral reef photography. We have chartered the beautiful Seven Seas live-aboard diving boat for two weeks and are looking forward to diving with friends from around the world. Check back with us in March to see the new photo coverage. We already have a very strong collection of images from Indonesia- Bali, Komodo, Sulawesi, and other hotspots- and we're looking forward to adding dramatic and creative new underwater imagery from Raja.

We invite you to view a slideshow of photos from our last Indonesia expedition on the Seven Seas .

If you'd like to join us on future scuba trips, please let us know. Exciting upcoming charters include the Galapagos Islands, Socorro (The Revillagigedos) off Baja Mexico, perhaps humpback whales, and more.

All the best,

Brandon and Melissa Cole

e: brandoncole@msn.com
w: www.brandoncole.com
t: 509-535-3489

NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION PANEL OF PHOTO PROS

We are honored by the invitation to join the National Wildlife Federation's panel of photo pros. Visit their popular PhotoZone web feature to ask us questions about photography, digital workflow, gear, nature and wildlife photo hot spots, our specialty underwater imaging, and more. The first question posed to us: Our New Year's photo resolutions!

NWF publishes "National Wildlife" and "Ranger Rick" magazines, two of the top nature and wildlife magazines in the world. We're always delighted to have our marine pictures published in them.

Thanks to the NWF team!

FIRST PLACE IN NATIONAL WILDLIFE PHOTO CONTEST

We are pleased to announce that our split level photo of spawning sockeye salmon was awarded First Place in the 39th annual National Wildlife Federation photo contest.




We have a strong collection of high resolution images of endangered Pacific salmon, including all five species. To see more of our photos, click here.

Happy Holidays!

OCEAN ACIDIFICATION

Our marine photos of humpback whales, sea turtles, sharks, and bluefin tuna have been included in a new film produced by NRDC (The Natural Resources Defense Council) titled "Acid Test". Take a look at www.acidtestmovie.com

We are proud to have contributed to this powerful presentation on the only recently acknowledged environmental issue of how our oceans are becoming more acidic due to increased carbon dioxide levels. This increased acidity has profound negative effects on shell-building creatures such as snails, crustaceans (crabs, lobsters, shrimp and other commercially valuable shellfish), and even coral reefs.

e: brandoncole@msn.com
w: www.brandoncole.com
t: 509-535-3489

BRYDE'S WHALES FEEDING ON BAITBALLS

Earlier I reported on our very successful marlin shoot. But I did not mention that in addition to striped marlin, I also was fortunate enough to capture some of the most dramatic underwater feeding shots of Bryde's Whales (Balaenoptera brydei) in the world today. I wish I could say that these pictures of this unusal rorqual whale resulted from careful research, but that would be a lie. I had absolutely no idea that these baleen whales were going to show up to crash the marlin party. I was simply in the right place at the right time. Lady Luck deserves much of the credit this time. Anyhow, it was quite the experience to have to dodge the rapier-like bills of fiesty marlin AND twenty tons of blubber at the same time. The National Geographic Magazine has just published two of the images in the October 2009 issue, and I can finally post my collection on my web site. Photos here: ( link )