Last Update : Thursday 9 August, 2001 10:15 PM
Last Update : Thursday 9 August, 2001 10:15 PM |
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Combat Manta ray
BEGINNING
COMBAT MANTA RAY (1)
She heard the thuds at the water level, one after another. Then air bubbles streamed up. Frogmen returned.
She was not afraid of them. She neither hated them nor was upset until behavior changed. If those were the case, she would not be floating around waiting for them here. If any one tried to touch manta ray or swing down from her body, there might be a different effect. She might leave so that no one would see her again.
“Providence” I thought when I suddenly saw her as soon as I entered the water. A few in the team began to swim while shooting the camera from time to time. The Combat Manta Ray has begun.
Imagine under water rock with plateau of 50 square meters in size, at twenty feet deep. She was swimming at the depth of 15 to 40 feet, circling round with 50 meters radius. Some times she came very near to the pinnacle, almost touching it.
Khun Nut and khun Vinij chose to stay in the deep looking up to see her against blue water mass, in order to take her photo in the wide angle according to their expertise. Khun Tor and khun Manee were floating with Panorama team waiting to take photographs when she came nearer.
Our Editor, the push-up maniac Editor has a chance to use his well-built muscles simply by swimming after her to take her photos. Keep on swimming, his strength did not fade. That was the effective method for swimmer with plenty of muscles. A few Sea Papa crew followed him, taking shots from top and bottom angles or any angles that can be taken.
Taking skill of all underwater photographers into consideration, I was sure that the Thais would be able to see the best of her photographs, whether it was in T.O.T or ATG magazine. Both magazines are Thai. So, either one of them will do. I, myself, took the confronting position.
Pictorial photographs would be under responsibility of khun Vinij khun Nut and khun Sakonpun. I could not compete with them anyhow. But if one is writing documentary about manta ray, pictorial photos are not enough. One needed photographs from different angles like tail…mouth…back…gill. That was my job as a Nauticus writer. I thought so as I swam away from the crowd, kept myself afloat, waiting…
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