” Fluorescence is the absorption of electromagnetic radiation (light) at one wavelength and its re-emission at another, longer wavelength ” Dr Charles Mazel. I attached a link to his website at the bottom of the page for more info.
In order to photograph fluorescence you will need a excitation source (blue light), barrier filter and a camera.
Shawn Miller fluorescence setup
Underwater equipment used – Night dive at Kadena north, Okinawa.
Canon 70d * Canon 100macro lens
Ikelite underwater housing
2 x Light&Motion Sola Nightsea blue lights
1 Light & Motion Sola 1200 red * 1 Sola 3800
Light&Motion barrier filter and mask
Some of my favorite photographs from our night dive with the crew
On February 16th 2015, I went out reef walking at night during low tide. I brought my Light and Motion Nightsea blue light in search of marine life fluorescence. I stumbled upon an interesting find in the world of science. I call it Fluoro fingerprinting.
I flipped over a rock, a small sea cucumber fell off and began to fluoresce under blue light. I found another sea cucumber and photographed it using the blue light and yellow excitation filter but it did not fluoresce.
Holothuria (Platyperona) difficilis under blue light
I gently touched it with my finger and it fluoresced bright green, leaving the print of my finger on the surface of the sea cucumber.
Fluoro fingerprinting. Okinawa-Japan
I checked my finger and noticed it fluoresced light green under blue light.
Fluoro fingerprinting
I was excited about this find and posted it Flickr for some Identification help and explanation. Curt Fieldler emailed the photograph to Dr. Alexander Kerr from the University Of Guam Marine lab and he was kind enough to assist.
Dr. Kerr stated that the species is known to have green pigment that I have seen in other Sea cucumbers. As far as the fingerprint, It seems to indicate that touching the surface of the Sea cucumber exposes the underlying carotenoid, perhaps by mobilizing the the melanin pigments. So I think you have made an interesting find.
The next step was to photograph Holothuria (Platyperona) difficilis in a studio aquarium using the Meet your neighbours isolation technique. I wanted to show the animal stretched out displaying the tube feet and feathery feeding tentacles.
Holothuria (Platyperona) difficilis -MYN
The last step was to photograph Holothuria (Platyperona) difficilis in its natural environment during the daytime.
Holothuria (Platyperona) difficilis in natural environment
My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands
This site is also designed to help people identify the beautiful animals of Okinawa, basically to serve as an online nature reference guide. If you would like to make a contribution to support my mission, please click on the donation link paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature
Your donations will help conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support, Shawn M Miller.
The Light & Motion Sola NightSea blue light will enhance your night diving experience like nothing before. It Is an underwater blue light that allows you to see fluorescence. The NightSea blue LEDs cause proteins and minerals to fluoresce brightly underwater. If you want to photograph fluorescence you will need a yellow barrier filter over your camera lens. The barrier filter will block the reflected excitation of light and transmit the fluorescence to deliver a psychedelic experience.
Underwater fluorescence by Shawn Miller
Below is a photograph of my underwater rig. This is the setup I use to capture the underwater fluorescence in Okinawa. I am currently using one Light & Motion Sola Nightsea and one GoBe nightsea blue light.
Below is a photograph of the Light & Motion Sola NightSea Underwater blue light photographed in the studio. I wanted to capture the blue light rays coming out of the light. No previous photos displayed this and I had to do it.
Some cases the fluorescence is so strong it can be photographed during the day without any specialized lights or filters. This red heart coral was photographed at a depth of Seventy-five feet.
I decided to experiment using the nightsea and custom filters over my strobes to give it an original look. I call this technique fluoro blending.(Nightdive)