Before the phrase “Muck Diving” was ever coined… we were doing just that here in British Columbia. This photograph of a juvenile Big Skate was made during a night dive decades ago in the early 90s in remote Treadwell Bay off Slingsby Channel.
The diving liveaboard, CLAVELLA, had anchored here for the evening. After dinner, a few of us decided to go for a night dive on the sandy seafloor beneath the boat. This image was shot on film; and I can count on one hand how many times I have encountered a Big Skate while scuba diving. It’s not the best image capture ever… but I did what I could with the 60mm macro lens I was equipped with for this dive. I would have preferred using a wider angle lens…but the diving gods did not allow me this. Good times!
Jett Brittnell
Jett Britnell is a professional Underwater, Wildlife, and Expedition Photographer, Explorer, internationally published Writer, Public Speaker, and Scuba Diver whose images and editorial appear regularly in print and online media around the world. He was a strong advocate for marine conservation and environmental education, and he was among the first in British Columbia to use his images, articles, and presentations to emphasize the importance of preserving the province’s marine life. Jett is credited with bringing British Columbia’s undersea realm to the international stage, and he has contributed to the province’s marine environment being ranked as one of the world’s richest and most diverse ecosystems.
