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Pacific White-Sided Dolphin gliding through water
Gliding through the Water

While on my 2015 Marine Mammals trip on the Johnstone Strait of the BC coast, I found the Pacific White-Sided Dolphin one of the most difficult to photograph. They surface quickly, and seemingly out of nowhere, and they are sometimes gone before you can even raise your camera (let alone release the shutter).  Often it is not recommended that you shoot your camera without looking, however when it comes to these quick moving dolphin, they don’t leave photographers much of a choice. But despite their speed it was amazing how gracefully they moved through the water.

 

The Pacific White-Sided Dolphin resides in the cool waters of the North Pacific spanning from Asia to North America. They can tend to travel in large groups averaging approximately 90 dolphins. And they undertake an interesting behavior called “bow riding” where they ride the bow of boats, swimming under and around the bow of the boat. It was an awesome, and challenging behavior to photograph.

 

If you are interested in purchasing this image, or any other images on my site, please contact me [email protected].

 

Taken: August 9, 2015

Location: Johnstone Strait, British Columbia

Camera: Canon EOS-1D X
Lens: Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS II USM
Focal Length: 170mm
Aperture: f/5
ISO: 200
Exposure: 1/2500

About this Image

While on my 2015 Marine Mammals trip on the Johnstone Strait of the BC coast, I found the Pacific White-Sided Dolphin one of the most difficult to photograph. They surface quickly, and seemingly out of nowhere, and they are sometimes gone before you can even raise your camera (let alone release the shutter).  Often it is not recommended that you shoot your camera without looking, however when it comes to these quick moving dolphin, they don’t leave photographers much of a choice. But despite their speed it was amazing how gracefully they moved through the water.

 

The Pacific White-Sided Dolphin resides in the cool waters of the North Pacific spanning from Asia to North America. They can tend to travel in large groups averaging approximately 90 dolphins. And they undertake an interesting behavior called “bow riding” where they ride the bow of boats, swimming under and around the bow of the boat. It was an awesome, and challenging behavior to photograph.

 

If you are interested in purchasing this image, or any other images on my site, please contact me [email protected].

 

Taken: August 9, 2015

Location: Johnstone Strait, British Columbia

Camera Specs

Camera: Canon EOS-1D X

Lens: Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS II USM

Focal Length: 170mm

Aperture: f/5

ISO: 200

Exposure: 1/2500