Monterey Bay Aquarium, is right along the coast line of the Monterey peninsula in California. The city of Monterey itself is quite lovely, too. There are some quaint little stores and resturants nearby this spot, and the place is also quite lively especially on a weekend.
And not just the city, too -- the area around Monterey is GORGEOUS. I have a bunch of pictures of the beaches and ocean, but I'll be saving that for another post (more love affair with the Pacific). This place is somewhere I would seriously consider moving to as a permanent home, if.. well.. the homes weren't in the millions of dollars.
Anyways, that's beside the point. Today's pictures will be in the Aquarium. It was actually harder than I thought, having only a APSC sensor and no tripod, as most aquariums are quite dimly lit. So not too many photos, unfortunately. Clearly, this just means I need to buy a full frame. Well, anyways, here are some of the ones that turned out alright!
Together we are Strong
Schools of fish have always fascinated me. Coordinated, and making pillars of life as they swim around. #minnowsunite?
Boop.
These guy's aren't well known for their brains. Or their eyes. But I like to think they are best friends and giving each other an affectionate boop with their nose.
Nemo, that you?
The most colourful shot I have today, with the awesome layout in this set. Clownfish and blue tangs, I will never attribute them to anything except Finding Nemo. What have you done to me, Pixar?
Hello, Friend
Penguins are lovely. Not too sure if they are friendly, but this guy cocked his head, looked right at me, and struck a nice pose for the camera, so I feel like he would be.
Photoshy
This little birdy was much less friendly, but the picture was decent, so I figured I'd include it. It's interesting to see the little band that goes around their leg, marking the human interaction and aquarium status. It's a bit sad, in a way, as it essentially is a brand.
Round and Round We Go
More schools of fish! This is actually the roof of one of the rooms in the buildings, and the fish are swimming in circles around the middle piece. It is very cool, but will make you a bit dizy while trying to take a good picture.
Crabby Behavour
These are the spikiest crabs I have ever seen. Creepy. No other comment.
I Once Was a Little Minnow
Okay, this is not actually a minnow, and can't recall the species of fish that this guy actually is, but boy does it look interesting. Someone in a post of mine asked for some more DOF play, so here's one that looks good!
The View
Like I mentioned, the Aquarium is right on the coast line. So, in the back, there's a whole balcony and walkway around, and gives you an awesome view of the ocean and Monterey coast. There's a closed off pool spot near here where they do shows and such as well, with the backdrop being this view. It's really awesome.
That's all for today!
For those of you interested: Camera is SONY NEX-7, with a Zeiss 16-70mm lens. As always, these are my original photos, and I maintain the copyright.
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