Got to spend the day at Santa Cruz Island with my older brother Mike, I had asked him to put his wood carving talents to work and to carve a series of Humpback Whale pieces to display at upcoming shows we are participating in and what better way to gain perspective of your subject than quietly observing these giants at times just a few feet away.

The display included fin slapping, tail slapping, surface lunge feeding and an interesting obsession with floating kelp paddies. It was quite an experience and education in Humpback behavior. Looking forward to seeing what he can come up with.

Humback whale fin near the coast of Santa Cruz Island.

Humback whale fin slapping

Photography Shooting Tips:
The day was overcast with not much contrast. The whale would appear for only seconds and then be gone.

• #1 I set my ISO to 800
• #2 I set my shutter speed to 1/1000 on TV mode (shutter priority)
• #3 I set my exposure compensation to + 1

The ISO is high to ensure that I can use a fast shutter speed to allow for the quick change of direction the camera and lens have to make to follow the action, it also with give a more useful aperture f/8-f/11.
The +1 compensation will help with the expected flat dull light.
Shutter priority (TV MODE) are a must in this situation where the camera in constantly on the move, it also gives great sharpness to the drops of water on the tail and fins.

-Steve Munch

Hampback Whale