ABSTRACT DOLPHIN

This was one of my first photographs, and remains one of my favourites. While not technically great due to the burnout from the sun reflecting off the splashes, it's one of the few shots that I don't get tired of. The different colours and subtleties of the deeper water, and the dynamics of the splashing, fin motion and the focussed blow hole make it pleasingly abstract and painterly. It's also an unusual angle of the subject.

It's a common dolphin, photographed in the sea of Cortez, Mexico, on a trip to capture shots of blue whales. We found blue whales aplenty, but few that were posing for photos. That's the thing with whales- they're huge and amazing and beautiful and....underwater. The majority of whale sightings begin and end with a glimpse of dorsal fin silhouetted in a vast expanse of sea, or if you're lucky, a fluke. Which isn't as exciting in a photo as it is in real life, more's the pity.

Still, on the way back to La Paz, aboard legendary whale-watching ship the 'Don Jose' a few dolphins escorted us, happily bow-riding ahead of the ship in the calm waters.

It didn't take much encouragement for me to shin along the stem of the bow, clinging on like a portly sloth until I was directly over the dolphin. Then I just held the camera with one hand, the bow stem with the other, and let rip.

Only one of the pictures was useable- the others were all cropped off or badly exposed by the reflected light. Or they had no dolphin in at all.

But this one shot somehow made it all worthwhile.