Ocean Portfolio Photographer of the Yr, Matthew Sullivan

OCEANOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE: Well, we’re very jealous of that. Being so immersed in these identical dive spots, in that case, what environmental adjustments have you ever seen happen regionally through the years you’ve been diving them?

MATTHEW SULLIVAN: Mostly within the freshwater environments; the spring ecosystems particularly are very delicate to any type of environmental change. And agricultural runoff is an enormous one. So quite a lot of the spring ecosystems, whereas they do nonetheless have quite a lot of animal life, these days are most likely numbered. The overwhelming majority of springs haven’t any extra plant development anymore, which is what attracts manatees and all the opposite wildlife. In some instances, with the extremely popular springs, I’m positive they’re simply being liked to demise by so many guests. A whole lot of the extra standard ones are lacking seagrass and flora. 

With regards to the offshore stuff, there’s been fluctuations with sharks or goliath groupers, however these may simply be fluctuations within the populations. At Blue Heron particularly, that’s a spot that I believe is being liked to demise. When I first began diving right here, 15 or 16 years in the past you may see one other diver on a dive. Now, in the event you go do a dive, you’ll see 50 to 70 different divers. 

OCEANOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE: That’s very attention-grabbing, by way of diving turning into extra accessible to folks… This is clearly a good way to drive consciousness and conservation however in such excessive numbers, that should be having an impression on the surroundings?

MATTHEW SULLIVAN: I believe the difficulty particularly right here is that there are so few accessible shore dives in most of Florida that except you’re out in a ship – which prices cash and is a complete day dedication – there’s perhaps two different two or three different fairly standard shore dives alongside the whole thing of Florida, which is a large state. So, even in the event you unfold all of the divers out to these three websites, there’s nonetheless a ton of divers per website. 

OCEANOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE: So, what’s the message that you just convey, or what’s the story that you just inform by means of your ocean pictures? 

MATTHEW SULLIVAN: I prefer to take issues that folks both don’t know exist, or overlook or don’t see very many footage of and attempt to join the viewer to that topic by means of the photographs. So particularly in my portfolio, there’s a jawfish which most individuals won’t ever see; there’s the batfish, which is among the freakiest fish within the ocean, however I really like them a lot; there’s an alligator, which, most individuals are afraid of. I like to have the ability to join issues that folks normally overlook or are animals which can be more durable for folks to anthropomorphise.