Merche Llobera (@merchellobera) is an underwater and wildlife photographer. “I am passionate about the animal world and a natural-born adventurer,” she says. “I have roamed the globe, sharing the oceans and lands with wild animals and capturing their essence through my lens in a special and unique way. I’ve been diving since 2010 but it was in 2019, when I bought a Sony Alpha 7 III and an Isotta housing, when my life changed forever. I knew my calling was to document my adventures and the creatures that roam the Earth.” We recently came across this image, honored as a finalist for the Fine Art Photographer of the Year category of Oceangraphic’s Ocean Photographer of the Year Competition. We sat down with Merche to learn more about how she made this image, the importance of being ready at any moment to make a shot, and editing with intention. 

Product Preview – In This Article You’ll Find:

–Sony Alpha 7 III

–Sony 16-35mm f/4

Photo by Merche Llobera. Sony Alpha 7 III. Sony 16-35mm f/4. 1/500-sec., f/6.3, ISO 800

A Background In Nature

My work has been recognized in international competitions such as the Ocean Photographer of the Year, Nature in Focus, Siena Awards, MontPhoto and the 8th 35 Awards, among others. Moreover, I was part of the Spanish team for the 2023 World Photographic Cup, being awarded as “Best of the Nation.” I have also collaborated with 14 women photographers in the inaugural volume of the MOTHER magazine, where we seek to show the importance of nature and animals in our lives.

When Reality Surpasses Fiction

I was photographing in Costa Rica. Every day, I ventured out to the sea to capture whatever nature had in store for me. Each day brought something different, and then one day, we stumbled upon a baitball of lanternfish with Chilean devil rays hunting. I didn't have this image in mind, although I did hope to witness the devil rays hunting. Reality often surpasses fiction and dreams. The conditions were perfect, with excellent visibility, the sunbeams reflecting in the water, the bait ball forming a nearly perfect circle, and the two devil rays hunting in perfect synchrony.

Photo by Merche Llobera. Sony Alpha 7 III. Sony 16-35mm f/4. 1/500-sec., f/6.3, ISO 800

I marveled at their synchronized movements, each dive and turn executed with precision. Patiently, I observed their collaboration, a masterful display of teamwork in pursuit of sustenance. Finally, the moment I had been waiting for arrived: the rays moved in unison around an almost perfectly round baitball and the sunbeams lit up the background. The Chilean devil rays are graceful dancers of the sea. Though they spend most of their time near the surface, they are among the deepest-diving ocean animals. I feel honored to have spent time with them and experienced this pair hunting.

Gear For Any Scenario

I made this image with my Sony Alpha 7 III paired with my Sony 16-35mm f/4. This is such a versatile lens and since it was impossible to predict what I would encounter each day, I didn't want to take any chances. It's the lens I use most for underwater photography.

Photo by Merche Llobera. Sony Alpha 7 III. Sony 16-35mm f/4. 1/500-sec., f/7.1, ISO 800

My camera settings were 1/500-sec., f/6.3, ISO 800. The photo was taken while snorkeling, so I didn't have any strobes, only my camera. The devil rays were coming and going, so it was a matter of patience, and waiting for the right moment. I was at the surface, occasionally free-diving a bit when I anticipated some action. This photo was taken from the surface, and that's why you can see the sun's rays symmetrically emerging from the seabed.

Editing With Intention

First, I edited the photo in color. I always start my editing in Lightroom to get an initial sense of how it might look. I added warmer tones, trying to remove the blue hue that dominated the image. I also increased contrast, clarity, and removed haze. It already looked like a different image, but I like to finish in Photoshop. I continued to adjust colors, levels, applied a bit of dodge and burn, removed some water particles, and finally ran it through Topaz Sharpen Ai to enhance the image and reduce noise. 

I often experiment with black and white conversions, and in this case, it was clear that it worked better. The lanternfish are so small that they got lost against the blue backdrop, but in black and white, they appeared more defined, as did the sun's rays. I was satisfied with the result, so I saved it as a JPEG.

Additionally, I always keep a TIFF with layers in case I want to make changes. For contests, they often require that you don't delete anything, so the layer where I remove the particles is the last thing I do. That way, I can deactivate it and avoid having to re-edit the photo for a contest.

Check out the story behind another stunning image (below) created by Merche in Behind The Shot: Swimming With Whale Sharks.

Photo by Merche Llobera. Sony Alpha 7 III. Sony 16-35mm f/4. 1/100-sec., f/5, ISO 3200

See more of Merche Llobera's work on Instagram @merchellobera.