Last week I returned from a trip to the Revillagigedos Islands courtesy of the terrific folks of the Solmar V. This trip was generously provided as a prize in Wetpixel's annual Picture of the Year contest, and I could not have been more surprised to have won it. This was my first live-aboard dive trip, and I worried a bit about the usual things people worry about; what should bring, what should I not bring, will they be able to accommodate my camera needs, motion sickness, etc. The crew of the Solmar V took great care of my wife and me. The food was fantastic (I gained a few pounds) the service was superb, and the diving was sensational. We saw enormous mantas that swam and played with us on nearly every dive. We also saw large hammerheads and galapagos sharks, dozens of white tip sharks and beautiful Clarion Angelfish that evidently we will never see anywhere else. The water was warm, clear and relatively calm. Did I mention that the food was excellent? Anyway, the bottom line is we had the times of our lives and made new friends along the way. What more could anyone want? I'd like to thank the great people at Solmar V for supporting the Wetpixel community in this way. Next year's winner is in for a real treat. Please visit my website to see some of the photos from the trip. I will leave them up for a couple more weeks on the "Published This Week" link at:
www.randallbenton.com

Thank you again for an experience of a lifetime!

Randall Benton (bentoni)

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Way to go Randall! Your images look great. Love the Clarion shot and the image of Darlene and the manta. Very glad you had a super trip. Did you see a lot of Hammers?

Cheers,
Steve

Wow! I gota do this. Great images & thanks for sharing.
Bob

Glad to hear You liked You'r prize Randall!!
And thanks for posting some great shots - the manta pictures are awesome!

Cheers
Karel

Looks great!

The vis. seems to have picked up at last, too...

http://wetpixel.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=35429

http://www.flickr.com/photos/timsdiving/se...57623650428189/

Tim

Great photos!

The perspective on that second photo is hilarious - looks like a TINY diver touching the cephalic fin on the manta.

Cheers
James

That was the first thing that caught my eye, too! Sometimes getting a shot at a precise split second creates a compelling optical illusion, and that certainly qualifies! Great shots, Randall!

That must explain why I can't do competitions: I really liked the bottom manta, and didn't like the second one, because of the diver. I would have put her a little away from the fish...

Tim

Looks like you had a great trip. Ive been wanting go back since i was there a few years ago. Mantas are some amazing creature and such fun to interact with. By the way, love the shot with the diver.