Monterey Bay, California, USA

Three humpback whales surge upwards in unison, jaws wide as a “ball” of anchovies scatters. All around the whales, gulls sweep low, while a brown pelican lingers in the foreground, drawn by the sudden abundance of food. In the distance, the shoreline is shrouded in a thick marine layer, reducing Monterey Bay’s horizon to mist. The fog softens the land, yet the vitality of the moment is sharp. Whales, birds, and fish converge in a fleeting choreography of survival. In black and white, this scene distills the contrasts between motion and stillness, creating a portrait of wild abundance at the edge of land and sea. 

Each summer between April and September, humpback whales return here to feed in the nutrient-rich waters before migrating south to Central America for the winter. Known as ‘filter feeders’, the whales’ bony plates, called baleen, act as a screen to allow tiny fish, krill, and plankton to move down their massive gullets, and filter out seawater.