In the waters off Cancun, Mexico, photographer, artist and conservationist Jason DeCaire Taylor has been creating the Museo Subacuatico de Arte (MUSA.) This underwater sculpture garden is filled with realistic and fantastical sculptures that attracts underwater creatures–which in turn attracts scuba divers and snorkelers. And Sigma Corporation of America is proud to announce sponsorship of this photographer and his important and intensely compelling work.
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In his work, we witness the documentation of barren patches of sea floor being colonized–first by Taylor’s creations, and then by sea creatures on all scales. And knowing that these habitats for aquatic life forms–from tiny corals, to schooling fish, to sea turtles, to apex predators–are recorded for the marveling eyes of a much wider audience around the world and above the water line with Sigma Lenses is a great source of pride for the Sigma Corporation of America team.
And it isn’t just the stills that Jason DeCaires Taylor is shooting with Sigma lenses. There is also a documentary film about the project in the works, and this has been shot, in entirety, with a variety of Sigma lenses on HDSLRs. He tells us: ”Camera technology has of course changed rapidly in recent years but the advancements in SLR’s Video capabilities has completely changed the market. I am now able with the same housing underwater to shoot both stills and HD video during the same dive. Combine this with the depth and quality of Sigma’s range of lenses and the future is exciting and the creative possibilities are endless.”
He continues ”I have been a photographing underwater for over 10 years and have tried many different camera set ups, however using Sigma’s 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM has been a turning point. It allows me to get in really close which improves water clarity and detail, is excellent in low light and reveals the true appearance of the sculptures by not causing any distortion. It also produces incredibly sharp and vibrant imaging.” All of the amazing images byJason DeCaires Taylor illustrating this blog posting were captured with this ultrawide Sigma zoom lens.
[caption id="attachment_7287" align="aligncenter" width="604" caption="© 2011 Jason DeCaires Taylor"]
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Lest you think this is simply a frivolity and a curiosity–there’s a very important mission and purpose to Taylor’s work: The natural reefs in this wildly popular tourist destination suffer greatly under the constant flow of human visitors. But MUSA is a powerful new attraction in these waters. The sculptures attract sea life, and the combination of sea life and sculptures in turn attracts a steady stream of snorkelers and scuba divers away from the overtaxed natural reefs.