Behind the Lens: Jami Feldman, Underwater Paparazzi

In honor of our very first Shark Cafe dive trip together, who would be more appropriate to highlight this month than our fearless trip leader and underwater “paparazzi” extraordinaire, Jami Feldman?! We met Jami a couple of years ago at the annual Even Keel Shark Weekend event, where she has always donated a metal print to support our organization. Jami’s passion for the kelp forest and Southern California sharks is infectious and her knowledge on how to get the perfect shot in our notoriously difficult waters is one in a million. With that, Jami!

SC: When did you first discover your passion and talent for photography?

JF: My mom picked out a black and white darkroom elective class for me in middle school. She thought it sounded interesting and wanted me to try it out. Little did she know she was creating a monster! I LOVED the class, loved developing my own film and watching the magic of the image appear in the photo chemical baths! I actually do still take a Nikonos III underwater film camera with me sometimes if I feel a need to go back to basics for a creative push.

SC: Tell us a little about your path to where you are now. What made you want to start diving, become a Divemaster, and then bring your camera below the surface?

JF: Scuba wasn’t really on my radar until I went to a wedding in Maui years ago. A friend also attending really wanted someone to do this Discover Scuba Diving course with him while we were there. I figured it sounded interesting, so I agreed to go too. I was hooked the second I took my first breath underwater! It was such an incredible feeling, and I knew right then and there I was going to pursue a full certification when I got back home. But a few of the skills were difficult for me during my open water class back home. I wasn’t comfortable with mask clearing, and the low visibility we have here in San Diego gave me major anxiety. But I was determined to get that feeling back I had in Maui, so I decided to keep taking classes to make me more confident and really understand the sport. I found I really enjoyed furthering my dive education and just kept going till I finished my Divemaster course. 

As for the camera, I was already obsessed with photography since I was a kid, so it was only natural that I wanted to start taking photos underwater too. I just wanted to share the amazing things I saw with others. I waited till I was more comfortable with diving. After I had about 25 dives under my belt and felt like my buoyancy was solid, I started taking a small canon point and shoot with me. I eventually upgraded to a Sealife camera system with strobes and now have a DSLR sea monster, a Canon 80D, with dual Sea & Sea strobes!

SC: What's been the most interesting or surprising thing you've observed while watching sharks or other creatures of San Diego’s waters?

JF: I think it’s interesting (and awesome!) how comfortable most local sharks are in our presence. To have a large torpedo shaped sevengill shark cruise right by you calmly is incredible. Or see a horn shark just sit on the sandy bottom and have a stare down with you. And I think it’s hilarious that most Southern California locals don’t really think twice about our annual aggregation of leopard sharks, but when you post about it on social media, the majority of people everywhere else are in absolute shock that these leopard shark beauties will calmly swim around you in knee deep water. And not just one or two… I’ve seen days were there were easily 50-60 of them…maybe more! 

SC: What is your go-to camera set up?

JF: I love my Canon 80D. I shot with it before getting a housing for it and I’m very comfortable with it. I always have 2 strobes to help bring back the light and 2 video lights that I use to either switch over to video or to just use as dive and focus lights. They are all mounted on my camera system so I’m not fumbling trying to locate a light when I need one. If I’m shore diving, I’m almost always shooting macro with a 60mm lens. If I’m boat diving, I typically shoot wide angle with a Tokina Fish Eye 10-17mm.

I really like the challenge of figuring out the right recipe of settings to create the image I see in my head. And think it’s hilarious when the results of an image don’t turn out anything like I thought it would, but I end up liking it more. It’s just fun for me, it’s my happy place to be underwater and behind a camera!

SC: Do you have any tricks to share for photography in the kelp forest? It is low light and typically filled with sediment, any tips to get around that? 

JF: Take multiples, especially in kelp, because you never know when it’s going to sway into that perfect position or when the light rays are going to stream through at just the right angle. It can be hard to get around the sediment in our local waters. First rule would be to try and keep your strobes behind your port and angled out so just the edge of the cone of light will light your subject. And If that fails, just switch to shooting macro instead!

SC: We met you for the first time at Even Keel’s Shark Weekend event, where you always generously donate a print to the raffle in support of conservation. How do you hope your photography further contributes to the fight to save the ocean? 

JF: My hope is that my photography can help contribute to research and inspire others to want to learn more and DO more to protect the oceans for our future generations. Creating visual stories can help reach more people and hit their souls in a way that will hopefully make them want to do better. Make small changes and support the greater good. Something that hits even closer to home now that I have a son.

SC: You've photographed blue sharks, leopards, seven gills, the California list is endless. Is there a specific moment, encounter or photo that stands out as your favorite?

JF: The most interesting (and thrilling!) encounter I ever had was while I was solo diving at Catalina Island in October 2019. Visibility was maybe 20-25 ft, low for Catalina Island and there was a ton of floating sediment in the water column. I was checking out the nooks and crannies of the pinnacle and would turn to check my surroundings frequently. I tend to do more turns than normal to check out my surroundings when I solo dive (which I am specifically certified for!)… And during one of those checks, is when I saw the unmistakable sharky grin of the landlord. Yup, a great white shark came cruising in just on the edge of visibility to check me out, then turned and calmly swam away! I knew it was too far to take a photo, but I needed proof so I was able to get a short (and crappy, but its proof) clip of the great white as it disappeared into the murk. It was determined later it was about a 13-14 foot great white. While my heart was racing from the excitement, I did not feel any threat from the shark at all. To be in the water with a shark of that size and alone is something I’ll never forget. And to top that off, we found out a few weeks later that we were expecting, and I was in the very early weeks of pregnancy during that dive. I tell my son all the time now that he has swam with a great white shark already!

SC: What animal are you most drawn to? Is there a specific shark or pinniped, as an example, that you seek out? 

JF: This is a hard question! I do love sevengills. It’s so awesome to have the opportunity to see them annually and be able to calmly swim with them. And those prehistoric muppet looking faces are just so easy to love! But I do seek out pinniped encounters. They really are the puppies of the sea and just so much fun. Harbor seals can be more elusive and coy. So I consider myself incredibly lucky when one rarely decides to come check me out. But sea lions? The pupping season always produces crazy curious pups and when they are old enough to stray from mom and dad, they come looking to harass you and it’s hilarious and magical!

SC: You’re the queen of San Diego diving. What is your favorite spot to dive and why?

JF: Ha, or am I just nuts to want to be in this cold water all the time? I love La Jolla Shores. It’s easy to get to, I can go last minute, and I’ve had epic encounters there. Some find the surface swim annoying; I just use it as justification for breakfast burritos! Some days can be sparce on sea life and not as exciting, but just getting to go breathe underwater and float along in a weightless wonderland can be the cure for anything. I’m so grateful to be able to live close enough to a dive site where I can get so much water time. And then some days are insanely epic, and you can’t believe you’re lucky enough to be able to dive here! 

SC: You’re a fairly new mother. Do you have any hopes for the future of our planet for your son to experience? When are you going to get him in the ocean with a tank on his back?! 

JF: I’m a little scared of what the future might be like for his generation. And I’m sad that there are things that have already been destroyed that he will never know the beauty of. I hope the next generations continue the hard work and dedication that organizations like Shark Allies have pushed for. I want him to see the beauty of the underwater world and the importance the ocean has on the entire ecosystem.

I hope my son has the passion for the water like both his parents do. At the very least a passion to respect it. He’s enrolling in swimming lessons soon, so that’s step one! Wait did you see his Halloween costume last year?! Does that count?