The bloody blue devilfish, I used to love them, they were my favourite fish in NSW waters, and they are so regal, so beautiful, so impossibly evolved as though someone stuck several species of fish together to make one whole.  So why do I hate them? Because I haven’t got a picture of one!

My friend Michael Cufer, a fellow award winning photographer and competitor for Australasian U/W Photographer of the Year has got one, my underwater photography student and friend, Richard Arnold has got one, even my friend Sue Newson, Chef on MV Ocean Trek has got one, in fact it’s displayed on our picture of the month pages. Well she was my friend until she got that picture!

So lately I have been thinking about the ultimate dinner I want Sue to cook for me on our next Dive 2000 weekend aboard Ocean trek at Jervis Bay. Fillet of Devilfish, lightly crumbed with a side of Jervis Bay scallops.

It all began 38 years ago when I encountered my first one snorkelling at Jervis Bay. In fact I got a picture, a pretty crappy picture really, probably because at nineteen I was just developing my u/w photo skills, I was snorkelling, and my camera only shot 12 shots per roll and used flash bulbs. Yep, in those days you had to carry around 12 flash bulbs, breath hold dive to 15 meters and be satisfied with one scuba dive per weekend because there were no air fills available anywhere on the NSW coast outside of Sydney.  Anyway, I resolved to try again because like everyone who has ever encountered a Blue Devilfish, I was captivated.

So 38 years later I am a highly awarded underwater cameraman, I have pictures of rare marine life from the top dive sites in the world, but no blue devilfish, bloody things! So what happened!

Well that’s just how it is with underwater photography, there are so many animals, so many oceans, so many opportunities, you get distracted, you overlook the obvious, not to mention the odd attempt that ends in failure, and you just can’t do it all.  But I couldn’t escape the obvious, we spend at least six weekends a year with Dive 2000 aboard MV Ocean Trek at Jervis Bay so it’s a poor excuse. Obviously I had overlooked my number one rule for successful underwater photography, select your subject, select the right lens, select the right location and pursue the bugger relentlessly. Rule number two, if you don’t get the shot, repeat rule number one relentlessly until you do.

So, at the next opportunity, I am aboard Ocean Trek and Chef Sue tells me about the location of this Blue Devilfish she has befriended and named Lucifer. Armed with my trusty Nikon F5, fully charged batteries in my strobes, twin 7 litre tanks full of 36% Nitrox provided by captain Mick and my cosy warm Apollo dry suit, I am determined not to come back until I get that rotten little Blue devilfish. Arriving at the correct location, double decker cave, ledge number two, slightly to the right, sure enough there is Lucifer! Right on cue he strikes the classic Blue Devilfish pose fins erect, perfect profile, a rhapsody of black, white, yellow & blue. Finding focus and perfect composition I settle in for a serious photo session, shot one, shot two, shit he pisses off into the deep recesses of the cave and sulks, my photo opportunity is over, oh you little bugger!

So I wait with fingers crossed for the film processing, could I actually have captured the rotten little Blue Devilfish with only a two shot opportunity. YES!, there is Lucifer in all his glory, I love you Lucifer, I love Blue Devilfish, thank you my best friend Sue, Captain Mick, I am happy to eat your roast dinners every Sat night aboard Ocean Trek, especially since we introduced you to gravy!

Blue Devilfish are off the menu!