Tide Pools
The shore at low tide, seen up close. These pictures are packed with texture from edge to edge, which makes them the most relaxed dive site for jigsaws and swap puzzles.
6 pictures · 24 dives · on average 3% of each frame has little detail
Sea stars and anemones in a rock pool
Seen from above, a clear rock pool holds two orange and two purple sea stars among a dozen round green anemones. Pink algae, small snails and pebbles fill every gap.
Main colours: brown (50%), olive (26%) and charcoal (24%). Plain area: 0% of the frame.
Hermit crab on the rocks
A hermit crab with hairy red legs peeks out of a striped spiral shell on rough, wet rock. Strands of green seaweed and a small pool lie to the left; barnacle holes dot the rock on the right.
Main colours: olive (39%), brown (25%), charcoal (24%) and sand (11%). Plain area: 0% of the frame.
Octopus in a rock pool
A small reddish-brown octopus spreads its arms across pebbles in a shallow rock pool. Green seaweed, rounded stones and tufts of red algae surround it on every side.
Main colours: brown (37%), charcoal (37%) and olive (26%). Plain area: 0% of the frame.
Mussel beds at low tide
At low tide, rounded rocks covered in dark blue mussels and pale barnacles shine wet in the light. Brown seaweed hangs over them, and channels of seawater run between the rocks.
Main colours: charcoal (50%), grey (26%), slate grey (14%) and brown (10%). Plain area: 0% of the frame.
Red crab on the wrack
A bright red crab stands on a tangle of olive-brown seaweed at the edge of the sea. Smooth dark pebbles lie behind it, and small white waves wash in across the top of the picture.
Main colours: brown (36%), charcoal (25%), grey (18%) and slate grey (11%). Plain area: 0% of the frame.
Rock pools at sunset
A flat rocky shore stretches to the sea under a sunset of orange and pink clouds, with the sun sitting on the horizon. Dozens of shallow pools mirror the sky; the largest lies in the foreground.
Main colours: charcoal (51%), brown (22%), slate grey (15%) and coral pink (13%). Plain area: 16% of the frame.
Rock, shell, seaweed and wet sand fill almost every part of these frames, so there is very little plain area to slow you down. The challenge is different: textures repeat. Mussel beds and barnacles look alike everywhere, so look for the larger shapes — the line of a rock, a channel of water — rather than single details.
The sunset picture is the odd one out: a wide sky and still pools that mirror it. It plays more like a coast picture than a close-up.