Mermaid

Friday, October 9, 2026 7:30pm - Luis Rocha, Into the Twilight Zone - Exploration and Photography on Deep Coral Reefs

In-person at Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo (Monterey) and online by Zoom

Ready to dive deep? Join us for the next meeting of The Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS), hosted by Backscatter!

We are thrilled to present our guest speaker, Luiz Rocha, Chair of Ichthyology at the California Academy of Sciences, for his incredible, free talk: “Into the Twilight Zone: Exploration and Photography on Deep Coral Reefs”.

Discover the mesophotic “twilight zone”—some of the least explored and unprotected coral reef ecosystems on Earth. Luiz will share how his team of scientists uses technical rebreather diving to document biodiversity at challenging depths of 50 to 150 meters. You won’t want to miss these stories behind his most memorable images, capturing rarely seen habitats and species new to science, all while managing low light and complex camera systems!

In-person:
Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo
225 Cannery Row, Monterey, California

Zoom Link
Meeting ID: 830 2751 8235
Passcode: 048632


 

Mini Competition

Some big changes here too. Read the full details on our website on the competition page.  But the quick big ticket items:

  • Still Photo and Video competitions each month.  Enter either or both!

  • Competition will be judged with comments provided instead of the old voting approach.

  • NEW DEADLINE for entry.  Since we’re using judges, we need to get images to them and give them time to actually do the judging.  So, going forward, please submit your images via the link below (or on the the competition page) by the 15th of the prior month. So, for November, you would submit by October 15.

All of the minicomp themes are on our here with convenient upload links.  You can upload your picture for any month at any time UP UNTIL the deadline.  

September Minicomp

October’s theme is Ambient Light. Those images were due by 9/15.  November’s Minicomp theme is Creative.  Those are due by 10/15.  Get them in on time, please!  Please name your files like this 06YourName.jpg.  Upload November entries here.

And remember, entering is a good idea.  For 2026, we have 2 BIG annual prizes:

  • Best Photographer. $100 prize for the person with the highest cumulative score during the year.

  • Best Shot. Another $100 prize will be awarded to the best photo of the year (based on the first place winners during the January to November time frame).

NCUPS Background

The Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that promotes interest in underwater photography. The club has been active since 1957, sponsoring educational events on both underwater photography and video while promoting awareness of the underwater environment and pertinent ecological issues. NCUPS serves the greater San Francisco Bay area, including Silicon Valley. FEIN 94-3278015

image.jpg