Maldives

Region: Indian Ocean, South Asia
Type: Coral atolls; mantas, whale sharks, reef systems
Significance: Premier manta ray destination; professional filmmaking location; coral bleaching case study; shark conservation landmark
First Wetpixel coverage: 2003

Overview

The Maldives is one of the most frequently covered tropical destinations in Wetpixel’s history, appearing in over 100 articles and dozens of forum discussions. The archipelago of 1,192 coral islands grouped into 26 atolls offers a distinctive photographic profile: massive pelagic encounters (manta rays, whale sharks, reef sharks), strong currents with schooling fish, but comparatively limited macro diversity. Coverage centers on three pillars: the extraordinary manta ray and whale shark aggregations (especially at Hanifaru Bay in Baa Atoll), its role as a proving ground for cutting-edge underwater cinema technology, and its recurring prominence in coral bleaching and shark conservation narratives.

The Maldives was identified by market researcher Fior Markets as one of three destinations (alongside Malaysia and Indonesia) that would “drive the market” for underwater camera growth through 2027, owing to rising tourist awareness (^[1]). As a nation of 99% water and 1% land, its marine environment is both its primary economic asset and its most vulnerable resource.

Geography and Diving Character

The Maldives offers excellent pelagic diving but a different photographic experience from Southeast Asian macro destinations. Forum member Alex Mustard summarized the distinction in 2005: “Every reef seethes with fish and there are few places in the world where there are so many big ones… the small fish diversity is not up to Indonesia — but then there are few divesites in Indonesia where you get massive schools of snappers or see 5+ Napoleon Wrasse on a single dive.” His group counted double-digit reef sharks on several dives, including a school of 25 grey reef sharks (^[2]). Maaya Thila at night, where whitetip reef sharks hunt on the reef, was singled out as excellent for photography (^[3]).

Community member Steve Jones nominated South Ari Atoll as his favorite destination, citing large pelagics including mantas and whale sharks, pristine reefs, and dive centers accustomed to photographers, though he noted overcrowding and the impact of shark finning as drawbacks (^[4]).

Key atolls and dive areas covered by Wetpixel include:

• Baa Atoll — Hanifaru Bay manta aggregation; UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve since 2011
• South Ari Atoll — Year-round whale shark aggregation; site of the Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme; LUX resort
• North Ari Atoll — Fish Head dive site
• Laamu Atoll — Six Senses resort; content creator residency programs
• Fuvahmulah — Tiger shark encounters; emerging dive destination

Manta Rays and Hanifaru Bay

The Baa Atoll manta aggregation at Hanifaru Bay is the single most discussed Maldives topic on Wetpixel. The bay’s unique topography funnels tidal currents to concentrate plankton, drawing aggregations of up to 250 manta rays at a time (^[5]).

Overcrowding Crisis (2010)

By 2010, overcrowding had become critical. Up to 200 divers and snorkelers were observed in the water simultaneously, despite regulations limiting numbers to 80. Guy Stevens, director of the Maldives Manta Ray Project and marine biologist at Four Seasons Resort Landaa Giraavaru, warned: “Hanifaru is an amazing place, but it’s also a place that, if we’re not careful, will be destroyed” (^[6]). Forum comments described chaotic scenes: mass-certified tourists descending on the cleaning station heavily overweighted, divers attempting to grab mantas by their cephalic lobes, and boatloads of guided snorkel groups dumped into the middle of manta vortices (^[7]).

UNESCO Protection (2011)

Baa Atoll was declared a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve in July 2011, specifically because the pressures caused by increasing visitor numbers demanded formal protection. Guy Stevens described the philosophy: “Hanifaru will become a place where manta rays, tourism and the local communities can, and should, all benefit from its existence” (^[8]). New rules introduced snorkeling-only access, though Alex Mustard expressed concern about plans to build a dock, noting that the manta aggregation exists because of the unique interaction between tidal currents and topography, and that altering the landscape could disrupt the current flow (^[9]).

International Manta Protection (2011)

In November 2011, the UN Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) added the giant manta ray (Manta birostris) to Appendix I and II, obligating member countries to provide strict national protections. The Maldives was cited as a key example of manta ecotourism generating significant economic benefits, with worldwide manta-based tourism and filming estimated at US$100 million per year. East Asian demand for gill rakers was identified as the primary driver of targeted manta fisheries (^[10]).

Courtship Research (2018)

A 14-year study published in the journal Fish Biology documented 229 courtship events of oceanic (Manta birostris) and reef (Mobula alfredi) manta rays in the Maldives. Manta Trust scientists found that females lure suitors using pheromones, then engage in several-hour high-speed chases that may involve breaching behavior, eventually whittling potential mates to a single suitor. The elaborate ritual is linked to the species’ reproductive biology: females give birth only every four to five years and are not sexually mature until age 15 (^[11]).

Alex Mustard at Hanifaru

Associate editor Alex Mustard led photography groups to Baa Atoll and reported that his favorite manta images at Hanifaru were taken without strobes using a Magic Filter, noting the irony of extensive equipment discussions when natural light produced his best results (^[12]).

Whale Sharks

South Ari Atoll is one of the world’s few year-round whale shark aggregation sites. The Maldives Whale Shark Research Programme (MWSRP), a UK-registered charity based in the South Ari Atoll Marine Protected Area, conducts ongoing research and called for volunteers in 2012 to assist with a new research season and the first annual Maldivian Whale Shark Festival (^[13]).

A 2013 Scientific American article evaluated the impact of whale shark ecotourism across multiple destinations including the Maldives, concluding that while tourism provides economic alternatives to fishing or finning, overcrowding may also negatively affect the sharks (^[14]).

Professional Filmmaking

The Maldives has repeatedly served as a location for cutting-edge underwater video technology:

• 2010: Howard Hall shot with a RED ONE camera in a Gates DEEP RED housing during an 18-day liveaboard trip aboard the M/V Manthiri, using Nikon lenses. His journal excerpts detailed the expedition in detail (^[15]). The resulting “Maldives in RED” reel generated extensive community discussion, with 17 comments debating lens quality, dome port adequacy, and expectations for professional work versus expedition footage. Eric Cheng defended the reel as “simply a show reel from one trip to the Maldives, set to music” rather than a polished production (^[16]). Howard Hall’s “The Blue Ocean in Red,” a compilation from his 2010 filming projects including the Maldives, Alaska, California, Cocos Island, and Mexico, was later posted to Vimeo (^[17]).
• 2010: Jim and Pat Stayer showed mobs of mantas at Hanifaru Bay in the Maldives at the San Diego Undersea Film Exhibition (SDUFEX), while Howard Hall’s “Maldives in Red” was also screened, opening with a whale shark appearing beneath the camera (^[18]).
• 2010: Eric Cheng shot stereoscopic 3D video of a moray eel hunting at night in the Maldives using two Sony CX550V camcorders in a custom BS Kinetics underwater housing, producing anaglyph red/cyan 3D footage (^[19]).
• 2013: Ron Lagerlof filmed the Dhara Muli manta cleaning station at Baa Atoll with a RED EPIC digital cinema camera in a Gates DEEP EPIC housing, shooting at 36, 48, and 96 fps for slow-motion playback on DiveFilm HD (^[20]).
• 2014: Wetpixel member EunJae Im (forum name “escape”) produced a short film of the marine life of the southern atolls, shot on a Canon EOS 70D in a Nauticam housing with Canon EF 10-22mm and Sigma 8-16mm behind a 9-inch dome (^[21]).
• 2017: Rafa Herrero shot “World Oceans Day” in 6K with a RED Dragon camera, with footage from the Canary Islands, Azores, Cuba, Red Sea, and Maldives (^[22]).

Notable Photography

Competition-Winning Images

The Maldives has been a frequent source of award-winning underwater imagery:

• 2007: The Shark Trust “Sharks in Focus” competition offered a week-long diving holiday for two in the Maldives as its grand prize (^[23]).
• 2010: The winner of the BSoUP British Splash-In Championship received a one-week Maldives liveaboard trip donated by Maldives Scuba Tours (^[24]).
• 2012: The British Underwater Photography Championship awarded a 7-day luxury liveaboard holiday for two in the Maldives as a prize (^[25]).
• 2015: Luc Eekhaut’s “Elisabeth” from the Maldives was a finalist in the Divers category at DEEP 2015 (^[26]).
• 2017: Vaclav Krpelik captured a whiptail stingray (Himantura fai) surrounded by schooling bannerfish while freediving in the Maldives, using a Canon EOS 550D with Tokina 10-17mm in a Sea & Sea RDX housing (^[27]).

Publications and Books

• 1994: Kurt Amsler’s book Maldives won best book of underwater photographs at the Antibes Festival (^[28]).
• 2009: Julian Cohen’s “Mantas of the Maldives” was featured in UWP Magazine Issue 46 (^[29]).
• 2013: Jason Isley of Scubazoo was co-author of the coffee table book Maldives — The Underwater Kingdom (^[30]).
• 2017: Reef ID Books published Coral Reefs Maldives by Andrey Ryanskiy, illustrating over 1,200 species commonly found in Maldivian reefs and atolls, including new records of fishes and invertebrates. Ryanskiy used Advanced Trimix and Full Cave Diver training to document deep reef slope species beyond recreational limits (^[31]).
• 2020: Pete Atkinson’s “Maldives Paradise” destination review appeared in UwP Magazine Issue 113 (^[32]).

Conservation

Coral Bleaching

The Maldives has served as a prominent case study in coral bleaching throughout Wetpixel’s coverage:

• 1998: A major El Nino event destroyed most of the country’s shallow reef coral, setting a baseline against which all subsequent events were measured (^[33]).
• 2010: The most serious coral bleaching since 1998 struck the Maldives. Hussein Zahir from the Marine Research Center estimated “10-15 percent of shallow reef coral is now completely white, while 50-70 percent has begun to pale.” Guy Stevens at Four Seasons Resort Landaa Giraavaru observed that bleaching had begun the previous year after a change in weather linked to El Nino. He noted that resorts were reluctant to publicize the bleaching, but warned against denial: “I don’t think it’s any good burying our heads in the sand, when there’s isn’t going to be any sand left to bury our heads in.” He described artificial coral breeding programs at resorts as “rather like putting a band-aid on a gushing wound” and warned that “coral reefs may be the first ecosystem we’ll lose on our planet” (^[34]).
• 2015: The Hydrous, a non-profit using underwater photogrammetry to measure endangered coral species, mapped coral reefs in the Maldives (along with Hawaii, Solomon Islands, Guam, and Palau) to create 3D models for tracking the effects of climate change (^[35]).
• 2016: Exposure Labs, makers of the documentary “Chasing Ice,” sought underwater photographer volunteers to document the third global coral bleaching event on record, listing the Maldives among Indian Ocean survey sites (^[36]).

Shark Conservation

The Maldives has been a focal point for shark conservation policy on Wetpixel:

• 2010: The People’s Majlis implemented a shark fishing ban (^[37]).
• 2011: The Maldives joined seven other countries (Bahamas, Colombia, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia, and Palau) in signing a declaration to designate up to 6 million additional square kilometers as shark sanctuaries, pledging to “maintain or develop shark sanctuaries, work together internationally to ensure healthy shark populations, and advocate for better science-based precautionary protection for sharks in all international fora” (^[38]).
• 2012: At the Rio+20 conference, President Waheed announced that the entire Maldives would become a marine reserve by 2017, outlawing all “non-sustainable” fishing practices and excluding deep-sea, purse-seining, and other destructive trawling techniques. Environmental activists hoped the proclamation would include the full Exclusive Economic Zone of 200 nautical miles (^[39]).
• 2021: Fisheries Minister Zaha Waheed stated the ministry was considering lifting the shark fishing ban to “reap benefits from fishing this economic resource.” Wetpixel published an extensive call to action with email templates for advocacy; Alex Mustard provided images. A joint statement from concerned stakeholders highlighted three enforcement failures: an attempted illegal export of 429 kg of shark fins seized at Velana International Airport on 3 January 2021, a vessel apprehended carrying shark carcasses with removed fins in South Ari Atoll on 23 March, and illegal drum fishing lines discovered at the Fish Head dive site in North Ari Atoll with hooked sharks on 24 March (^[40]).
• 2021: Shark Guardians subsequently reported that the minister’s statements had been quoted out of context; the Maldives Majlis remained committed to the shark fishing ban. The minister’s comments related to shark bycatch from a proposed long-line tuna fishery, not a reversal in conservation policy. Adam Hanlon produced a Wetpixel Live episode explaining the nuances of the controversy (^[41], ^[42]).

Coralarium Controversy (2018)

Underwater sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor opened the Coralarium at the Fairmont Maldives Sirru Fen Fushi in July 2018, containing 30 coral-covered structures cast from local Maldivians. The semi-submerged exhibit was seeded with coral to promote new growth and included a living staghorn coral path (^[43]). In September, Maldivian police destroyed the artwork using pickaxes, ropes, and saws, acting on a civil court order. Former President Abdulla Yameen, who lost re-election that same weekend, had ordered the removal in July (^[44]).

Turtle Rescue

In January 2011, divers on a liveaboard at Kudara Thila in South Ari Atoll discovered three turtles caught in a fishing net. Photographer Lea Lee documented the rescue as German diver Bettina cut the turtles free one by one with a knife, in a Wetpixel Full Frame feature (^[45]).

Events and Expeditions

• 2003: At the Antibes Festival, a Maldives-themed website (maldives.at) by Gerhard Geyer of Austria received a special mention from the jury (^[46]).
• 2004: The Indian Ocean tsunami struck the Maldives on December 26. Wetpixel’s community thread documented concern about members in the region, with reports that entire low-lying islands were swept over by waves. Forum discussions examined the environmental impact, with detailed analysis of how sedimentation, debris, and loss of mangroves could affect reef recovery over decades (^[47], ^[48]).
• 2010: Eric Cheng led a manta expedition aboard the MV Orion to Baa Atoll and Hanifaru Bay, organized by Richard Woulfe and Sue Chen of Reef Check, priced at $2,800 for 7 days of diving (^[49]).
• 2012: The first Maldives Underwater Festival was held at LUX resort on South Ari Atoll, May 14-20. The event featured underwater photography sessions with award-winning photographer Pascal Kobeh (who had started his career as a diving instructor in the Maldives) and Japanese nature photographer Junji Takasago, free-diving courses with Jean-Jacques Mayol (son of free-diving legend Jacques Mayol, subject of Luc Besson’s The Big Blue), the first fluo night-diving in the Maldives using specialized filters, and workshops with resident marine biologist Chiara Fumagalli (^[50]).
• 2012: The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office updated travel advice following the resignation of democratically elected President Mohamed Nasheed amid street riots and a police mutiny. The FCO advised visitors to avoid Male but noted that tourist resorts and the airport remained unaffected (^[51]).
• 2015: A Panasonic GH4 in a Nauticam underwater housing was found fully functional by diver John Ng after spending three months on the ocean floor in the Maldives. The camera was returned to its owner via serial number registration (^[52]).
• 2020: Six Senses resort in Laamu Atoll advertised for a resident Content Creator to produce underwater and topside imagery covering marine conservation, wellness, and sustainability stories (^[53]).

Community Discussion

Wetpixel forum threads reveal the practical realities of photographing in the Maldives:

• Destination assessment (2005): Forum member “caveman” found the Maldives disappointing for macro photography compared to Indonesia, noting “very little in terms of bommies, staghorn/table corals etc.” and limited diversity, though pelagics were plentiful. Alex Mustard countered that the Maldives offers “a completely different set of photo opportunities to SE Asia destinations,” emphasizing drift diving with big subjects rather than reef macro (^[54]).
• Gear emergencies (2022): Forum member “nickthegreeek” flooded both strobes on day one of a Maldives trip and sought emergency replacements before heading to Fuvahmulah for tiger sharks, discovering there were no underwater camera suppliers in the country. The community suggested natural light and black-and-white techniques as alternatives (^[55]).
• Photographer etiquette (2023): A liveaboard trip in the Maldives sparked debate when a videographer asked a photographer to stop using strobes because flash was visible in his manta footage, highlighting the growing tension between stills photographers and videographers at popular dive sites (^[56]).

Liveaboards and Dive Operations

Several Maldives dive vessels appear repeatedly across Wetpixel coverage:

• M/V Manthiri — Used by Howard Hall for his RED ONE filming (2010); prize vessel for multiple competitions including NCUPS and Ocean Art
• M/V Orion — Eric Cheng’s 2010 manta expedition with Reef Check
• Maldives Siren — Competition prize sponsor for Ocean Views (2012)
• Carpe Novo / Carpe Diem Cruises — Prize sponsor for Ocean Art 2022
• Conte Max / Duke of York (Luxury Yacht Maldives) — Prize at World ShootOut 2017

References