Marjo

Forum username: marjo
Posts: 465
Active years: 2004–2018
Primary forums: Photo/Video Showcase, General Chat, Conservation and the Environment, Photography Gear and Technique
Specialization: Conservation ethics in underwater photography, equipment insurance advocacy, community discussion

Community Role

Marjo was a thoughtful, articulate Wetpixel community member active from 2004 through 2018. With 465 posts across 14 years, she was known for starting and sustaining substantive discussions on the ethical, practical, and business sides of underwater photography — topics that went beyond gear specifications. She self-described as a “geek by profession” and brought analytical rigor to discussions about photographer ethics, equipment insurance, the economics of underwater photography publishing, and gear troubleshooting.

Her most lasting contribution was starting the thread “Doubilet’s Nudi Beauty!” which generated 165 replies — one of the longest discussions in Wetpixel’s history — debating the ethics of David Doubilet’s technique of photographing nudibranchs on white studio backgrounds underwater. Marjo’s posts in that thread demonstrated nuanced thinking, arguing that Doubilet’s reach through National Geographic provided conservation justification that would not apply to ordinary photographers, while also expressing mixed feelings about digital manipulation as an alternative (^[1]).

Notable Contributions

The Doubilet Nudibranch Debate (165 replies)

In May 2008, Marjo started what became one of Wetpixel’s landmark threads by posting about David Doubilet’s nudibranch images shot on white underwater studio backgrounds for National Geographic. The thread exploded into a 165-reply debate on marine life manipulation, the boundaries between photography and art direction, whether Photoshop could achieve similar results, and whether different standards should apply to renowned photographers. Marjo contributed multiple thoughtful posts, arguing that Doubilet’s global audience through National Geographic justified methods that would be inappropriate for ordinary photographers, while defending the images as genuinely inspiring: “They suck me in and I want to keep watching them. They inspire me and make me wonder how something as aesthetically pleasing and intriguing as Nudibranch could have evolved” (^[2]). The thread drew participation from Alex Mustard, Giles, Jeff Loftus, and dozens of other community members.

Equipment Insurance Advocacy

Marjo started and maintained important threads on dive and photo equipment insurance. Her 2011 thread “Dive/Photo equipment insurance revisited?” (42 replies) broke the news that the DEPP insurance plan operators (AWRY, Inc and Innovative Programs Group, Inc) were listed with “Bad” standing and pending dissolution with the Kentucky Secretary of State. This early warning was valuable for community members who had insured expensive underwater photography equipment through the program, which subsequently ceased operations (^[3]).

”The Ugly Photographer” Conservation Discussion

In July 2008, Marjo posted from a dive resort about a fellow photographer who was physically pushing other divers away from subjects, hogging marine life for entire dives, having his partner repeatedly pick up and drop flamingo tongue snails for “dancing shots,” and dismissing complaints with “you’re here just for vacation — I’m WORKING.” The 30-reply thread generated important discussion about photographer ethics, reef damage, and how to confront destructive behavior. Alex Mustard responded directly: “Name them?!” Steve Williams and others offered support and practical suggestions (^[4]).

Ocean Realm Journal Free Content Debate

In April 2006, Marjo flagged an email from Ocean Realm Journal soliciting photographs in exchange for “extra copies of the Journal for family distribution” rather than payment. Her critique of this practice — noting the thousands of dollars photographers spend on gear, insurance, and travel — sparked a 35-reply debate about the economics of underwater photography publishing, the tension between amateur and professional work, and the devaluation of photographic content. The thread foreshadowed broader industry trends around free content and rights-free imagery (^[5]).

Gear Troubleshooting

Marjo was also an active Canon shooter who contributed practical gear threads, including a 31-reply discussion about her Canon Digital Rebel kit lens with a +4 diopter scratching the inside of her Ikelite 5503 dome port when the focus ring moved — a hardware compatibility issue that helped other users avoid similar damage (^[6]).

Activity Profile

• Peak years: 2006–2012 (ethics discussions, insurance, gear)
• Total threads started: 56
• Comments on articles: 4
• Mentioned in articles: 1
• Forum focus: General Chat (~30%), Photo/Video Showcase (~20%), Conservation (~15%), Photography Gear (~20%), other (~15%)
• Gear: Canon Digital Rebel with Ikelite housing
• Top threads:
  • “Doubilet’s Nudi Beauty!” (165 replies) — ethics of studio-style underwater photography (^[7])
  • “Dive/Photo equipment insurance revisited?” (42 replies) — DEPP insurance collapse (^[8])
  • “Ocean Realm Journal” (35 replies) — free content solicitation (^[9])
  • “Canon Dreb kit lens + diopter = scratched domeport 5503” (31 replies) (^[10])
  • “The Ugly photographer” (30 replies) — underwater photographer ethics (^[11])

Timeline

• 2004-01: Joined Wetpixel
• 2004-04: Reported Canon Digital Rebel kit lens / Ikelite dome port compatibility issue (^[12])
• 2006-04: Started Ocean Realm Journal free content debate (^[13])
• 2008-05: Started “Doubilet’s Nudi Beauty!” thread — 165 replies, one of Wetpixel’s longest discussions (^[14])
• 2008-07: Posted “The Ugly Photographer” from a dive resort, describing destructive photographer behavior (^[15])
• 2011-07: Broke news of DEPP equipment insurance provider dissolution (^[16])
• 2018-07: Last recorded activity on Wetpixel