The marine biologist whose photography pastime became a profession

A species of zooplankton is surrounded by the pink and purple colours of a jellyfish.

The parasitic amphipod Hyperia galba inside the jellyfish Cyanea capillata.

The parasitic amphipod Hyperia galba inside the jellyfish Cyanea capillata.

After graduating with a master’s degree in marine biology from Lomonosov Moscow State University in 2007, I joined the White Sea Biological Station in Primorskiy, Russia, as a diver assistant — effectively working as a kind of undersea technician.

The station, a research centre based on the Karelian coast of the White Sea, at the edge of the polar circle, is part of Moscow State University. In my first year, I was so impressed by the beauty of the cold, underwater world and the strangeness of the animals living there that I became obsessed with photographing them.

Alexander in his dive gear on a boat surrounded by icy water.

Alexander Semenov during a field expedition in March 2017.

Alexander Semenov during a field expedition in March 2017.

At first, I pulled invertebrates out of the water and took pictures of them in the laboratory without special lighting or much understanding of the buttons on the camera. I learnt on the fly, just by gut feeling — there was no Internet at the station to help me, so I experimented and tried set-ups, settings and lighting that came to my mind. Today, I could complete a full-fledged photography course on YouTube in just a few days.

Eventually, the station director asked me for detailed photos of around 300 invertebrate species for an illustrated atlas of the flora and fauna of the White Sea. I was soon able to capture images of any critter larger than 3 millimetres in less than 5 minutes.

A gallery of Alexander's images depicting a variety of species.

Early photography work from Semenov’s blog. Species names are (going clockwise): C. capillataC. limacinaFlabellina verrucosa and its prey Ectopleyra larynx (in foreground), Stomphia coccinea and sea spider Nymphon sp..

Early photography work from Semenov’s blog. Species names are (going clockwise): C. capillataC. limacinaFlabellina verrucosa and its prey Ectopleyra larynx (in foreground), Stomphia coccinea and sea spider Nymphon sp..

I now have a unique collection of images of cold-water invertebrates, some of the least-photographed creatures in the world. I had attempted to get some of those pictures for years, such as one of the sea angel (Clione limacina) catching sea butterfly (Limacina helicina). The mollusc splits its head in half in an instant and throws out six huge tentacles to trap its prey. The process is lightning-quick: it was impossible for me to get my camera up in time to focus on the tiny 3-centimetre creature furiously waving its wings. After mastering some tricky techniques to feed the angels underwater, I now have more than 50 amazing photos of them hunting.

A Sea Butterfly and hunting Sea Angel photographed with a black background.

Thanks to his patience underwater, Semenov captured this photograph of a sea angel trapping a sea butterfly.

Thanks to his patience underwater, Semenov captured this photograph of a sea angel trapping a sea butterfly.

My blog posts rapidly gained views and great feedback as I uploaded more images, and then I started getting media attention. In 2011, for example, the BBC Science Focus magazine paid me for a double-page spread of sea-angel photographs. My fee was equal to two months’ salary. I realized that underwater photography was not only useful for science and science communication, but could also be a source of income.

Alexander feeding a Sea Angel from a pipette.

Semenov learnt to feed sea angels from pipettes, which led to a series of successful photographs.

Semenov learnt to feed sea angels from pipettes, which led to a series of successful photographs.

I am now a professional photographer and lead the scientific diving team at the station. I’ve won photo contests and, in 2012, Nature published one of my images in its compilation of the best scientific photos of the year. The Magical World of the Cold Seas, my book about the creatures I photograph, was published in 2016. But for me, the highlights of my career have been the work visits to places no one has ever been diving before. These include the Novaya Zemlya archipelago and some incredible spots on the Kuril Islands, both off Russia’s coast.

When I started my career 14 years ago, the university provided underwater equipment and cool cameras. I now provide my own, and show students what can be done with them.

My experience of communicating science through photography has convinced me that someone who is genuinely passionate about what they do is best placed to capture the public’s imagination and interest.

A stalked jellyfish sits on Alexander's dome port while diving.

Semenov taking an underwater close-up of a stalked jellyfish (Lucernaria quadricornis).

Semenov taking an underwater close-up of a stalked jellyfish (Lucernaria quadricornis).

Alexander giving a presentation with his images displayed behind him.

The attention garnered by Semenov’s photography blog led to speaking opportunities, such as this one at the Science Slam festival in Moscow in May 2014.

The attention garnered by Semenov’s photography blog led to speaking opportunities, such as this one at the Science Slam festival in Moscow in May 2014.

Alexander teaching a class of students.

Semenov gives a talk to students at the White Sea Biological Station at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Semenov gives a talk to students at the White Sea Biological Station at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

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A stalked jellyfish sits on Alexander's dome port while diving.

Semenov taking an underwater close-up of a stalked jellyfish (Lucernaria quadricornis).

Semenov taking an underwater close-up of a stalked jellyfish (Lucernaria quadricornis).

Alexander giving a presentation with his images displayed behind him.

The attention garnered by Semenov’s photography blog led to speaking opportunities, such as this one at the Science Slam festival in Moscow in May 2014.

The attention garnered by Semenov’s photography blog led to speaking opportunities, such as this one at the Science Slam festival in Moscow in May 2014.

Alexander teaching a class of students.

Semenov gives a talk to students at the White Sea Biological Station at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Semenov gives a talk to students at the White Sea Biological Station at Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Impressive visual content — which includes hand-drawn illustrations, 3D graphics and videos — grabs people’s attention in a way that few other methods can. A photograph of a jellyfish ingesting litter can be understood both by a child with no biological training and a policymaker who has data but no emotional understanding of pollution’s effects on our oceans. Visual representation of research is the art of finding ways to make implicit knowledge become explicit by providing a pictorial foundation for an understanding of complex issues.

A tiny crustacean parasite surrounded by orange and blue colours.

H. galba inside the C. capillata jellyfish. Photographed in August 2016.

H. galba inside the C. capillata jellyfish. Photographed in August 2016.

A King Ragworm photographed with a black background.

A king ragworm (Alitta virens), photographed in July 2012.

A king ragworm (Alitta virens), photographed in July 2012.

C. capillata jellyfish eating an Aurelia jellyfish, photographed in June 2018.

If you are a scientist hoping to photograph and share your own research:

•    Don’t underestimate the power of modern media and social-media platforms. Content is changing the world and people’s lives, and it can easily change your life. Stay at the forefront of media technology, or at least be aware of developments. It’s a never-ending race, but it’s easy to get into.

•    If you plan to share your work with others, imagine what will be of interest to them. If you can excitingly describe your work to a 5-year-old, you won’t have any trouble getting anyone interested. Beautiful pictures help, but the story always comes first.

Syllis maganda — a new species discovered and photographed at the Lizard Island Research Station in the Coral Sea in July 2012.

•    You will stand out much more if you have a niche and unique story. It could be your rare field of science or a special angle that you use to tell the story of your work. Being different is awesome.

•    Set the bar very high. You can find dozens of examples of truly high-quality content on the Internet. And you can almost always find resources that can help you to learn how to create work of the same calibre. With practice, your skills will inevitably rise — but at any given time, it’s important to know the level you should aim for.

•    Find people who are cooler than you. Don’t hesitate to ask them for advice or to shadow them. Have them share their experiences, stand behind them and observe their work if they’ll let you. Few things are more useful than real work experience, both your own and that of others.

•    Take on a project. This could be a an illustrated workbook for colleagues or students, a guide book, a lecture for schoolchildren with compelling visuals, a course for students or a documentary on your topic.

•    If you work in a team, you can raise the bar even higher. Use each other’s strengths, share experiences, make plans, apply for grants and take on challenging science-communication projects together. This multiplies the fun and the results.

Jellyfish photographed with a black background.

C. capillata jellyfish eating an Aurelia jellyfish, photographed in June 2018.

C. capillata jellyfish eating an Aurelia jellyfish, photographed in June 2018.

A Syllis maganda photographed with a black background.

Syllis maganda — a new species discovered and photographed at the Lizard Island Research Station in the Coral Sea in July 2012.

Syllis maganda — a new species discovered and photographed at the Lizard Island Research Station in the Coral Sea in July 2012.

Alexander Semenov is a marine biologist and head of the scientific diving team at the White Sea Biological Station of Moscow State University.

Correction 30 March 2022: A picture caption in an earlier version of this story erroneously stated that Hyperia galba was caught by a jellyfish. In fact, it is a parasite of jellyfish.

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