lobster buoys Photo

Photographer’s Note

Buoys are piled up on the pier of the small fishing village of Prospect Harbor in Maine, New England, USA.
Buoys floating on the surface are used to indicate the position of lobster traps.

Lobster traps are rectangular shaped cages made of vinyl-coated galvanized steel mesh with woven mesh entrances and traps of the same design made of wood. These are baited and lowered to the sea floor. They allow a lobster to enter, but make it difficult for the larger specimens to turn around and exit. This allows the creatures to be captured alive. The traps, sometimes referred to as "pots", have a buoy floating on the surface and lobstermen check their traps anywhere between one to seven days later. Studies have shown that the inefficiency of the trapping system has inadvertently prevented the lobster population from being overfished. Lobsters can easily escape the trap, and will defend the trap against other lobsters because it is a source of food. The study, conducted at the University of New Hampshire, estimates that only 10% of lobsters that encounter a trap will enter and that only 6% will actually be caught.
In the United States, the lobster industry is regulated by law. This is done to protect the lobster industry for future generations. Every lobsterman is required to carry a lobster gauge. This is a measuring device that gauges the distance from the lobster's eye socket to the end of its carapace. If the lobster is less than 3¼ inches (83 mm) long, it is too young to be sold and must be released back to the sea. There is also a legal maximum size of 5 inches (127 mm) in Maine, meant to ensure the survival of a healthy breeding stock of adult males. but in parts of some states, such as Massachusetts, there is none. Also, traps must contain an escape hole or "vent", which allows juvenile lobsters and by-catch species to escape. Law in Maine and other states dictates that a second large escape hole or "ghost panel" must be installed. This hole is held shut through use of biodegradable clips made of ferrous metal. Should the trap become lost, the trap will eventually open allowing the catch to escape.

lebjohnson, specialist, gunbud, Budapestman, Charo, BelCan75, bakes888, jhm, gokanlam, vinicio, AiresSantos, richiegimmel, leo61 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

lebjohnson (489) 2009-05-06 9:07

A very well composed image with the yellow pots in the foreground leading my eye back to more yellow pots and then the boats in the background, a pleasing diagonal line for my eye to follow. The colors are appealing, fresh and harmonious. All the details that make a successful and interesting photo are here. As you can tell, I like this one very much.
Kind regards,
Lois

gildasjan (23666) 2009-05-06 9:34

Bonjour Paul
Un bel assemblage de couleurs bleu et jaune ce matériel de pêche à quai.Beaucoup de détails sur la texture des cordes au premier plan.
Bonne journée
Amicalement
gildas

yquem46 (7842) 2009-05-06 10:08

beaucoup de qualité dans cette prise de vue bien composée et colorée. Excellente netteté sur les bouées et les cordages, un beau ciel et juste assez de bateaux pour situer le cadre
Bien vu paul
Patrick

Pablo25 (1703) 2009-05-06 10:25

hello Paul,
it's a really nice colorful photograph. I've never seen this kind of buoys and I didn't know they are used to indicate the position of lobster traps. Good composition and sharpness makes it superb photo. I like it.
warm regards
Pawel

stevesaba (3736) 2009-05-06 10:36

Hi Paul!
A very well seen photo, with stunning clarity and great depth of field. I find these types of a shots a challenge, but everything is in appropriate focus, with the ropes crystal clear, and then our eye following to all the buoys without any disappointment! Altogether a really nice and interesting composition! Nice work! Cheers,
Steve

specialist (795) 2009-05-06 14:23

hi Paul,

a different and eyecatching composition from a sound pov. apart from the focused elements the depth and also the rich background of the shot are worth of a praise. well done. cheers,
kurtul

JudyR (821) 2009-05-06 18:43

Wonderful detail and color. Interesting commentary. Classic lobster boats. Quintessential Maine. Very nice. Judy

gunbud (27789) 2009-05-06 18:54

Hi Paul,
Great prespective to the low angle capture of the colorful lobsster buoys.
Fantastic textures and clear ture color with the blue and yellow working wonderfully together.
I will be spending a week in Prospect Harbor this Sept. and always found it a great little harbor.
Regards, Tom

Budapestman (41686) 2009-05-07 4:12

Hi Paul,
Splendid harbour impression, the composition of the photo is superb. The vivid colours adds a lot to the mood, the background is spectacular likewise. Excellent shot. Tfs! Have a nice day!
George

bobocortis (14140) 2009-05-07 6:07

Bonsoir Paul.
J'apprécie en particulier le détail, les couleurs le choix du point de vue et la profondeur du cadrage.
Du bon travail.
Bien vu.
Amicalement, Bobo.

nirvana73 (8628) 2009-05-07 8:10

Hello Paul
i like your POV
i like compostion and yellow colors especially
thanks for sharing and explanations
best regards
Ozhan

Charo (31665) 2009-05-07 13:09

Hello Paul,
Impressive capture this large number of buoys in the harbor. An original composition with great depth and excellent detail. Great POV.
Best wishes,
Charo

BelCan75 (2418) 2009-05-07 13:12

Hallo Paul,

Dat is wel een leuke foto zeg zo met die gekleurde boeien. Mooie diepte, prachtige belichting en knappe kleuren. Dit zie ik wel graag! Knap gedaan!

Groetjes,
Ann

bakes888 (18155) 2009-05-08 2:40

Hi Paul. Here in NZ the fishermen use almost identical gear, and the industry is heavily regulated also. Nice catch, good colours, patterns and details. Well composed and thanks for sharing.
Have a good weekend, Paul.

jhm (82319) 2009-05-08 3:56

Dag Paul,

Dit type van foto en omgeving vindt men niet iedere dag.
Dez visnetten zorgen voor een goede samenstelling.
Zacht van kleur en zeer goede details. Bedankt

Prettig weekend,
John.

gokanlam (6427) 2009-05-08 7:37

you had created a nice depth with your POV Paul.. like so much the colorful view of the lobster buoys.. useful information too..
best wishes,
ReLa

vinicio (22362) 2009-05-10 23:59

Interesting view and detail of this work that I don't know, the image is well done and with beautiful colors and appeal, compliments Paul.
Have a nice week
Ciao
Vinicio

AiresSantos (41970) 2009-05-11 23:09

Hi Paul
Great details in this colourful picture.
Excellent POV and sharpness
Beautiful and interesting
Have a nice day
Aires

ManuMay (10704) 2009-05-12 7:01

Hi Paul!!

Great capture, clever to see this opportunity and good realization...very good composition and graphic effect thanks to th eplay of colours and forms...really brilliant!!

Have a nice day.

Best regards

Manuel

richiegimmel (258) 2009-05-19 14:51

Beautiful colors and contrast in this shot of the buoys. I found your note very interesting as well. Thanks for sharing!

delkoo (34244) 2009-05-30 1:35

hi paul,

This is a lovely photo. The exposure and focus are perfect. All the elements of a good composition are also there .

didier

leo61 (43336) 2009-05-31 23:38

Hi Paul!
Great LOW POV and good depth.I likie the composition with these many,colorful buoys and the ropes in the foreground.
Regards,leo

ilDottore (4002) 2009-06-01 2:32

Hi Paul,
The fishing harbours belongs to my favourites motifs.
Excellent composition, vivit, but still natural colours and outstanding sharpness. Also very interesting note in best TE style.
I really like it!
Best Regards
Chris

tobourge (915) 2009-07-14 3:50

Hi Paul

Wow!!! Impressive sharpness. I like the way these buoys lead us to the fishing boat.

Very well done!!!!

Thanks

Tony

AKITA (5277) 2009-08-09 0:08

dear Paul,
an impressive yellow and blue scene you took,
colors are so vivid and mountain-shapes are humorous.
we have lots of artistic scenes in our common lives,
and this panoramic perspective shows us beautiful view quite same as big landscapes,
thank you for your excellent shot,
Akihisa