Author: Mark Laita

Mark Laita’s sumptuous hardback book is a collection of still-life images of tropical fish against black backgrounds. Well, as still as living fish can be anyway. By showing them out of context, with perhaps only a reflection or ripple for company, the viewer is able to appreciate their shapes, colours and exquisite beauty in a way that’s different from environmental nature shots. Sea horses, jellyfish, puffer fish, they’re all here and all of them benefit from Laita’s expertise with lighting and composition. Most of the images were shot in a specially built tank in his LA studio, and the technical quality is amazing. Any number of them would look fantastic blown up large and hung on the wall.