INDONESIA’S CENOTES
FOR YEARS, Uluna has been a secret
known only to the locals; this is their
magical, private swimming pool.
Children from the village would come
after school with their friends to swim
and enjoy an afternoon of relaxation.
It was their amusement park.
Four years ago, while searching
for my next project, I heard rumours
that a local guide used to talk about a
lake of clear water in the mountains.
My first guess was that he was talking
about the Tondano Lake, but, to my
surprise, he wasn’t. Roy Legi discovered
this beautiful space and invited me to
photograph it. It took four years to
get the word out and attract the
attention of local and international
divers. Was it worth it? Yes.
I always remind myself that it’s
never just about the location or
the camera; it’s about the idea or
about making something ordinary,
extraordinary. Anybody can buy a ticketto a beautiful place, but not everybody
can change people’s perspectives.
An hour-and-half’s drive from
Manado, a two-tank dive in a water
just three-metres deep with a
temperature of 25 degrees Celsius
and you could be photographing
something so unique that it is
comparable to being in the cenotes
in Mexico.
As you take on the role of an
underwater photographer with an