Giant cuttlefish, sometimes referred to as ‘the chameleons of the sea,’ are the largest cuttlefish species, and are primarily found in the waters off southern Australia. One of the best places to see them is in Spencer Gulf, near Whyalla in South Australia.
Each year, from May to August, thousands of giant cuttlefish gather here for their incredible annual migration and breeding event, known as the cuttlefish aggregation. This natural spectacle is known to be one of the highlights in the Australian marine environment; and indeed, attracts divers and marine enthusiasts from around the world who come to witness, film and photograph their vibrant displays of colour and complex mating behaviours.
The dive site at Whyalla, is one of the most easily accessible dive sites around. A 20minute drive from the town, and a short walk over some large flat rocks from the car park, you put your head under the water and instantly (visibility depending) you will see 100’s of Cuttlefish scattered around in water that Is around 4-5m (depending on tides). If you are by yourself then you can arrange for a guide from the Whyalla dive shop, or go out with one of their many tour groups which dive and snorkel most days during the season, or it is incredibly easy to dive with your buddy and not get lost.
They have a glass bottom boat tour which runs, so you need to be careful which parts you swim in, but signs are up, and if you wanted to stay and do another dive instead of heading back to the town then there is usually a van which has hot drinks and food (and if you are lucky a fire)
The water temperature is around 11c, and air temperature in the mornings can be as low as 2c- As the site is so shallow, you could spend easily up to 2 hours down there on one tank, but the biggest limiting factor is the cold. The first year I went there, my wetsuit was a very old 7mm and I would last 1 hour before having to get out, last year in a good quality 8mm I was able to last 90mins.
In this article, we’ll look at how to get great underwater images of this charismatic, colourful and engaging species, and this unmissable underwater phenomenon.
Having grown up watching wildlife documentaries and thinking the scenes were so far removed from anything I could ever see with my own eyes, Whyalla allows you to live out that dream.
In shallow water, right here in Australia, you can see 1000s of Giant Cuttlefish as far as the eye can see- you are spoilt for choice on which group to swim over to first. As you scan around, you might see a lone male swimming around looking for a mate, or a group of 10+ with some locked in a mating embrace and others fighting with each other and smaller more timid Cuttlefish just sat there, watching. So, the trick is: to take a breath, wait and see which group you want to go and view first.
Giant cuttlefish behaviour
Giant cuttlefish prefer rocky reefs, seagrass beds, and sandy seabeds, where they can hunt and use their impressive camouflage to hide from predators.
They change colour using specialized skin cells called chromatophores, iridophores, and leucophores, which expand and contract to reflect and absorb light. These rapid, dynamic colour changes are used for camouflage, communication, and intimidation.
If you spot a cuttlefish displaying this remarkable ability, it’s a perfect moment to get your camera ready!
Giant cuttlefish are among the most fascinating marine creatures to dive with. Their ever-changing colours and shapes make them a captivating subject, especially during their breeding season. Below are a couple of their most interesting behaviours:
1. The Mating Dance: Time to Do Battle
During the breeding season, male cuttlefish typically outnumber females—sometimes by as much as 11:1 in places like Whyalla. This leads to intense competition for mates, which often involves spectacular displays. Male cuttlefish will engage in what looks like a dance, flashing their skin in pulses and extending their arms and tentacles to appear larger, hoping to outdo their rivals.
In many cases, this visual display is enough to intimidate other males, but occasionally, it leads to physical confrontations. During these battles, cuttlefish may grapple with their arms and tentacles, sometimes losing limbs in the process. In such encounters, cuttlefish may also use their ability to squirt ink to escape if the fight becomes too intense.
2. The Mating Process
Giant cuttlefish mate "head-to-head." Males use a specialized arm to transfer packets of sperm (spermatophores) into a pouch near the female’s mouth. Smaller males may use cunning tactics, such as disguising themselves as females, to slip past larger rivals. After mating, the female lays fertilized eggs in crevices or protected areas.
Even during mating, competition persists. Sometimes, other males will attempt to break up the pair and take over, leading to intense and visually stunning moments—an ideal opportunity for photographers.
3. New Life and The Death Of A Giant.
The Giant Cuttlefish will lay around 100-300 eggs in small white sacks under the ledges of the rocks to help protect them from predators. Whilst the female isn’t maternal and won’t look after the eggs or the young once they are born- image 9 gives you an idea of what to look out for.
The Giant Cuttlefish only live around 1-2 years, and often around the bay you will find dead Cuttlefish floating on the surface with predators like birds, seals and dolphins coming in to eat the remains- the seal and dolphins will also come in and take live ones as well.
Image 10 shows a headless male floating on the surface and is the final act of the cycle of the life of these incredible animals.
Top Tip for Photographing Giant Cuttlefish in Action
· Avoid disturbance: When scuba diving, be mindful that bubbles can disrupt cuttlefish, causing them to swim away.
· Patience is key: Let the cuttlefish focus on their own activities, whether mating, fighting, or hunting. Once they’re immersed in the task, it’s safer to move in for those perfect shots.
· How close can you get? If you pick the right moment, you can get as close as you like and the Cuttlefish are completely unperturbed by your presence, and you can fire away your shots. (I have never noticed any change in behaviour from them whilst using strobes)
· Positioning is key to frame your shot, and this may change given the height and penetration of sunlight.
Freediving Vs Scuba
As mentioned, the bubbles from scuba diving can disturb the cuttlefish, as can our presence anyway. So even with Freediving you need to be patient before getting too close, as for the males, we could be a potential threat to them by our sheer size.
Whilst the dive site is very shallow <5m, on a good day of visibility it is quite easy to observe from the surface how the action is unfolding and when is the right moment to dive down. The lack of bubbles as discussed is a big pro of Freediving, but the cold water, cold air can affect your beath holds and mean that you could dive down and the action could only be half way through before you need to come back up again for another breath.
Scuba diving allows you to sit and wait for the right time, and be there whilst the action is unfolding and react quicker when the dynamic changes in the water- whether that be one group breaking out into a fight, or the male pulling the female underneath a rock ledge to mate in peace.
Tips for Lighting and Composition
Giant cuttlefish dives often occur in shallow waters, typically less than five meters deep, making it easier to use natural sunlight to illuminate your shots. Here are a few setup suggestions based on lighting conditions:
When the Cuttlefish is fully extended, they can reach up to 1 metre in length, whilst more often than not they are smaller and not fully extended, a wide angle lens is better to capture the potential of larger numbers and still show off the background. As you can see in image 8 where you have 4 large males in full shot, and with the sunlight rays still coming down.
Fisheye Lens (for bright, sunny days):
Set your shutter speed around 1/200 to 1/250. With an aperture of F14 and ISO 400, you can capture stunning sunbeams while keeping the cuttlefish well-lit. If lighting changes due to cloud cover, quickly adjust your aperture to maintain optimal exposure.
16-35mm Lens (for cloudy days):
On overcast days, when natural light is dimmer, switch to a 16-35mm lens for closer, more detailed shots. Drop the shutter speed to 1/60 to 1/100 (when using strobes) and keep the aperture around F13 to preserve detail and depth of field.
By adjusting your settings and lens choice, you can capture the magnificent behaviour of these giant cuttlefish in all their vibrant glory.
Strobes or no Strobes? On a sunny day, with it being so shallow there you can get plenty of sunlight coming in that you could easily take great images without the need for strobes (particularly if you are freediving, they could be quite cumbersome) However to get the most detailed shots and to use the light coming through to frame the images I would recommend strobes.
For placement of your strobes, I would keep mine wide at the 10 to 2 position and for the fisheye lens I would keep them a lot higher and wide and pointing more downwards so you can still get close and illuminate the cuttlefish.
In Conclusion
As an underwater photographer, the best animals to photograph and to dive with are the ones that have the biggest personalities and really allow you the time to spend with them to be able to see and document their behaviours. To that, Giant Cuttlefish are my favourite animals to photograph as they tick every box, and so much more and in an environment that is so easily accessible that you can dive many times with them.
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