Lake Tahoe's Kokanee Salmon Spawn by Dylan Silver

Lake Tahoe is home to a lot of really cool wildlife. One of my favorites is its population of Kokanee salmon, a small landlocked subspecies of Sockeye salmon. Though they’re non-native, the fish are special to me. I have a lot of memories of visiting the Taylor Creek stream profile chamber and watching the creek turn bright red with the spawning each fall. I loved seeing above and below the surface in the chamber and seeing the fish behavior and the beauty under the surface. I kind of credit these fun family trips with my early interest in the underwater world.

I’ve shot a lot in Lake Tahoe, but this was one of the first times I set out to specifically photograph the Kokanee. It’s a little tough to access these fish. The spawning event draws thousands of tourists and visitors each year. I wanted to avoid setting a bad example by stepping in the water, as the salmon reds could easily be damaged. I laid on the bank and balanced on some of the shoreline rocks to get these images. If you go to see them (spawning is usually between September and October), please take care of the area and stay on established paths. Also, watch out for bears!

Amazing Response to Clarity: A Photographic Dive Into Lake Tahoe's Remarkable Water by Dylan Silver

Wow! There has been an incredible (and a little overwhelming) response to my new book. I can’t thank everyone who ordered and offered words of encouragement enough. To be honest, I was a little unprepared for so many orders. I’ve sold out of my initial shipment, but many more books are on the way. I expect to start filling orders through next week. I will do my absolute best to ship all books out as quickly as possible. Thank you all for your support.

TAHOE CLARITY: THE BOOK by Dylan Silver

This has been a long time coming, but I’m really excited to announce the release of my book, Clarity, A Photographic Dive Into Lake Tahoe’s Remarkable Waters. The book has hundreds of images that I’ve only shared here on my website and some that I’ve never made public. It took years of shooting in the lake and a long time working with my publisher, Schiffer Books, to produce this. You can purchase the book at any of these online retailers. I will put up a link to purchase signed copies directly from my website as soon as possible.

SCHIFFER BOOKS — CLARITY: A Photographic Dive Into Lake Tahoe’s Remarkable Water

AMAZON — CLARITY: A Photographic Dive Into Lake Tahoe’s Remarkable Water

THRIFTBOOKS — CLARITY: A Photographic Dive Into Lake Tahoe’s Remarkable Water

Late summer at Lake Tahoe by Dylan Silver

September is my favorite month to be in the lake. Often the shorelines are empty, the water isn’t too cold and the weather is starting to get interesting. I was lucky enough to jump in for a few days last weekend and get some shots. I had an amazing time experimenting with some different lenses and artificial lighting. I’ll be posting a bunch of new shots on my Instagram, so please follow along. Look forward to sharing more with everyone.

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Beyond Tahoe: Waters of the World by Dylan Silver

I added a new gallery to showcase some of my images I've shot underwater in other locales. I've been fortunate to visit and photograph in some incredibly beautiful places. I've also interacted with a few creatures that you won't find in Lake Tahoe. Please take a look and get in touch if you have any questions or comments. As always, thank you so much for visiting Tahoe Clarity.

I spent a month in Raja Ampat, Indonesia this year. Of the 23 days we were in the islands, I spent 4-6 hours every single day in the water. I did manage to put the camera down for a little. Click the image to visit the Beyond Tahoe gallery. 

I spent a month in Raja Ampat, Indonesia this year. Of the 23 days we were in the islands, I spent 4-6 hours every single day in the water. I did manage to put the camera down for a little. Click the image to visit the Beyond Tahoe gallery. 

New Images in the Store by Dylan Silver

Fall is a wonderful season. It's my favorite time of the year to sit in the office and listen to the window howl outside. It takes me a month or two to acclimate to the cold. With some of my time, I've updated the store with a few new images. They're all cold themed. The one above was inpired by another water photographer, David Sandford. His shots of the waves on Lake Eerie are mindblowing. I'll try to get a bunch more images up for sale before the Christmas season. Check back soon. As always, thanks for stopping by Tahoe Clarity!

Tahoe Clarity store closed for September by Dylan Silver

Hi Everyone! Thank you for visiting tahoeclarity.com. I am traveling to Indonesia for the month of September and cannot complete orders in a timely fashion. I decided to close the Tahoe Clarity store for the month. I will reopen as soon as I return in mid-October. Please check back then!

New images will be uploaded this fall. 

New images will be uploaded this fall. 

Underwater Panorama of the West Shore by Dylan Silver

There is a ton going on in the world of virtual reality. New cameras that can shoot 360 spherical video are becoming affordable, and the visuals are improving. Headsets are becoming commonplace, and the big online networks are adding features to host this type of content. But there are only few rigs that can shoot 360 video underwater with any semblance of optical quality.

I decided to mess around with 360-degree photo stitching. I shot the panorama below with a Canon 5D Mark II and Aquatech housing mounted to a tripod. I stitched it using PTGUI and exported it with Pano2VR. Considering it's too cold for most people to swim in Lake Tahoe, I though it was kind of a cool way to check out underwater. 

Video: Lake Tahoe's photographic baseline by Dylan Silver

This spring has been brutal on the clarity of Lake Tahoe. I can easily see the difference between last year and this year. The melting snowpack has dragged everything from nutrients and sediment to garbage and debris into the lake. Nearshore, I estimate visibility is now reduced to less than 20 feet. This is a far cry from the spectacular water Mark Twain described in "Roughing It."

To monitor, these changes an organization named Project Baseline is collecting underwater photography of Lake Tahoe. They date and geotag the images in their archive. Most of the images are of recognizable underwater features. Over time, we'll be able to return to compare these photographs to newer ones to understand Lake Tahoe's condition. For more about what a photographic baseline does, please see the video below.

Mind Surfing Tahoe's Tiny Waves by Dylan Silver

I'm kind of an Instagram maniac. I spend a lot of time examining photos and exploring different accounts. I've found it's a great way to learn photography techniques and style. It's also a cool way to make friends. Lake Tahoe has an amazing and very active Instagram community. It's fun to keep up with these folks, but the other day I stepped a little outside of this circle.

I messaged an account called I found that featured the funniest photoshopped photos of tiny surfers riding tiny waves. I thought maybe he can put some of his imaginary characters on Lake Tahoe waves. Dom came through big time. Check out Mini Waves By Dom on Facebook and Instagram for more of his awesome manipulations. 

Photo manipulation by Dom. 

Photo manipulation by Dom. 

Tahoe's algae season is here by Dylan Silver

Seasons exists above and below the surface at Lake Tahoe. With massive snowfall, this winter has been one for the record books. But all this snow means a lot of runoff into the lake. The runoff carries sediment and nutrients. These nutrients give algae the ability to bloom. And spring is blooming season.

Lately, both in person and in photographs, I've noticed a green sheen on the rocks. This is attached algae that's driven by the rise in nutrients. If I had to guess, I would bet this year will be a record algae bloom, reflecting the record snowfall and runoff. I made a video about how researchers measure algae. It will be interesting to see what they record this year.

Blue-green algae covers the rocks and old tracks at Sugar Pine Point State Park on Lake Tahoe's West Shore. Photo by Mat Nelson. 

Blue-green algae covers the rocks and old tracks at Sugar Pine Point State Park on Lake Tahoe's West Shore. Photo by Mat Nelson. 

Big THANKS to the League to Save Lake Tahoe by Dylan Silver

Lake Tahoe's most iconic conservation agency is definitely the League to Save Lake Tahoe. The organization invented the Keep Tahoe Blue slogan that's now been printed on over 1 million stickers. They've raised hundreds of millions of dollars for regional conservation. Without their work, Lake Tahoe would look entirely different. There would be hundreds more piers, crushing lakefront development and possibly a freeway bridge over the entrance of Emerald Bay

As I formed Tahoe Clarity, I had one early goal: I wanted my underwater images to help with conservation in our area. Though I wasn't sure of the value of the photographs, I sent the League a short email to see if they had any need. Chris, their spokesman, suggested I put a folder together. I sent him the link and kind of forgot about it. I was blown away when I got an email from Chris saying the organization had chosen some of my images for their annual report, and one was to be used on the cover. If that wasn't good enough, their wonderful designer, Marilee Movius, shared some very kind words on Instagram.

"It made creating the layouts for the annual report inspiring and fun," Movius said. "Your images really capture why Lake Tahoe is so special. I look forward to continued collaborations." 

Tahoe Clarity at OMNI in South Lake Tahoe by Dylan Silver

South Lake Tahoe's newest yoga/dance/pole studio, OMNI, also features some work by yours truly. What better way to get into your ZEN space than stretching and staring at Lake Tahoe's beautiful blues? Owner Jess Broyles was kind enough to offer some wall and shelf space. OMNI offers a bunch of awesome classes, including hot yoga, barre and, my favorite, Build the Booty Dance Fitness. For more information, check out this Tahoe Daily Tribune article. All prints at the shop are available for purchase. Check back frequently for new stock. 

Snow and Water Photography by Dylan Silver

It's wonderful to see The Basin covered in a blanket of white. The lake is nearing its natural rim, so we can look forward to healthy amount of water this summer. Snow on the shorelines adds extra challenges when shooting water photos, though. The added brightness of the fresh snow makes it tricky to balance exposures when shooting over-under photos. For best results, I've been shooting a lot on storm days when the light is a little flatter.

Access has been tricky, too. It's definitely the first time I've ever had to go snowboard to go swimming. Mikaela and I rode our splitboards down the Skunk Harbor trail and I jumped in for a few images. Hiking out with a wet wetsuit in my backpack wasn't exactly a joy, but having the water all to myself was well worth it.

Winter Swimming in Lake Tahoe by Dylan Silver

Yeah, it's cold out there. But every time I get my wetsuit on and my gloves on and my booties on and duck below the surface, it's worth it. There's something about the teal water and the white mountains that makes shooting really fun. I put some new winter images up in the "New" gallery. Please check them out and as always let me know what you think.