Credit: Ricardo Ghion

Professional photography is far more than snapping a picture with the camera on your phone. Capturing incredible images takes dedication and discipline for the craft. The ability to get breath-taking images of the night sky is a completely different skill. What’s rarer still? Capturing a clear picture of the Milky Way alongside alongside a bioluminescent body of water.

In Cananeia, Brazil, Ricardo Ghion came across the glowing water one night when taking pictures of the night sky. After that point, he made it his mission to photograph the beautiful displays of night alongside the bioluminescent algae blooms of plankton.

A number of factors needed to be lined up to get the shots he needed. For the sky, it must be totally dark with no light pollution. The waters must be warm, but the night must be cold. Ghion had to wait for the perfect mixture to get precisely what he envisioned, and it paid off.

“Bioluminescence happens when the water is agitated, and as the night was without wind, I had to program the shutter with a timer and with another hand throw water upwards—all while being careful not to drop everything into the mangroves!” Ghion says.

Bioluminescence Over a Marina in Brazil with the Milky Way in the Sky

These photographs serve as a stunning reminder that the world is so much more than we often give it credit for. The world is so much more than the jobs we work or the television shows we come home to. Even the tiniest creatures can create something positively beautiful.

“I hope people feel alive when they see my photos and that they feel and can have respect for nature,” Ghion says.

Especially with the world we live in today, it is crucial to take a step back and take in the beautiful parts of life.