Following up on a photo series on local wildlife he started last year, La Jolla resident Matthew Kazden is looking to capture shots of marine animals when they are less seen by the public.
For his most recent series, Kazden is focusing on wildlife at La Jolla Cove and the surrounding areas in the early morning, before most humans are present.
The intent is to show how the animals live “before the chaos of the day,” Kazden said. “When the sea lion moms can communicate to their baby without people barking and mimicking them. When the seagulls can raise their newly hatched kids before people start throwing potato chips at them and running after them.”
In September, Kazden began his first photo series in the area, taking and posting images of La Jolla’s wildlife along with “fun facts and tidbits” about them with the intent of inspiring others to care for them.
That project focused specifically on the Matlahuayl State Marine Reserve and the San Diego-Scripps Coastal State Marine Conservation Area “to showcase what this area is, what it is protecting and why future protections are needed.”
La Jolla resident Matthew Kazden captured an image of a sea lion pup nursing as part of his series of photos centered on La Jolla Cove at sunrise. (Matthew Kazden)
Looking to continue and expand that mission, Kazden started taking photos as the sun was coming up.
“When I did the first photo series, I would capture all these cool moments, but I realized thousands of other people were always there to see the same things, and the wildlife would react and be a little on guard,” he said. “So I wanted to get around the crowds and see what the animals were like when they weren’t being bombarded by people. So that meant the early morning — the very, very early morning. Seeing them as Mother Nature intended, unbothered, makes it so worth it to wake up that early.”
He said he appreciates seeing the animals interact with one another and “just be wild.”
“It’s a whole other story to see them when people are there vs. when they aren’t,” Kazden said. “This time of year, with the sea lion pups and their moms, seeing them spend time together was really special. It was really cool to see the mothers and pups be so calm and be able to explore their surroundings without fear of people being too close to them.”
The new photo series comes as the city of San Diego takes measures intended to keep people and sea lions apart at The Cove, including increased ranger presence, new signs and occasional use of cones to serve as visual deterrents.
Kazden said he appreciates those measures but thinks more could be done.
“There is plenty of room where the lifeguard tower is for viewing [wildlife], so it’s not a lack of places for viewing, it’s people wanting to get close,” he said. “I think those that want to swim there can enjoy and do their thing, but if people are just there to see the wildlife, they should stay [near the lifeguard tower] to view them.”
He said the larger signs installed recently are a good start, though “people might not read them.”
He added that having more rangers onsite is “awesome” but “stricter enforcement and maybe even ticketing is needed,” as well as ongoing public education.
Kazden grew up going to national parks and said a love of animals is “in my blood” because of his parents’ involvement in wildlife-related causes in Los Angeles.
“I started bringing my camera on hikes or any time we were around nature,” he said. “I realized it was all fun, but I started to wonder what I could do besides post them on Instagram. I wanted to tell a story and help the wildlife that I’m [photographing].”
Find out more and view Kazden’s photos at instagram.com/amazingwildlife__m. ♦