Book

John Weller’s book The Last Ocean will be a combination of Weller’s photography and essays. The photography is largely complete after five years of work. The written narrative is in progress. Expect the book by spring 2010.

Photography

Weller’s still photography combines long-lens abstracts and landscapes, environmental and underwater portraiture, and sophisticated composite microscopy, capturing a startling and unique look at the Ross Sea and its inhabitants. Far from a journalistic approach, the photography is intended to be a series of highly artistic images, telling the story with details. John has taken nearly 100,000 images in the Ross Sea.

Writing

The written story will weave three major narrative lines into a detailed portrait of the Ross Sea. Focusing on the underlying structure of the ecosystem, the writing will foster an understanding and appreciation of specific members, and ultimately of the system as a whole.

First Narrative: Ross Sea Natural History – The first narrative will consist of the unique natural history stories of Ross Sea organisms, their interactions, and the ecological theories necessary to understand why the Ross Sea is so special. Additionally, this narrative will provide historical context, with the natural history observations of the Ross Sea’s first human visitors, led by James Clark Ross, providing fundamental insights.

Second Narrative: The Relevance of the Ross Sea to the World’s Oceans – To add context to the natural history of the Ross Sea, the second narrative will consist of stories detailing other large marine ecosystems and their associated resource management problems. It will be possible through this narrative to introduce concepts such as “fishing down the food web,” “moving baselines,” and “trophic cascades.” These accounts will provide a basis on which to interpret the issues facing the Ross Sea.

Third Narrative: Weller’s Observations in Antarctica – Both the first and second narratives will be interwoven with Weller’s personal experiences in the Ross Sea, which will reflect the joy of discovery.