The Shrine regularly gets photos from F.O.A.M. member Barry Fackler of Aquaman and Mera in their natural habitat; i.e. under the sea! (click the image to embiggen)
Barry hails from Hawaii, and he is a superb photographer. Every time he sends one of these beauties in it makes me want to buy a ticket to the 50th state. I wouldn't even need to bring my Aquaman stuff, since Barry has so much of it already!
You can see more of Barry's undersea photos (and read his thoughts on what he finds there) over on his cool blog, Diving the Kona Coast!
These real life undersea photos of Brightest Day Mera are courtesy F.O.A.M.er Barry Fackler!
Barry hails from Hawaii, and every so often sends photos in to the Shrine featuring Aquaman and/or Mera enjoying the warm climes of the 50th state. Here's the story behind these pics from Barry himself:
"Aloha Rob!Some time back I promised you some underwater photos of the Brightest Day Mera action figure. Multiple difficulties slowed me down, not the least of which has been the excellent winter surfing conditions we've been having here. Good surfing equals bad diving so opportunities have been scarce. However, this weekend afforded favorable conditions so off I went with Mera in my pocket.
Somewhere between the time Mera arrived in the mail and the present, I misplaced her trident. That, plus the figure's limited range of motion in its articulations made dynamic posing almost impossible. As such, I chose to position Mera on a coral head perhaps looking pensively towards Atlantis. Certainly, a heroine with a lot to reflect upon. I Photoshopped her facial features to make them a little less fierce and also Photoshopped the articulations to make them a little less mechanical-looking.
It would be great if Mattel produced a DC Universe Classic Mera modeled after the Nick Cardy version. Aside from the nostalgia, the DC Universe figures have great articulations that make dynamic poses underwater much easier. Anyway, three underwater photos of Queen Mera are attached. Also attached is one photo of our dog, Mera, who we adopted seven months ago. All our previous dogs were named for figures from classical mythology: Cassiopea, Perseus and Andromeda. I had discussed with my wife that superheroes are the mythological beings and gods of our modern age and so she thought Mera would be a good choice as we are pretty much connected to the sea ourselves. Anyway, keep up the great work!"
Here is the Mera in question, who is just as beautiful as the Queen of the Seven Seas:
I love getting these missives from Barry; they are like the proverbial messages in a bottle from a place I'd dearly love to visit. And naming your dog Mera? That's a fan!
If we ever do have an Aquaman Shrine Con, can we hold it at your house Barry?
Here are Aquaman and Mera (the Brightest Day action figure versions, at least) on vacation in Hawaii!
The photos are courtesy F.O.A.M.er Barry Fackler, who loves taking shots of the Sea King in action both in and out of the water. Barry promises more action shots soon--I hope he means underwater stuff, because judging by photo #2, I think we know what Arthur and Mera had planned after this shoot ended.
These amazing, awesome, wondrous (pick a superlative) photos of Aquaman patrolling the seas of Hawaii are courtesy our newest F.O.A.M. member Barry Fackler, who sent them to me along with this charming story:
"Aloha Rob!
I've been a fan of your site for some time now and have really enjoyed all the articles which take me back to my youth when I lived for each new issue of Aquaman.
Of course, that was a long time ago and now I live in Hawai'i where I take an active role in helping to raise my grandson, Jacques. As a responsible role model, I've taken time to teach Jacques all about my hero (Silver Age) Aquaman. I've provided him with plenty of Aquaman books & toys and he grasps the mythos as well as a five year old can.
Anyway, he thought it would be a good idea for his Aquaman action figure to go diving with me this weekend. I'm sending along some photos of the results. Two photos show Aquaman patrolling his watery domain while the other two show him battling a mutant sea creature (played by a Crown-of-Thorns starfish) Hope you enjoy the pics."
Barry has a blog called Diving The Kona Coast which features more pics of his undersea explorations, which makes me want to drop everything and visit Hawaii right now (although, living in New Jersey it doesn't take much).
I'm so happy Barry thought to take these pics and send them to the Shrine, and that he's telling his grandson all about the King of the Seven Seas. Aquaman's popularity is in good hands thanks to people like him.
Keep up the good job Barry, and welcome to F.O.A.M.!
