These images will help you see coral reefs in a whole new way
A scuba diver until age 79, Georgette Apol Douwma photographed reefs around the world and then transformed her images into dazzling kaleidoscopic designs.
![Colorful collage with turquoise colored corals in the center on bright aquamarine background.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/9ee3b2a1-df1c-4aca-931d-b4f31f28f2a3/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606289.jpg)
Teeming with life, coral reefs occupy less than one percent of the ocean floor but sustain 25 percent of marine species. These hubs of biodiversity now face existential threats, from ocean warming and acidification to destructive fishing practices and pollution. It’s their stunning beauty that first caught the attention of photographer Georgette Apol Douwma during a trip to the Great Barrier Reef in the 1970s. Some 40 years, many scuba dives, and thousands of pictures later, Douwma began to reimagine her catalog by duplicating and reversing images to create symmetrical patterns similar to a kaleidoscope’s. The results emphasize the vibrancy and brilliance of these vulnerable underwater wonders.
(As hot as a hot tub: how soaring ocean temperatures are affecting corals.)
![Collage of different shades of red, star-shaped corals and golden sea worms.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/9102ea9d-26ba-4672-bf6c-4a3afbff1500/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1630194.jpg)
![Orange-gold fish on the background of blue corrals.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/b20b0588-1f4d-452b-a954-863267d95f1c/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1630213.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of white Feather stars and Gorgonian wrapper anemone on deep-blue background.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/ef271c79-8ffe-4d83-855c-a021912f6aa9/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606298.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of gorgonian corals of red color.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/b271f1d2-8a8c-432d-a2c6-324e1fb26d31/STOCKPKG_MF4116_606285.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of Coral reef scenery with soft corals in red and pink, and a school of Yellowback fish.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/3393dd31-1bb3-4c9c-a74e-4398e43b8919/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1630171.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of Bubble tip anemone, looking like bubbles.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/cee7bb3b-5b8a-4966-9393-f096faca2e8e/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606294.jpg)
![Corals on bright blue background.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/1e397159-ea4f-45cb-877b-b6a93e46862e/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1630217.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of fish on coral reef with soft corals](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/4a9e8559-4a10-40bc-974c-64787b3160c7/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1630181.jpg)
![Kaleydoskop image looking like a wreath of flowers.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/e343ff33-41fa-4fce-b884-4e1772880a5d/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606293.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of Blue-green chromis](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/13927b01-aab4-4413-9d8c-bae1d3d6dd53/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606291.jpg)
![Kaleidoscopic image of coral reef with Red sea whips.](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.natgeofe.com/n/e816a64c-dcde-4697-a0de-4b8c8624ce8a/STOCKPKG_MF4116_1606287.jpg)
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