John Stricklin, my dive buddy, decided to attract these carp with an offering of Cheez Whiz.  The can is tethered to his strobe arm, and occasionally a "noodle" is released into the water to attract the fish. 

Underwater Photography (continued)

Bringing food along is often the perfect inducement for getting skittish marine life to approach you.  In fact, quite often the photographer gets so mobbed by fish that they wind up blocking the lens.  This has happened to me on more than one occasion.

The pictures below illustrates how shy Japanese carp at Vortex Spring, in Florida, were "lured" in by the prospect of a handout.
 

As you can see, the fish came swarming to him.

Before I'm harangued mercilessly by environmentalists, I should add that these carp were artificially introduced into the Spring, and that it is a common practice to feed them by the locals.