Am I ready for Socorro?

[Hoag]

Thanks for the feedback. I put my deposit down for the Nautilus Explorer in December. Can't wait!

For those of you who have gone to Socorro with Nautilus, do I need to have my own DiveAlert, dSMB/reel, and/or reef hook?

Also, what was the lights policy? The lady I spoke to from the booking line said "captain's discretion". I was planning on getting/bringing a dual-light GoPro camera tray, but if I'm not allowed to use lights at all there's no need to spend money unnecessarily.

When I dove in Socorro, I had a "Safety Sausage", but there was no need for reef hook etc.
Edited to add: If I remember correctly, the area is a protected marine biosphere. You may not even be able to take a reef hook into the water with you.

As for lights, trays etc. Since you are planning to shoot a GoPro, I would definitely get a tray. Your video will be much smoother than with a "selfie stick". (You want the end result to show how amazing the trip was, not to make the viewers sea sick.) Trays can be bought for around $100 and up. If cost is a factor, there are a lot of videos on DIY GoPro trays such as this one or this one.

You probably won't be night diving, so dive lights are not a factor. Video lights are really only effective for about 4-5 feet maximum, so in my opinion (in other words, take this with a grain of salt), video lights will be of limited use. Instead, I would get a red filter such as the Backscatter Flip 5 system or something similar.

Finally, if I were you, I would seek out @The Chairman, he did a trip to Socorro and made an amazing video of it. His advice would be priceless.

Congrats on your trip. Have fun.

 

[ncitrdude]

If i were to get a GoPro video setup, I was thinking of going with dual Kraken Hydra 3800s on a Beneath the Surface 2-handle tray w/ flex arms.

A bit surprised that you don't think I'll need lights for video. When I was in Belize, I used the rental Sola light constantly while shooting GoPro video, even during the day. I'd say average depth was 60-100ft on our dives (lots of walls). Is the typical dive depth in Socorro such that lights aren't needed the majority of the time?

 

[Hoag]

If i were to get a GoPro video setup, I was thinking of going with dual Kraken Hydra 3800s on a Beneath the Surface 2-handle tray w/ flex arms.

A bit surprised that you don't think I'll need lights for video. When I was in Belize, I used the rental Sola light constantly while shooting GoPro video, even during the day. I'd say average depth was 60-100ft on our dives (lots of walls). Is the typical dive depth in Socorro such that lights aren't needed the majority of the time?

No, the depths in Socorro would definitely not be suitable for ambient light without some sort of correction to balance the colour. The reason why I suggested using a filter rather than lights is because you will normally be too far away from your subject for the lights to be effective.

Remember, you start to lose the reds at as little as 8-10 feet. That means that video lights start to lose their effectiveness as little as 4-5 feet away from the subject. You will seldom be less than 5 feet away from the sharks and rays in Socorro. I think that it may be more effective to use a filter which is not dependent on distance between the sensor and the subject.

Keep in mind though, that I am doing nothing more than offering my opinion and free advice (which is often worth exactly what you paid for it). I am certainly not definitively stating fact or claiming that this is the only way to do it. When push comes to shove, you need to do what works for you. As they say, "there's more than one way to skin a cat".

 

[ncitrdude]

Ahhh i see. Thanks for the insight!