Now I Understand!

[clementyn]

hmmm,

hey aggie, did they each have tank bangers they used to try and out do eachother with underwater?? your description sounds way to familiar with a couple we ran into in the islands last year....

funniest thing i ever saw a buddy team do underwater was from the same bulldozing couple. for some reason, neither one could think in 3D... so one would rap rap rap rap rap on the tank banger and you'd watch the other look 360 deg. around, rap rap repeat ad nauseum... i finally went up to the poor lady, tapped her on the shoulder and pointed "look up." her look was nothing less than completly bewildered. laughed so hard, i flooded my mask .

-lorien.

 

[Aggie Diver]

No tank bangers. They did have Scubapro everything on though, right down to their Scubapro Twinjet fins, that they thought were greater than sliced bread. Funny thing though, neither the fins or their "experience" could keep them off the bottom. I literally watched the guy kick an urchin with his fins and break off a couple of spikes.

I mean how hard is it to figure out to add a little air when you're scraping the bottom? Geez...

AD

 

[adshepard]

I agree, there are good and bad divers (who just happen to have a camera with). I usually try to dive solo, so I guess that would make me bad buddy. But here are a few of my observations. It seems that in the last couple of years the digital camera craze has swept the diving scene, making people think that since it's so easy and cheap, that it's one of the first gear purchases they make. Unfortunately I've seen far too many divers "carrying cameras" that would have better spent their money on more lessons or dives than on their new "toy"...

Interesting observation and I have to agree. I too am one of those bad buddy types as I'm pretty much occupied with my photography and dive solo a good 90%+ of the time.

The digital camera revolution has made getting good photos easier and cheaper. I've observed a good number of divers getting a camera fairly quickly lately. Heck I didn't think of it until I had over a 100 dives and a few years experience. A good friend of mine was only certified in September 2003 and has less than 20 dives under his belt and is already about to purchase the Oly 5050 set-up. I've cautioned him that he need more skills before he goes there but the relatively cheap price and promise of quick results is calling him.

The bottom line is get your skills down first. Get the camera next and when/if you do have a camera be considerate of your fellow divers and the environment.

DSDO

Alan

 

[scorpiofish]

You did not see a photographer. You saw either 1) a bad diver with a camera, 2) a good diver new to photography or 3) a good or bad diver with camera and a reckless disregard for the reef and other divers around him.

The first description is obvious. Let's talk about the other two.

The first time I dove with a housed camera was a disaster. Current, surge, lowered vis, and me totally out of control. I fired six shots and gave up. I was not a new diver at the time.

The first time I dove with doubles, I was a mess.

I saw a certified cave diver take video for the first time. He silted the place out in about 60 seconds (not in a cave).

Might point is that adding anything different to the mix can make an experienced diver a newbie all over again. A camera can do the same thing. Like all the other situations, you gradually get used to it and build up the skill. Unfortunately, people with cameras often aren't willing to be patient and learn to dive with a camera. A private gentle word often helps.

The third is more troublesome. They just don't care. I've seen this in non-photogs, too. When these people get a camera, it's worse. Rather than fret about damage, it's just part of their style. These people get more than a gentle word. I've seen skilled divers/photogs lay on the reef, purposely plant fins, etc. I've had to yank someone's camera as they were about to slit a seahorse in half with their framer.

As for flash, at worst it can cause temporary blindness, just like for people on land. No supermodels have gone blind from too many flashes that I know of.

 

[Scubatooth]

Man how do you follow up stories like that, its hard to.

recently i was in grand cayman on the 2nd dive of the day when i saw a diver with a camera just laying in the middle of the reef to take a picture of a small fish (dont know of what), it just irked me to the point of wanting to just take him off the reef for tearing it up, but i wasnt the only one 2 of the DM in the water noticed the same thing and said something to him.

on the other hand on the same dive there was another photographer(and he deserved that title to, based on his prints + images) who had flawless trim and bouyancy who was hovering over the reef to get his shot, and never touched the reef even though at times he was only like 6 inches of the reef. i later found out that he was a instructor


I will be the first person to admit my bouyancy isnt the best but it has gotten alot better with the more dives and experince i had(its like how do you get to carnige hall, practice baby practice).

personally im always working on my trim and bouyancy so that i can maintain my position in the water column, when i first started diving it was a variation of 2-3 feet(because of breathing patterns and weighting), my target is plus or minus 1 foot, which im very close to getting. to help in this everyday of diving the last dive of the day i always go out to one of the platforms and work on my skills(trim, weighting etc), and the last part of it is in horizontal position on the edge of the platform and work on staying even with the platform.

personally divers shouldnt even be thinking of getting a camera intell they have great bouyancy, balance and trim. then once they have that think about getting a cam. when doing UW photography you have to be thinking on multiple levels, not only in a photographic mind set, but also as a diver(which is the first priority). it sort of goes back you need 360 deg awareness so you dont run into the reef or other people(and if other people are knocking you out of the way so they can get THERE shot, i would definately say something to them, and if they continued to do it i would talk to the operator, and if it continues ill take care of it my way)

FWIW

tooth

 

[norcaldiver]

I thgouth people hated diving with us because we're slow. Hmm, all the photogs that I know and dive with are the oposite. We will drop off the boat and probably not move more than 15 ft from the decent line. You have plenty of air, if you sit still, the fish will come to you. I've gotten in a habit of moving veerrryyy slowly looking for the small stuff. Everyone else seems to want to go like mad and I'm just mosying along, but I see 10 times more neat things and have the pics to prove it. I liken it to crawling across the ground following ants when you were a kid.

 

[UWSojourner]

Its not just photographers, though. I recently dove with a Scuba-Hole at Molokini on Maui. His boyancy was not good, but he made up for it with a long, unattached, and large console. Even when his fins weren't on the reef, his gear was dragging across it.

You'd think there would be more environmental awareness stressed during C-cert.

 

[10X]

Your messages are encouraging and discouraging at the same time.

I am a new diver, OW certified 6/03, AOW 9/03. I became certified in anticipation for a 2 week trip to Hawaii (back 6 days now). I had no illusions about my novice abilities and let the dive masters know.

I had 12 dives before going to Hawaii, all in Michigan's cold waters, most with visibility less than 10 feet. I have 22 now.

Prior to even thinking about becoming certified, I bought an Olympus C5050 camera. I liked it an it took great photos. Learning that they also made a housing was a bonus, so I bought one for the trip. No strobe as of yet, I'm not ready for it.

I also took a photography class from my LDS so I would know what I was doing. I spent an hour learning how to control my buoyancy, using my breath, to balance in place on the bottom of a pool, on the tip of one finger. This was prior to even thinking about taking my first photo. I also did a couple fresh water dives with the camera before going.

Perhaps my buoyancy is not the best, but I don't drag/land on the bottom, don't walk on coral, and don't bowl over people. My console and camera are attached on retractors so they don't drag along behind. My bouyancy problems are related to becoming too light on the way up, sometimes having to hang onto a rope to maintain the 15 foot safety stop. Not always, but frequently. Down deep, I feel I'm OK, given my experience.

I take those shots that I can without interfering with other divers. If too many people are opting for the same shot, I swim away and look for something else. There are a ton of things to photograph so I'd rather pass up a shot than get in someone else's way.

As a new diver, I didn't want to hold up the groups I dove with, so I made all of my shots using the automatic mode. Even though I practiced and practiced using the manual mode, I felt I was still too slow at using the settings I wanted and was afraid I would slow everyone up. So I just shot automatic and lived with it. (The settings I wanted I learned on this board)

Now, if I understand these messages, I'm all messed up. I shouldn't have the Oly setup, I should have had more dives before taking the camera, and since my bouyancy isn't 100% I had no business taking photographs in the first place.

However, I feel I did everything I could to prepare, spent a lot of dive time, study time and money to do so, and received the blessing of my LDS as well. I think it was Dee or Justleesa, in another message, that stated she takes 100 photos per trip. I got less than 300 on 10 dives in Hawaii. Probably more than 100 of those were on snorkeling trips, as well. I took far less than I wanted just to be courteous to other divers. I don't know what more I can do, other than to keep doing what I am, trying to improve all of my skills as I proceed. I plan on additional classes with the LDS to do so.

It's nice to know I have a good camera though and not bowling over people or interfering with their shots puts me on the right track. Perhaps I'm on my way to becoming a diver who does photographs, afterall.

 

[Mo2vation]

It's nice to know I have a good camera though and not bowling over people or interfering with their shots puts me on the right track. Perhaps I'm on my way to becoming a diver who does photographs, afterall.

Some of us are venting - some of us are passionate about these issues... I'm a little of both. Don't get down about it. Sounds to me like you have a good attitude about diving, the environment and photography. A few things:

Your gear - rocks. Its an excellent system. People churn out amazing stuff with it. But as Lance Armstrong said so well, "its not the bike..." Know your system, dive into the presets and it'll become a no brainer after awhile (well, overstatement there... but it will require less thought.) Shoot a lot.

Your Diving - Be aware of what's going on areound you. Dive first, photograph second. Maintain gas awareness, good trim and stay in control, be a good buddy... its all good. This you can't buy into - no amount of money or gear can make you a more aware diver. You need experience. Dive a lot, write stuff down, keep a good log and it'll come.

Focus on the important stuff, be safe, and it'll come. You're on the right track.

K

 

[UWSojourner]

Perhaps my buoyancy is not the best, but I don't drag/land on the bottom, don't walk on coral, and don't bowl over people.

... AND you're not the problem. But, there seems to be some out there who don't show concern for the environment they enter, or the people who enter it with them. Personally, I don't care if you bring 5 cameras and a sack lunch IF you don't walk all over the reef or me.

As for me, I definitely can't float 6" off the reef without the reef crossing its fingers and uttering a collective prayer. But, if I keep focused, a foot or two above is ok for me.

We should all just act like we care about other divers and the environment ... that's all anyone is saying.