Pet peeves of SCUBA diving

[DeepSeaExplorer]

Yeah… blasting a bunch of air to blow 3 drops of water off a little piece of plastic screams I just learned to dive last week.

It’s possible to do that and purge a reg without doing it so loudly heads are turning 100 yards away.

You can also hit the inflator to purge the lines on the reg and it makes much less noise.

 

[Pressurehead]

Would that be for the sssssss, or the inane chatter?

Oh, very good.
Hand out snacks and just grunt, most [I say most] don't talk while chewing.
And divers with a camera trying to show you some inane photo of a pretty slug when you are changing cylinders between dives on a rocking boat.
It is not a peeve, just funny.

 

[Bill McDavid]

I troll photographers all the time man. Always ask if they saw/captured on film rare fish (in that area) or octopuss/ anything cool that could be in the area and claim I saw it. Always mess with them In a safe manner, as safety is number one priority and I hope we can find agreement there. Do I go outta my way to mess with photographers, no. I’ve been on dives where they try and scootch you outta way and stay too long on a specific spot. All because you “found” something doesn’t make it yours to hover over the entire dive if someone else wants to take a peak. That is common courtesy. Does that rule of yours apply to wrecks? What size does an object have to be for you to claim it as your own subject.

Clearly I wasn’t there and it’s possible the guy was a terrible diver who kept bumping you and stirring up the bottom. Which makes these comments moot and pointless. Let’s just be nicer to eachother and have enjoyable safe dives and let everyone take peek. Not one diver is better than the other or has a more right of claim to view the ocean as long as their training permits.

There’s a certain air that diving photographers have about them where they believe the ocean is theirs and everyone else is a nuisance. I gathered that from your post, specifically belittling a guys camera because it wasn’t as high tech as yours and claiming to have “found” a subject so the other guy had no business in trying to take a picture for himself.

My comments on camera and my brain being my picture taker was more a reflection on our current culture where everything MUST be filmed and posted to social media for likes and clout.

I’ll stir it up, photographers make the worst dive instabuddy’s. Agree or disagree?

Personally, I find trolling to be a distasteful character trait and would rather have a photographer as an instabuddy any day over a troll. It's odd that you proudly admit to trolling yet you suggest we "be nicer to each other". Trolling is an antonym for "being nice".

By the way, you know what I "found" on that dive that was the final straw?? A pipefish. Nothing special. Just a little fish you could see on any day of the week in Philippines. I didn't claim it as my own and I certainly was not given any time to hover over it the entire dive given that Paulo barged right in and kicked up a sand hurricane after he saw the subject was of little interest to him.

Whether you mean to or not, you sound very bitter against photographers when you talk about the "air" that they have. Trolls have an air about them as well but few aspire to be a troll. Most don't even know they are trolls but those who do (and do it anyway), really could benefit from some introspection about what is important.

Bill McDavid Photography

Photography by Bill McDavid

www.billmcdavid.com

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

For those photographers with big cameras, I'm the ideal buddy right now as I'm getting used to my rebreather, and I'd rather move as little as possible to square away my buoancy control. Just check up on me in between shots. I should be looking right back at you or using a reference for depth.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Hand out snacks and just grunt, most [I say most] don't talk while chewing.

That reminds me of an open water class that was disrupted by this guy wanting to flirt with the single ladies in the class. When I expressed my frustration to another instructor, he advised me to have them keep their snorkels in their mouths when their heads are above water.

 

[Pressurehead]

My last dive was with a photographer [no solo on that boat], as it was I could say it was almost solo , never looked at me once, I checked his gas a few times, never asked for mine, I just hovered a few meters above him and just chilled out, he missed the big school of Jewfish [mulloway] swimming above us, sometimes looking though a view finder or at a screen you miss a lot going on around you.
He had nice shots of Nudibranch [Slugis youbeautus , just made that up] and other little fishie things.
Such fun.

 

[rx7diver]

Not really a pet peeve, but a bit of strangeness: A couple of months ago I went with my daughter to a local pool to help her prepare for her upcoming open water check-out. (She was wearing her full check-out gear for the first time.)

Another diver arrived alone and asked if he could dive with us. (The scuba instructor who makes the pool available does not want people diving solo during these unstructured pool sessions.)

I explained to him what my daughter and I were doing, but I could keep him in my peripheral vision if he stayed nearby.

When my daughter and I (and he) exited the pool at the end of our practice session, as I was debriefing my daughter, he proceeded to chat about all the places he has been diving.

Why do some divers feel compelled to recount the various amazing places they have dove? It seems that even if you are both on your surface interval, having just surfaced from an amazing dive on a deep reef in Grand Cayman or a deep wreck in Lake Superior, some divers will nevertheless go on and on, incessantly, about some other amazing dive they made somewhere or other. It never fails. Even with pool "dives", it seems. I have always found this behavior curious.

rx7diver

 

[TMHeimer]

Not really a pet peeve, but a bit of strangeness: A couple of months ago I went with my daughter to a local pool to help her prepare for her upcoming open water check-out. (She was wearing her full check-out gear for the first time.)

Another diver arrived alone and asked if he could dive with us. (The scuba instructor who makes the pool available does not want people diving solo during these unstructured pool sessions.)

I explained to him what my daughter and I were doing, but I could keep him in my peripheral vision if he stayed nearby.

When my daughter and I (and he) exited the pool at the end of our practice session, as I was debriefing my daughter, he proceeded to chat about all the places he has been diving.

Why do some divers feel compelled to recount the various amazing places they have dove? It seems that even if you are both on your surface interval, having just surfaced from an amazing dive on a deep reef in Grand Cayman or a deep wreck in Lake Superior, some divers will nevertheless go on and on, incessantly, about some other amazing dive they made somewhere or other. It never fails. Even with pool "dives", it seems. I have always found this behavior curious.

rx7diver

Yeah. On my one (and only) tropical dive trip (Panama) there was a guy from Spain along on the boat who talked a blue streak about his exploits. It was the only time in my life I was part of a guided dive (the other 4 days it was just me and the DM). The guy left the group and screwed everything up. He wasn't so chatty on the boat ride back....I should've blasted him with my dust cap clearing tank valve.

 

[Jeff_O]

I wish dive shops differentiated between tank size for the pricing of fills. Irks me to pay the same full a 40/50 with air as it does an 80/85.

People told me my nitrogen carbon dioxide 75 25 for MIG welding I ought get a big tank, same price for exchange. 40cf last so long for the little I use it, my back moving it less trouble too, I don't care. Back to scuba though shops charges only slightly less for pony tank. It take 3000psi. 3400 main tank only like a dollar more. Volume is insignificant?

 

[Jeff_O]

More importantly you can't say you have been drinking all day if you don't start early. But that was from a home brew camp from maybe decade ago at Burning Man. **** Guess no delete post in edit. Was supposed to quote from 3 pages back.