Is there any other kind? 
[/quote]
Year-around-divers. Come rain or snow, I am going to dive anywayā¦[/quote]
The warm tropics are always betterā¦
I just bought a scanner, so just for fun, a few photos Iāve taken over the years underwaterā¦Please excuse the quality, some of these photos were taken over ten years ago.
Sipidan, Malaysia on a night diveā¦ 1997:
Palauā¦1996
Thought this might keep the diving bug going during the cold winter months
Thanks for the pics MJB.
I am looking for an underwater camera.
Something not too expensive but that takes good pics.
Any ideas?
[quote=āLo Bo Toā]Thanks for the pics MJB.
I am looking for an underwater camera.
Something not too expensive but that takes good pics.
Any ideas?[/quote]
I was just told recently that a simple set up will run you 20k.
But I have a āSuper memoryā book that might help.
[quote=ājdsmithā][quote=āLo Bo Toā]Thanks for the pics MJB.
I am looking for an underwater camera.
Something not too expensive but that takes good pics.
Any ideas?[/quote]
I was just told recently that a simple set up will run you 20k.
But I have a āSuper memoryā book that might help.[/quote]
I paid about 7,000US for the gear to take these photos, keeping in mind that this particular camera is rapidly becoming a dinosaur (Nikonos V).
Some more just for funā¦
Jellyfish lakeā¦Makes what you see on Peyote look normal 
Gorgonian coral on New Drop off in Palau at about 12 metersā¦Still can see clouds in the sky.
Donāt want to steer this thread off course but the single most important feature of any underwater camera, regardless of whether it is digital or film is that it supports an off-camera flash.
Suspended particles (The bane of all underwater photographers) are present in all ocean water, no matter how clear. To bring vibrant colors to life underwater you need a powerful flash, which can be mounted on a separate arm long enough to control your lighting angle. Firing a flash underwater will give you a snowstorm effect (back-scatter) unless you have the flash high/far enough from the camera to bounce the light from the suspended particles AWAY from the camera.
There are ways to avoid this with a cheapie camera, but itās so limiting that youād become pretty frustrated after a few sessions if underwater photography suddenly piques your interest.
All of the shots I posted are flash fill, with a distance of no more than 2 feet from any of the subjects with wide-angle lenses.
After reading this, look at the Green Island shot againā¦If you look closely, you can still see some suspended particles in the clear water section.
Thats with me hand holding the flash some 4 feet above the camera.
Eliminating the distance between subject and camera also helps, and itās something that a cheaper camera with an in-body flash might be better able to handle.
This for example, was taken on a murky day up northā¦But with a camera to subject distance of only 4 inches, itās still clear.
I love this stuff 
This is great stuff, MJB. Do you have more stuff on Flickr? Photobucket?
What kind of dive do you fine folks prefer? Night dives are really amazing, but I had the best drift dive off Menjangan Island in Bali. Hardly kicked at all, thereby allowing me to live up to my personal adage that ādivers get more bottom timeā.
[quote=āOld Gobboā]This is great stuff, MJB. Do you have more stuff on Flickr? Photobucket?
What kind of dive do you fine folks prefer? Night dives are really amazing, but I had the best drift dive off Menjangan Island in Bali. Hardly kicked at all, thereby allowing me to live up to my personal adage that ādivers get more bottom timeā.[/quote]
Thanksā¦I have most of my stuff on slides, but have printed some over the years. Iāll try to put up some more as I do more closet/drybox searching.
I prefer big wall drift divingā¦With as much current as I can handle. Blue water diving is fun too if you are in the right place. But for Underwater photography I like shallow spots that have lots of light to work withā¦And of course tons of crittersā¦
A large Leopard Sharkā¦Similan Islands, 1993.
[quote=āMJBā]A large Leopard Sharkā¦Similan Islands, 1993.
[/quote]
WOW!
That is GREAT!
:bravo: :bravo:
I hope that the forumosa diving club is forming as we speak.
Orange cup corals on the Northeast Coastā¦
Crap, just realized Iāve completely hijacked this threadā¦ :threadjacked: :homer:
eye candy
i love it
ā¦Am currently sitting in the Barossa Valley, South Australia enjoying some locally made world class red wine. Was considering a dive on the coast, but just read a report on Great Whites in the area that changed my mind.
Anyone free to come to Whale Island, Vietnam next week? Am looking at a trip to Sabah in the near future also.
Hey jd, the Forumosa Dive Club is a great idea- I officially declare the FDC open and running!!
Cheers, and may you all āgo downā safely!
Dazz
eye candy
I love it[/quote]
Alright JDā¦Just for you.
The A-grade stuff 
Napoleon Wrasse: Well over 5 feet long. Taken at Blue Corner, Palau.
Bumphead Parrot fish (about 30kgs worth) sleeping on a ledge on a Sipidan wall dive late at night.
Green Island safety stopā¦Looking up at the dive boat from 5 meters:
Sea Turtle flying over a Malaysian reef-scape:
LionFishā¦Taken freediving at about 8 meters. This subject eluded me on scuba for 3 straight days, kept sticking his tail and dorsal spines toward the camera. Once the bubbles were gone he was quite cooperative.
Parrot fish on a Night dive in the Similan Islandsā¦The ābubbleā is a protective layer of mucous that emanates from the mouth, covering itās body while at rest to protect it from predators
Finally one of my favorite shots, taken in Malaysia from inside a tornadoing school of Jacks and Barracuda, schooling together for protection, but swimming in opposite directions as you can see in the image. I was at the time completely surrounded on all sides. The school of fish went from 20 meters to the surface, and numbered in the tens of thousands.
Enough eye candy JD? Shit, I canāt wait to get wet 
Excellent photos, thanks for posting them. I really like the one of the nudibranch laying the eggs, thatās a hard shot to get! :bravo:
Just back from Kenting after a weekend of sun, fun and great company. I had 5 dives this weekend with visibility of around 10- 12 metres on Saturday and 12- 15 metres on Sunday. Water was about 22 degrees C both days. The company was good, between 6- 9 of us in total on both days.
I am officially a diving addict.!
Looking forward to more experiences in different places.
Seriously, as jdsmith suggested who else is for a Forumosa dive club?
Maybe we could be the Forumoceanicsā¦!
Add your name here:
Forumosa Divers
Highway star
[quote=āHighway Starā]Just back from Kending after a weekend of sun, fun and great company. I had 5 dives this weekend with visibility of around 10- 12 metres on Saturday and 12- 15 metres on Sunday. Water was about 22 degrees C both days. The company was good, between 6- 9 of us in total on both days.
I am officially a diving addict.!
Looking forward to more experiences in different places.
Seriously, as jdsmith suggested who else is for a Forumosa dive club?
Maybe we could be the Forumoceanicsā¦!
Add your name here:
Forumosa Divers
Highway star[/quote]
There is a group going to Orchid Island April 1-5, but I canāt make that trip. I would LOVE to get something going for the same time. Maybe leave Friday the 31st for Kenting, and come back Tuesday or Wednesday (holiday).
Anybody up for that?
jds
Once again, anyone interested in a trip to Kenting the first few days of April?
I will let you know next weekā¦would love to get down there again but it depends on a few things.
Should know by next Wednesday whether or not I can head down there.
Cheers.
Dazz
[quote=āHighway Starā]I will let you know next weekā¦would love to get down there again but it depends on a few things.
Should know by next Wednesday whether or not I can head down there.
Cheers.
Dazz[/quote]
Cool. Anyone else?
[quote=ājdsmithā][quote=āHighway Starā]I will let you know next weekā¦would love to get down there again but it depends on a few things.
Should know by next Wednesday whether or not I can head down there.
Cheers.
Dazz[/quote]
Cool. Anyone else?[/quote]
Forget it Dazz. Spring Scream is going on that weekend and the next. No way am I going to suffer that chaos at my age.
jdsenile