Scubashooters net e mag issue n50 aug 2020

Pietro Cremone

Portfolio

issue n°50

- aug 2020

Travels: Romblon

Biology: Sharks

Review: Nudibranch Book

Travels: Diving The Spice Island

Biology: Cassiopa Andromeda

Review: Isotta Red64 Strobe

Dear readers, if you happen to open any newspaper in the world or

turn on any tv on any newscast almost 100% of the scene has been stolen by the Covid 19 thing... not that it is not important, along with the health and economical effects that this pandemic is bringing along, but it seems to me that only Covid related news are more and more pushed through all the medias into our brains... we know as human beings that humans are highly adaptive animals and we can see we are already adjusting to the new Covid reality with social distancing and face masks and all those stuffs... my question is then... why do we appear to be unable to take care of our Ocean, and ultimately of our unique house in the universe?

Why don’t we see that the pre Covid era problems are all still there, micro plastics, Ocean pollution, human food chain endangered sea species... we have been told that the Ocean has gotten some relief from the Covid stop... is that really the truth?

Or it’s some convenient truth to cover up the reality?

We’ll see... for now we shall just keep in mind that Covid or no Covid the great majority of polluting human activities have not been shut down nor cleaned up to a more environment friendly kind of operation.

We should all stay vigilant.

Marino Palla Owner and Founder Scubashooters Network

Cover image by: Pietro Cremone

Contents

Issue

n°50

-

aug

2020

pag. 74

P ortfolio Pietro Cremone Editorial:

by Marino Palla

Travels: Diving The Spice Islands by: Vinny Apuzzo

pag. 3

Travels: Romlon By: Liang Fu

Biology: Sharks by: Vanessa Mignon

pag. 8 Biology: Cassiopea Andromeda by: Emilio Mancuso Review: Sea Save Foundation

pag. 54

Review: Isotta Red64 Strobe by: Isotecnic

pag. 64

Review: M52 Lens Holder By: Inon

pag. 72

Dan: Overcoming Challenges By: DAN Europe

pag. 24

pag. 40

pag. 106

Editor: Fabio Strazzi Assistant Editor: Isabella Maffei

pag. 34

Scubashooters - Via Barucchi 37, 37139 Verona Graphic Design and Supervising: Elisa Furlani Layout: Elisa Furlani Alessandra Suppo Translations: Piera Pirini

4

A New Partnership PADI and

We’re excited to be collaborating with

PADI to help share your incredible imagery with more divers across the globe!

5

Travels

Romblon

Hidden Gem of Marine Biodiversity

Words: Liang Fu & Weiwei Zeng Pictures: Liang Fu

8

9

Travels

W

hen we speak of Romblon, one thing comes into our mind is marble.

Cyerce nigra As the marble capital of the Philippines, Romblon attracts many tourists to travel in this “marbelous” town in Philippines every year.

However, as we come to underwater scuba diving world, Romblon remains a hidden gem for underwater photographers who are particularly interested in macro and super macro underwater critters.

Philippines is well known as the center of Marine Biodiversity in the world.

And Romblon is located in the Verde island passages, where marine biologists consider

it as the “center of the center of Marine Biodiversity”.

Romblon is situated at the center of the Philippine archipelago. It is composed of three major islands (Tablas, Sibuyan and Romblon).

Underwater critters found here are very different and unique. No other places we visited before have so many tiny and weird nudibranchs, shrimps and fishes.

For many divers who come to Romblon, Phantom nudibranch, Butterfly nudibranch and Sashimi Shrimp are the three most popular critters.

There are great chances to find all three beautiful, wired and creepy critters all year round.

More amazingly, there are actually two species of Phantom Nudi, more than four kind of different Butterfly Nudis and various colors of Sashi

10

Pink Cyerce elegans

Stiliger sp.

11

Tecnique

12

Cyerce elegans

13

Travels

Danish seahorse

Pughead pipefish 14

Softcoral pipefish

Humpback Shrimp 15

Travels

Japanese Dragon shrimp

Cyerce sp

16

Snow flake

Pipefish

17

Travels

and black patterns as a tiger does.

However if we look at a nigra from the above, with golden spot and yellow lines on the cerata, it looks just like a flower in full bloom.

Other than Cyerce nigra, Romblon also has good chances to find 3-4 species of butterfly nudis.

Sashimi Shrimp

Cyerce nigra mi Shrimp and many many other special critters that Romblon can offer.

Phantom Nudi Romblon became famous among underwater photographers when Melibe Colemani was first found in year 2015.

This unbelievable species was first found by the famous Nudibranch Legend Neville Coleman.

And this Melibe was officially named after him in 2012.

Sashimi Shrimp is recently found in Romblon and quickly become a musthave highlight for night dive among underwater photographers because its special looking.

Pinky red body with green head which looks very much like a tuna sushi with a wasabi on the head.

It also has various colors on both the body and head. According to the 3P diving resort, they found more than 20 different color combinations in the last year!

Butterfly Nudis If we call Phantom Nudi the weirdest nudibranch, then Butterfly nudi might be the prettiest nudibranch in the world.

Cyerce nigra, one of the butterfly nudis, is also called tiger nudi because it has the same yellow

Sashimi shrimp 18

Blue ring octopus

Dragon shrimp

Lembah sea dragon

Cyerce sp.

Although most divers come to Romblon for the famous phantom and butterfly nudibranchs, everyone is surprised by the diversity of critters in Romblon.

It’s like a hidden gem waiting for us to explore.

Some photographers even resemble Romblon as Lembeh 30 years ago.

There’s one major dive resort, The Three P diving resort(www.The-Three-P.com), that caters to photographers.

19

How to get there?

There are many ways to get to Romblon. The easiest way of getting Romblon is via ferry.

There are regular ferries from Romblon to Batangas twice per week.

The trip would take around 9 hours to get on Romblon island.

Another way is to take a flight from Manila to Tablas Island (IATA:TBH). The flight time is about 1 hour. Then get the pickup service from the airport to dive resort which takes 2 hours.

Tecnique

Ghost Nudi Melibe engeli

Phantom Nudi. Melibe colemani

20

Pigmy seahorse

21

GAMMA

WATERPROOOF Flashlight

The essence of form + function now 60% brighter thanks to the latest LEDs and special light concentrating optics.

Each Gamma starts with aircraft grade aluminum, precision-machined into a supremely ergonomic, no-slip contour grip. Military-grade anodizing and a double o-ring seal provide corrosion-proof and waterproof operation up to 400ft (120m).

SPECIFICATIONS • • • • • • •

400 ft (120m) depth rating 350 lumen concentrated 10° beam Color temperature 6500K Over 10 hours run time Accepts 2 CR123 batteries Dimensions 5.6 x 1.4 in (142 x 36 mm) Weighs only 4 oz (113 g)

Biology

Cassiopea Andromeda

Like A Starship

Words and Pictures: Emilio Mancuso

24

25

Biology

C

assiopea Andromeda

BIOLOGY This is one of the eight species of jellyfish that are part of the Cassiopeidae family, a family that is represented ONLY by these eight species, which can be easily recognized by hav-

The flat umbrella remains in contact with the bottom and the tentacles are facing upwards, and in this position it remains, even if it is removed from the bottom, where it returns by

ing a flat, circular umbrella, with dimensions that reach even 30 cm in diameter and that populate almost all the warm and temperate seas of our planet.

beating its umbrella with the classic jellyfish movement, always reversed upside-down.

We almost forgot the most salient feature: you will undoubtedly recognize a Cassiopea because it lives “upside down�!

Tendentially tied to not particularly deep seabeds, both sandy and detrital, these jellyfish are found as far as the light can pass with good intensity that, in the crystal clear waters of the

DEPTH

26

27

Tecnique

28

29

Biology

30

Red Sea, leads them to distribute even up to 20 meters deep.

anthellae due to photosynthesis.

APPROACH AND OBSERVATION

CURIOSITY

Of course, watching those still creatures stuck to the bottom may even not be the biggest thrill of the dive, but this does not allow us to mistreat these delicate organisms.

Undoubtedly the most obvious curiosity is linked to its most striking feature, which then gives these jellyfish the common name of “upside-down jellyfish”.

This feature hides an even more peculiar curiosity: like all jellyfish, these are also equipped with stinging cells used to catch food, but in the case of Cassiopea the number of stinging cells is extremely low, and they have expanded tentacles (almost like form small spearheads) where the jellyfish have learned to “cultivate” zooxanthellae, microalgae of the same class as those that are inside the polyps of the hard corals.

First of all, a close-up view will allow us to observe the elegance of the shape and the tentacles colored from the inside by zooxanthellae ... and if you really can’t resist the thrill of seeing it twirl in the water the least you can do is taking these two precautions: if you are in a group, do it once while everyone attends; Don’t touch it directly with your warm, rough and dirty big hands, but rather put a finger under the sand and let the sand itself acts as protection for the delicate jellyfish.

This reveals why the Cassiopea live on shallow depths, and reveals why they live turned upside down. The tentacles containing the zooxanthellae must be exposed to light, so that these microalgae can do photosynthesis.

Let us remember that they are made for more than 90% by water and our eagerness could cause their death.

As a benefit for this symbiosis, jellyfish receive much of their nourishment in the form of simple sugars produced precisely by zoox-

Thus, once again let us remember to be careful observers and lovers of the sea, and not a source of disturbance and harm.

31

Review

Sea Save Foundation

Helping Our Buddies

Website: www.seasave.org

34

35

Review

S

ea Save Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 non- We seek solutions, advance public policy, and profit ocean conservation organization. drive advocacy.

We believe that because oceans do not recognize political borders, we must work at the global level if we are going to bring about real change.

To that end, we have been official participants at the Conference of International Traded of Endangered Species (CITES) for more than

a decade and are also official participants in the United Nations: Ocean Conference.

The majority of our workforce comes from volunteers who leverage their professional skills to help promote our efforts.

The Sea Save Foundation Impact Statement: Sea Save Foundation strives to protect oceans by raising awareness about the beauty of marine ecosystems and their fundamental importance to human survival.

We are currently working to help SCUBA crews around the world through the COVID crisis.

Jacques Cousteau once accurately surmised: People love what they know and protect what they love.

Donate https://seasave.org/scubaambassadors/

We believe this is true, and as such, many of the primary ambassadors who show people the beauty of ocean ecosystems are SCUBA resort and liveaboard crews.

To this end, Sea Save Foundation set up a series of fundraisers for these crew members.

These diligent workers, often support extended families and rely heavily upon tips for their revenue stream.

36

Sea Save Foundation has created these fundraisers as a service and are taking zero percent of any funds raised.

37

Please consider helping your favorite crew:Â Â https://seasave.org/scubaambassadors/

Travels

Diving the Spice Islands

My Love For Ambon

Words and pictures: Vinny Apuzzo

40

41

Travels

I

ndonesia is becoming more and more of a popular diving destination due to its richness in reef and fish life.

and have seen a great change due to a growing young population and also easier air travel.

Traveling with the local air lines these days is a

There are always fads that come and go as before Bali was the great Macro heaven dive and the USS Liberty was the place to dive, then it moved to Lembeh and Manado.

And of course, Raja Ampat has stolen the show to be now the best diving in Indonesia.

With all due respect, that is.

far cry from the old days of flying with Merpati Air if anyone remembers that.

Indonesia is still growing in the dive industry and we have not found all the new places to dive yet.

But I’m here to talk about the Spice Islands and of course the major one that we can dive is Teluk Ambon.

I have been working in the Indonesian dive industry and travelling Indonesia since 1995

Ambon island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of 775Â km2

42

the destination is well worth the effort!

43

Tecnique

44

45

Travels

(299 sq mi) and is mountainous, well watered, and fertile. Ambon Island consists of two territories - the city of Ambon to the south and various districts (kecamatan) of the Central Maluku Regency to the north.

es all burnt and destroyed very sad to see and of course no one could leave the airport, just a refuel for our Merpati plane which we were counting our lucky stars that we made it half way to our finale destination.

The first time I came to Ambon was in 1999 on my way to work in Irian Jaya (Raja Ampat) at that time there was the civil war which was devastating for the local people and landing at the airport you could just see the hous-

Whilst waiting for the refuel I saw adverts in the airport for diving and I thought to myself I have to come back since then I have been back many times.

Ambon has come a long way since then the

46

island has grown and the Ambonese are very humble and welcoming. The airport Pattimura (Indonesian: Bandar Udara Pattimura) is very well connected now from major cities like Makassar-Jakarta-Sorong-Bali. With Lionair group and also Garuda, but Garuda was having many troubles whilst I was there always cancelling flights so maybe better to stay with the Lionair group.

But let’s get to the diving my favourite place to stay is Spice Island Divers Resort (old Maluku Divers) The staff at the resort are pretty much the same as before but with some extra tweaks, with new managers.

thing from 2 minutes from the resort up to about 5 minutes.

The dive sites in the bay can be anything from sandy bottoms to rumble and a profusion of sponges mixed with rumble.

These types of dive sites are the best for the macro lovers as the dives are full of life. On some of the famous dive sites like Laha 1/2/3 you can see harlequin shrimps to large frogfish, rhinopias in their many different forms and colours, Nudibranchs, seahorses, it was mind blowing to see the amount of life on one dive.

The currents can be quite strong on these dive sites on one dive all we could do is hang on to a rope from an anchor if not we would just get swept away very unpredictable currents.

Ronny doing a great job running the resort he helped us with visas extensions taking us back and forth to the immigration office a great service and Benny running the dive center part, great job guys.

Dives were well managed and all requests by the guest was not a problem.

The rooms have been updated with big sized beach front bungalow’s more than big enough which overlook Ambon bay and they also have some garden rooms which are also comfortable and spacious. The resort serves great food well prepared and many products come from their hydroponic garden.

As for the diving you have around 40 dive sites to choose from, Ambon bay which pretty much is the best muck dive site in the area are any-

47

The dive guides are very attentive to try and make the guests happy I dived with Alan who is very attentive and is aware of your photography needs which makes life much easier.

Another great dive site is twilight I counted 12 different frog fishes on this dive from hairy to warty to painted, even while we were on the boat waiting for the second dive you could see the frog fish coming into the shallows near the beach. On the other side of Ambon bay, the dive are mainly sandy bottoms here it’s great to see Mimics, blue rings, Mototi, Seahorses and of course many frog fish.

Travels

48

49

Travels

50

If you would like a change from the muck dives you can also go to the outer side of Ambon bay where you have more of a classic style of dive with corals walls and caverns which makes a change if you stay for a couple of weeks.

One week I would say is the minimum amount of time to spend here any less you don’t really get to see a good range of dive sites also you have the possibility to make black water dives in the bay which are also a great option.

Ambon is a great stop off your way to Raja or coming from Raja as it breaks your flight up a bit and you have some time to organise in case your flights get changed which happened to me 4 times on this trip so if you have some time it would be a great stop over.

Ambon has been on the diving radar for many years but it was visited by a selected few divers but as of now flights are easier Indonesia is opening up very fast for diving and more areas are getting exposure to the diving public I just hope that all the new divers that come to Ambon respect the environment and do not destroy the delicate ecosystem just to get their photo, which has happened in so many other places, so please lets be respectful of this wonderful diving environment for us and future generations and respect your dive guide not put pressure on them to try and find a rare specious so you can take hundreds of photos and just keep one of them. https://www.spiceislanddivers.com/ https://divetravelphotography.com/ https://www.instagram.com/vinnys_adventures/?hl=en

51

Puerto Galera - Oriental Mindoro - Philippines

Share your passion for diving wishlist exploring the magical underwater world of Puerto Galera.

This fabulous destination offers the perfect mix of diving and culture, hiding surprises for even the most expert of divers in its unique biodiversity and colourful marine creatures.

An ideal destination for macro photographers.

www.fishermenscove.com

.

+63 917 533 2985

.

info@fishermenscove.com

Biology

Sharks

So Important

Words and Pictures: Vanessa Mignon

Biology

I

t is hard to know for sure how many sharks are killed for their fins every year, but the estimations are at about 100 millions.

That’s 11,416 sharks killed every hour, 3 sharks a second…The number of sharks killed each year is shocking in itself, but the way they are slaughtered is barbarous.

Since the shark meat has little value, the fish-

erman often only slice the fins off and throw back the body in the water.

The shark, still alive, sinks to the bottom. It cannot swim, it cannot breath, and it is left to an agonizing and slow death. Apart from being cruel, this practice is unsustainable and is seriously threatening the shark populations around the world.

Indeed, an analysis published in the journal eLife in 2014 estimated that one-quarter of sharks, rays, and chimaeras are threatened according to IUCN Red List criteria due to overfishing (targeted and incidental). http://www.iucnssg.org/global-conservationstatus-of-sharks-and-rays.html

Sharks are very vulnerable to overfishing cause they are very slow to mature sexually and they have few youngs.

Therefore, they are not able to recover quickly from populations losses.

It’s concerning that a soup could decimate a specie like that, especially since it seems that shark fins have no flavor and no nutritional val

56

57

Biology

58

59

Biology

60

It’s very important that we change the way sharks are perceived and also raise awareness. I have swam with many species of sharks, without any protection, and all those encounters were very peaceful. The sharks showed no aggression and no or little interest towards the divers.

ue and are only used to add texture to the dish. The soup could actually be made from other ingredients without losing its flavor.

Sharks fins are made of cartilage so eating shark fin soup is similar to eating human hair and nails.

Although eating human hair and nails could actually be healthier as sharks, being Apex predators, have high levels of mercury.

Sharks are essential to the health of our oceans, therefore essential to the planet and to us: As apex predators, they maintain other fish populations under control and play a very important role in the overall health of the oceans.

This is heartbreaking. Sharks have been around for millions of years, even before the dinosaurs, and I could see them extinct in my lifetime, all because of a dish.

Remove them and the ecosystem becomes out of balance.

And then, as if this wasn’t bad enough, there are the additional threats of bycatch from commercial fisheries, injuries from fishing gear, shark culls etc.

It’s crucial that we protect sharks. So take a stand: raise awareness, sign petitions, leave restaurants that serve shark fin soup. Use your voice to save the sharks, the oceans, and ultimately humankind.

Unfortunately sharks don’t always have a good reputation, they are often portrayed in the media as dangerous. Many people fear them and don’t care about them.

61

Crystal Blue Resort~Anilao

Dedicated to Underwater Photographers Worldwide • • • • • • • •

Nitrox 32 Chef Prepared Meals On-Sight Photo Pro Camera Room Workshops Highly Skilled Spotters 4:1 boat loads Rental Gear

Contact Mike@DiveCBR.com saltwaterphoto@live.com

INTO THE

DEEP

Y OUR DREAMS OF

+39 335 537 8531

ficarelladivingclub@gmail.com

Ficarella-Diving-Club-Saline-Joniche-rc-Italy

Explore Cape Town’s top dive sites

Macro Life

Kelp Forests

Beautiful Reefs

Nudibranchs

www.indigoscuba.com

info@indigoscuba.com

+27 (0)83 268 1851

Review

Review

Isotta

Red64 strobe Website: www.isotecnic.it

I

sotta, the known world leader for underwater photo-video equipment, further the famous strobes Isomat 33, K50, K35, Gara 33 (NG22!), the first automatic strobes 33TTL and the 50TTL the first one with separate battery pack, on 2019 presents the newest, fantastic and innovative strobe RED64!

pected; best results as performances and response to several condition we have been test !!

Together the Italian UWP Francesco Visintin, with pleasure we were committed to deeply test preview the strobe RED64.

INNOVATIVE – POWERFUL – VERSATILE

RED64 is absolutely up to expectations and the Isotta tradition:

Further 4 years of research and deeply and professional develops, the RED64 has been designed and manufactured for a long life

We can say that strobe RED64 is fully as ex-

64

use, thanks also to the upgradeable internal software.

to have a loveable bokeh effect. The RED64 strobe allows for a fine regulation till NG1 (1/512).

RED64, digital underwater strobe with 5400°K colour temperature, has been designed for high perfomances, a professional strobe to satisfy all the underwater photographers, from the amateur to the professional ones.

Really high perfomances to have the best action result, no problem with buffer shots of the newest cameras until 10 shots per second, several shots thanks to the high capacity of the condensers.

With the range of power of the RED64, all the different photographic situation are fullfilled, backlight in wide angle, largest subject thanks to large covered angle, far subject, slow synch mode, balanced light and excellent light quality.

Exposure in i-TTL as with synchro cord as with optical fiber cords, is fully supported by the news and high level electronic circuit; the underwater photographer needs only to be focused on the image composition, without having to worry about the distance of the main subject.

No further problems with low power synch using higher ISO and large lens aperture,

65

Review

Further over 2000 shot test, we can easily say that Isotta RED64 strobe met the highest expectation, and according the Isotta’s history and reliability, this newest one will be a great support for professional and amateur underwater photographer.

In order to have different end users satisfied, Isotta designed and manufactured different accessories as ring light hood, coloured filters, spherical light diffuser, etc.

Said the technical data, we of course tested underwater and we were really impressed about the the RED64 strobe ergonomy and easy to use also with winter gloves; as the OFF/manual/TTL switches as pilot light (white or red) switch are easy access with the status strobe led always visible.

RED64 characteristic • • • • •

Alluminium anticorodal body Toroidal xenon lamp Alluminium parabola Double o-ring Electronic scheme shield and separated from the control unit • Double led pilot lamp white / red • Maximun available power 250 Ws (J) • Guide Number 22 (ISO100-1mt) with 100° covered angle • Digitali protocol Nikon i-TTL • Max depth 100 mtr • Synch cord connection S6 / nikonos / optical fiber, slave synch • 8 battery size AA MH rechargeable • Watertight battery pack • Universal spherical adapter • Ergonomical control unit, eay access • Designed and manufactured in Italy • Assistance, warranty and customer oriented Isotta www.isotecnic.it

Neutral buoyancy is an added value helping the end user to minimize the impact of the weight of the camera housing.

We tested in different situation, bad visibility, cold water, sunny and raining days, with excellent performances in wide angle, closeup, macro or fishes shots.

Amazing TTL response in very bad visibility condition. The RED64 strobe is dimensioned to the maximun power generated and aligned to the competitors.

Over 300 shots at maximun power without changing the batteries.

66

67

Review

Review

Inon

M52 Lens Holder Website: www.inon.jp

I

NON INC. is pleased to announce official release of lens holder products to use for newly announced UWL-95 C24 M52 wide conversion lens etc. on April 24th, 2020.

M52 Lens Holder for Float Arm Release date : April 24th, 2020 JAN code : 456212143 975 7 Weight: [air] 49 g/1.7 oz, [underwater] approx. 26 g/0.9 oz

A lens holder attached on a Float Arm/Mega Float Arm/Mega Float Tube or on the M5 Joint installed on a Stick Arm/Multi Ball Arm to carry M52 series attachment lens.

This lens holder can carry the UFL-M150 ZM80 Underwater Micro Fisheye Lens attached on the M27-M67 Mount Converter for UFL-M150 ZM80/Step-up Ring 52-67 as well.

M52 Lens Holder S Release date : April 24th, 2020 JAN code : 456212143 973 3

70

Weight: [air] 54 g/1.9 oz, [underwater] approx. 28 g/1.0 oz A lens holder attached on an INON Arm to carry M52 series attachment lens. The lens holder is installed on an INON Arm sandwiched between Lens Holder [screw] and Lens Holder Base of this product.

This lens holder can carry the UFL-M150 ZM80 Underwater Micro Fisheye Lens attached on the M27-M67 Mount Converter for UFL-M150 ZM80/Step-up Ring 52-67 as well.

M52 Lens Holder W Release date : April 24th, 2020 JAN code : 456212143 974 0

Weight*: [air] 104 g/3.7 oz, [underwater] approx. 50 g/1.8 oz *Whole component A lens holder attached on an INON Arm to carry maximum two of M52 series attachment lenses.

The lens holder is installed on an INON Arm sandwiched between Lens Holder [screw] and Lens Holder [hole] of this product.

The Lens Holder [screw] is usable as M52 Lens Holder S and the Lens Holder [hole] is usable as M52 Lens Holder for Float Arm. This lens holder can carry the UFL-M150 ZM80 Underwater Micro Fisheye Lens attached on the M27-M67 Mount Converter for UFL-M150 ZM80/Step-up Ring 52-67 as well.

71

We are located exactly 74 km far from Trieste, near the small town of Kantrida, which is about 5 to 6 km before downtown Rijeka.

Our Diving Centre is right under the swimming pools area, directly in front of the open beach. On one side, we are overlooked by Mount Major (Ucka) and on the other, we face the beautiful islands of Krk and Cherso: in brief, we are right inside the Kvarnaro Gulf.

Our flagship is wreck diving by boat: three wrecks situated at different depths, each one no farther than maximum 20 minutes boat ride. And there’s more! Our shore dives directly from our Center’s beach offer an easy and colorful training ground for any kind of diving courses. Finally yet importantly, our diamond tip dedicated to macro photography lovers: a wide variety of critters to increase the pleasure of diving.

From our beach, with our boat... ...come with us and enjoy your dive!

www.diving-marcopolo.com

唀渀搀攀爀眀愀琀攀爀 攀砀瀀攀爀椀攀渀挀攀

挀⼀漀 匀琀愀戀椀氀椀洀攀渀琀漀 戀愀氀渀攀愀爀攀 ᰠ匀琀攀氀氀愀 䴀愀爀椀渀愀 渀⸀㜀ᴠ 一甀洀愀渀愀Ⰰ 䤀琀愀氀礀 吀攀氀⸀ ㌀㤀 ㌀㌀㔀 㘀㘀㈀㔀㌀㌀㤀 䔀洀愀椀氀⸀ 椀渀昀漀䀀挀攀渀琀爀漀猀甀戀洀漀渀琀攀挀漀渀攀爀漀⸀挀漀洀 眀眀眀⸀挀攀渀琀爀漀猀甀戀洀漀渀琀攀挀漀渀攀爀漀⸀挀漀洀

Portfolio

Pietro Cremone 74

75

I

was born in February 1964 in Castellammaredi Stabia, and sincefrom an early age I was inexorably attracted by the sea.

The gradual transition to digital was natural, going first to various compacts and then back to the DSLR. Currently, I shoot with a Nikon Nau ticam housing.I love wide-angle photography very much, although I don’t dislike small

Even as a child I enjoyed exploring the tide pools with mask and fins, and later I started to spear fishing with my small spring-speargun, with which fortunately I could not catch almost anything.

subjects that I always try to portray with a small artistic and personal touch.

Growing up, I abandoned the rifle and converted to the camera.

I started with a small waterproof Minolta to switch to the first DSSLR, a Nikon FG with plastic housing .. hard times, going on single-breath and with manual focus!

Sometimes I like to run in photographic contests, and I have had many satisfactions, with some of my photos exhibited in museums and even at the United Nations on the occasion of World Oceans’ Day. Over the years, my passion for underwater photography has grown a lot, and I decided to turn it into my current job,in fact since 2009 I am the owner ofFotosub Shop, an underwater photography shop that has become the Italian reference point for underwater images in just a few years

76

77

Tecnique

78

79

80

81

Tecnique

82

83

84

85

86

87

88

89

90

91

92

93

94

95

96

97

98

99

100

101

102

103

Leo3 Plus

Leo3 Wi

MAKE IT EASY

Leo3

Leo3 Smart

Enjoy your passion.

We make it possible.

Via Milano 177/B 37014 Castelnuovo d/G Verona - ITALY 0039 45 6450480 info@isotecnic.it

www.revistaaQua.com • aQua #18

free download

aQua magazine

www.revistaaqua.com

DAN Europe

Overcoming Challenges While Diving

Website: www.daneurope.org

G

It all happened very fast.

ETTING LOST AT SEA: NIGHT DIVE IN THE GALAPAGOS Well, I nearly lost my life twice.

I remember I couldn’t see beyond my hand. I was being pushed from one side to the other.

One was a near drowning experience when three friends and I went diving in rough seas at Dwejra in Gozo, and the other was during a night-dive in the Galapagos.

About 10 minutes later we managed to make it through the tunnel and into the blue and, when we got there, we realised what a terrible idea it all was.

Both were due to me being silly or not taking the necessary precautions.

“The more you know before your dive, the easier it is to factor in the possibility of what could go wrong.”

Back then I was certainly younger and more naive — you always think it won’t happen to you or if it does, that you can get away with it. Luckily, I didn’t pay the ultimate price.

HYPERVENTILATING WATER: DROWNING IN ROUGH SEAS

I was leading the other two guys and we immediately decided we needed to head back.

I stopped to wait for them so we would surface together but unlucky for me, a wave broke, literally, all over me, yanking me into the other side of the inland sea, ripping off my mask and regulator.

ALMOST

Two of my friends and I decided to go for a dive at the inland sea in Dwejra, Gozo.

My tank was wedged into a crack and I was hyperventilating water.

It was the craziest thing we could do: the waves were breaking through that narrow passage, hitting the ceiling, but we had dived there the week before and we thought we’ll be fine.

Thankfully I didn’t hit my head, but I saw my whole childhood flash before me and it was then I realised: “I’m drowning, I’m dying”

When we eventually came to the rocks it was already way beyond what we imaged.

Instinctively, I reached for my regulator which was dangling at the side of my suit and started trying to breathe again.

The water was coming into the narrow passage through which we had to pass and then coming out at such an intense speed, it was basically sucking us in.

I then managed to get out from where I got stuck and started to surface.

106

I then made it to hospital where I was treated. Looking back I was really lucky I had the necessary experience and reacted the way I did.

could go wrong.

My advice to divers is: 1. Know yourself.

2. Know your equipment.

3. Know your territory.

It’s easier to know what one can expect when diving in familiar territory.

Take all the necessary precautions and never, ever think you are about to ask a stupid question.

If I’m diving in a completely new environment, then I will take other precautions, even asking basic questions to ensure I’m completely aware of sea and weather conditions.

When in doubt, speak.

It’s better to go in for a dive feeling assured than feeling helpless in a crisis situation.

ADVICE TO DIVERS The more you know before your dive, the easier it is to factor in the possibility of what

Don’t take anything for granted.

107

匀 吀䄀夀 䤀 一 倀䄀 刀 䄀 䐀 䤀 匀 䔀

䄀 䜀 唀 匀 吀䄀 䤀 匀 䰀 䄀 一 䐀 Ⰰ 刀 䄀 䨀 䄀 䄀 䴀 倀䄀吀Ⰰ 䤀 一 䐀 伀 一 䔀 匀 䤀 䄀 䤀 一 䘀 伀 䀀 䄀 䜀 唀 匀 吀 䄀 刀 䔀 匀 伀 刀 吀⸀ 䌀 伀 䴀 䄀 䜀 唀 匀 吀 䄀 刀 䔀 匀 伀 刀 吀⸀ 䌀 伀 䴀

Indonesia MOYO ISLAND

See it, Dive it, Love it A top natural wonderland A place where the beauty of nature exceeds expectation.

An exotic and luxuriant island paradise.

An extremely peaceful place where you can relax in tranquility.

A world-class diving destination.

info@bluemoceanresort.com www.bluemoceanresort.com +62 813.3794.6294