[Patwa]

so I decided i'd let you all have a peek into my other hobby ...which, of course, was a direct result of being in this hobby ...it's funny how things work out, eh? ...doing this also helps me kill time while my new display cycles Bayinaung also gave me the go ahead, so I can't argue with that

I took up SCUBA diving years back on a trip to Australia....got my PADI Open Water while diving the Great Barrier Reef there. Years later, on my second trip to the Philippines, I was successfully certified as an Advanced Open Water diver.....woot!

The funny thing is I can't really swim all that well.....well, I suck. But, put me underwater with SCUBA and this is what you get:

Easter Island

moi next to a 1000 year old porites lobata colony (the predominate coral on these reefs)


extremely nutrient poor water = some of the best visibility in the world


school of endemic Easter Island butterflyfish




yellow p. verrucosa....this was one of only two specimens from this genus I encountered on all my dives ...extremely rare on this reef (the other was baby blue)


(not a real Moai....was sunk here for the movie "Rapa Nui")


At the top of the image is the Easter Island Rainbow wrasse (coris debueni), which is endemic to the island and is probably the rarest coris wrasse in the world.


huge banana wrasse!




1000+ year old porites lobata colony


endemic Easter Island damsel...gorgeous


about $15-$20k worth of fish in this shot. Hota Matu'a pygmy angels, femininus wrasses.....i'm pretty sure I pissed myself when I saw these guys






supposed Spanish ghaleon anchor







ill post more pics later

 

[coldmantis]

Beautiful thanks for sharing

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[kamal]

Thank you for sharing that is awesome.

 

[des]

These photos of your experience are simply amazing! I'm happy you're sharing this with us.

Those Easter Island butterflyfish in the photos look Photoshop (obviously not). Especially that 4th one! It's the way they glow around the edges.

Those wrasse are unreal.

 

[Patwa]

you're welcome if you click a photo it'll take you to my Flickr page with the rest of the pics from the set.

This was the first time using my SLR.....still have lots to learn

 

[mmatt]

Awesome pic and great quality. Makes me want to dive there. My fiancée and I got our open water last year and did our first saltwater open water dive in punta Cana in January and it was awesome. Tons of life. Nothing as clear and amazing as these pics. Absolutely stunning an well done

 

[Patwa]

good for you i've never dived in the Caribbean....but this year I have to attend two weddings - one in Jamaica and the other in Costa Rica. If anyone can recommend dive sites for either place, id really appreciate it!

 

[mmatt]

good for you i've never dived in the Caribbean....but this year I have to attend two weddings - one in Jamaica and the other in Costa Rica. If anyone can recommend dive sites for either place, id really appreciate it!

Trip advisor is prob your best bet. But from what I've heard is that the west coast of Jamaica has some great spots.

 

[Patwa]

hmm...I think ill be in Ocho Rios, but ill do my best to get out to that side.

time for more pics

Komodo National Park, Flores, Indonesia

manta rays!






notice the diver holding on to the rock? we're diving in the Flores Sea, a junction between the Indian and Pacific Oceans that sees tremendous tidal surges. We had to add extra weights to our belt for these dives otherwise we'd be tossed around in the current. Our dive master mentioned 2 people had died on dives in the past 3 years as a result of not being able to "hold on"


hawksbill turtle




sweetlips


resting white tips








adult mappa puffer....prolly the most beautiful puffer in the ocean, imo

 

[mmatt]

Wow!😮 absolutely stunning! Totally jealous. Lol

 

[kuopan]

these pictures are absolutely amazing! looks like you had a really good camera as well!

 

[Patwa]

thanks

Wow!😮 absolutely stunning! Totally jealous. Lol

you have no idea, matt. I got to Flores...paid for my dive package not knowing anything about what I would be seeing apart from coral and fish.....next thing, the DM was "OK our first dive tomorrow will be with the mantas" I was like....NO WAY! I couldn't sleep I was sooo excited!

 

[altcharacter]

It's pics like these that make me happy knowing that there are still areas in the ocean that are untouched.

Thanks!

 

[mmatt]

thanks

you have no idea, matt. I got to Flores...paid for my dive package not knowing anything about what I would be seeing apart from coral and fish.....next thing, the DM was "OK our first dive tomorrow will be with the mantas" I was like....NO WAY! I couldn't sleep I was sooo excited!

Lol ya I don't doubt it! That's badass. Those things are huge! The one thing id love to do is dive with sharks. Might regret it at the time but is something is still love to do. Lol Either way those dive locations you've been at are unbelievable. The camera work helps too. You were using an slr? What kind of casing were you using? And what kind of depths were you at?

 

[mmatt]

It's pics like these that make me happy knowing that there are still areas in the ocean that are untouched.

Thanks!

This is so so true. Hopefully it all continues to improves.

 

[explor3r]

Thanks for sharing these pictures very nice and no better feeling in the world that swim with hundreds of fishes surrounded by corals.

 

[Patwa]

It's pics like these that make me happy knowing that there are still areas in the ocean that are untouched.

yep...it is a very humbling experience to be there surrounded by such natural beauty.

Lol ya I don't doubt it! That's badass. Those things are huge! The one thing id love to do is dive with sharks. Might regret it at the time but is something is still love to do. Lol Either way those dive locations you've been at are unbelievable. The camera work helps too. You were using an slr? What kind of casing were you using? And what kind of depths were you at?

I use a Nikon SLR exclusively for my dives now (with an Ikelite housing and Ikelite DS125 strobe) ...but in the past I used my old point and shoots and whatever the dive operator had available for rent (which usually means sometimes good or sometimes totally crap cameras)

Depths are usually less than 20m for proper reef shots...but most of mine are within 10m of the surface.

On my Easter Island dive I went down to 59m.....it was unbelievable to hit that depth and look up and see other divers at 20m

Thanks for sharing these pictures very nice and no better feeling in the world that swim with hundreds of fishes surrounded by corals.

thanks one of my other hobbies is bonsai ... I get the same feeling when I hike through Carolinian forests here in Ontario or far off rainforests in Australia and Borneo

 

[Patwa]

time for more pics to get your Friday started right

Panglao & Balicasag Islands, Philippines

green turtle with lazy remora








feather star ...I saw so many on these dives
















Moorish Idol






lots of soft coral like these around

 

[TankCla]

Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TypeZERO]

awesome pics! thanks for sharing them!!!!