Scubashooters net e mag issue n13 mar 2016

ISSUE

N°13 M A R 2016

“DEEP VISIONS - UWP AWARDS”

THE WINNERS

All the results of Scubashooters.net contest

PORTFOLIO Yury Ivanov

A MOUNTAIN ABOVE THE SEA

by Tedone/Riccardo

WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE

by M. Visconti

GEMS OF THE SEA SEA SAPPHIRES

by S. Meldonian

FRESH WATERS The scuba diver’s crucIfix

REVIEW Telescopic arms

by Inon

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Dear Friends, Our contest, the Deep Visions contest has come to its end... I would take this chance to thanks again our main sponsors who offered amazing prizes and will do again for the next edition: INON Japan, Oceanic, Coltrisub, Dabirahe, The Menjangan and Easydive.You will be able to see the outstanding quality of the winning images in this issue of our magazine. We have all been enthusiastic here at Scubashooters.net as soon as we saw the quality of the production photographers all over the world submitted. Its international vocation has been fully respected: photographers from all continents ( except Antarctica ) submitted their photos to our international Jury; President Mr Henry Jager from Switzerland, Mrs Isabella Maffei from Italy,Mrs Beth Watson from USA,Mr Davide Lopresti from Italy, Mrs Ivana Orlovich from Croatia, Mr Roland Bach from Spain and Mr Fabio Iardino from Italy. I would like to thank them all for the great job they did accomplishing the judjging of the more than 600 photos uploaded to our server. I would take this chance to remind once again how our platform is set up for blind judging; judges are not able to see the name of the author and when they do , because the photographer didn’t read thoroughly the rules where it is clearly stated that no watermarks are allowed on the submitted photos, they are forced to disqualify them. What a pity indeed! Because of this we were forced to disqualify many many interesting shots and many others were disqualified because they were unrespectful of the environment. So thank you Deep Visions Jury! I hope you’re all ready for Deep Visions 2016! Join scubashooters.net, and join Deep Visions UWP award, the first environmental friendly photo contest!

Marino Palla Owner and Founder Scubashooters Network

Cover image

“The troop”

by Jury Ivanov

C O N T E N T S 3

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EDITORIAL

by Marino Palla

DEEP VISION UWP Awards 2015

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36A MOUNTAIN ABOVE THE SEA The island of Marettimo

By Sergio Riccardo & Fabio Tedone

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PORTFOLIO Yury Ivanov

GEM OF THE SEA Sea Sapphires (Sappharina Copepod)

by Suzan Meldonian

PAPUA NEW GUINEA Where the daydreams come true (part 2)

by Matteo Visconti

INON PREVIEW: CARBON TELESCOPIC ARM S

THE SCUBA DIVER’S CRUCIFIX

by Immacolata Moccia

Editor: FABIO STRAZZI Verein Scubashooters, 8952 Schlieren - Switzerland

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For this image I used the following equipment: Camera: Nikon D800e Housing: SUBAL Lens: Nikon 105 VRII f2,8 Flash: two Inon Z-240 Focus Light Fix Settings: ISO 100 - f25 - 1/250 - Manual WB

This photo was taken at Anilao in October 2015, and precisely at the site “Twin Rocks�. This was my second trip to Anilao, and the second time that I carried my brand new D800E underwater. It was the last dive of the holiday and the expectations were very high. At Anilao there is a high concentration of Biodiversity and this combination of Emperor Shrimp over this wonderful nudibranch has not made me to wait long ... That afternoon, oddly enough, the sea was a table and the visibility good. Once reached the depth of about 15 m, the guide showed me this incredible pair. My heart began to beat faster, maybe because of my passion for the sea slugs, perhaps for my little experience with the new photographic equipment, or for the desire to take home a nice shot to show everyone and prove that I was capable of doing something good ... Eventually, once found the right balance between emotion, photographic settings and trim, I began to take some pictures of what then, to me, has become the most important and significant shot of the entire trip.

Stefano Scortegagna

Tony Cherbas

Yatwai So

Yatwai So

Claudio Zori

CĂŠdric Peneau

u

Reunion Island is a French Island in the South – West of the Indian Ocean, between Madagascar and Mauritius. We have warm water all year round, so humpack whales migrate here every Austral winter (June to October) to mate and give birth to their newborns who wouldn’t be fat enough to survive the chilling waters of the Antartic where their feeding zones are . In season we often rent boats to try and find them. Humpback whales are easy to spot, you can see their blows from far away, but it’s quite harder to be able to snorkel with them in good conditions. First, local law forbids getting too close by boat (boats have to respect a 100 meter distance so you must swim the rest of the way towards them), second they’re not always willing to let us close and long enough to take pictures of them, so very often you’d see their tails while they’re swimming away.

To get good snorkelling and shooting opportunities, you have to be very patient, calm and gentle in your boat approach and in the water, and you need to be lucky to find a mother that is trusting enough to let her calf come and play with us (the little calves are usually very curious and playful).

If you do the right thing at the right place at the right time, you can be lucky enough to spend quite some time in the water with them. This one was the calf of a returning mother called Aliette that I had shot 3 years before, whom we met three times and who let us stay with them for as long as we wanted. She usually stayed at around 10 to 15 meters deep for about 15 minutes, resting and keeping an eye on her calf who ascended, breathed and played with us for a little time, and descended back to his mum every few minutes. To get good shots of marine mammals you have to be as close as possible, with the sun behind you or from above, so that your subject gets enough ambient light . That’s why I always use a Tokina 10-17 to snorkel with marine mammals, this time with a Nikon D90 in a Nauticam Rig and Dome. RAW is essential too as you usually need to adjust the white balance with ambient light pictures for them not to turn out « all blue ». In addition to whales, during those expeditions we often get good opportunities to snorkel with bottlenose or spinner dolphins.

Massimo Zannini

Alex Rush

Plamena Mileva

Alex Rush

Marco Gargiulo

After dozens of SMS and “convocations” through social networks, I finally found the dive buddies for tonight! Christmas has just passed, but the sea is still calm and the air temperature almost springlike: it’s a crime not to return to the water in search of seahorses. My equipment is ready since yesterday. I just have to wait for my wife to return from work and the supermarket, and go ... At 7:00PM I reach the port of Sorrento, where Gaetano and Nicola are waiting for me. The wind has turned quadrant slightly and inside the marina in front of the Caterina beach enters a gentle wave which, however, does not disturb much our entrance into the water. Transparency is remarkable. We dive in the sandy clearing among noble pen shells (Pinna nobilis, Italian common name nacchere) and Mediterranean fan worm, paying attention to possible seahorses clinging to their base. The first hour passes quickly without major upheavals; we remain as much as possible in light contact, trying to sound out the greatest possible surface in search of these bizarre finny things. The evening seems to not promising anything good and we begin the return crossing a small meadow of sea grass ... then I spend some time to a few backlight shots to the feathers of a yellow fan worm. Suddenly I see Gaetano blinking insistently ... I move quickly towards him and he shows me, under the light beam, a very small Sepiola rondeleti, a mollusk that I didn’t met by a decade! Wow! I get closer and shot the first picture on the bottom, then I make it move further on, where the water is more clear, to photograph this specimen at its best... I do not make time to duly capture it, that a new signal reaches me from Nicola. He is about ten meters away and while we reach him I think: “has he found the seahorse?” NO! Damn!

It’s just ... a St. Peter’s fish! I rush after him and start shooting.

Gaetano and Nicola keep on lighting it up even when it runs away from me, so that I would not lose it in the dark of the night. After a series of close up shots, I start taking pictures from a distance to better express its breathtaking beauty. Eventually, I lose it and rejoin my precious dive buddies toward the beach. Once there, I cannot say enough about the valuable team work and invite my friends to repeat the experience as soon as possible. As soon as we undressed, a drizzle starts to fall ... after a memorable night dive!

Marco Gargiulo

Christian Schlamann

Tanya Houppermans

Geo Cloete

Camera: DSC-RX100 Lens: Ino Close-up lens Housing: Nautic F11 1/500s Iso: 80

on UCL-165M67 + UCL-100M67 cam Strobes: Inon Z-240

While exploring one of the piles in Crash Boat Beach in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, I notice the presence of this colorful nudibranch, immediately I proceeded to adjust lighting and place two wet macro lens in order to obtain as much detail as possible.

Location: Chash Boat, Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

Abimael Marquez

Jennifer Weber

Amy Hung

Don Bouchard

Alex Barth

For this photo I used a Canon G16 in Isotta ing, a fisheye lens Inon zm 80-100, two flas Sea D1. Shooting data: 1/160, F 5.6, ISO 80

a houssh Sea &

I took this shot last September at the island of Panarea, in the beautiful Sicilian Aeolian archipelago, in the Mediterranean Sea. I was in Panarea to compete in the Italian championships of underwater photography, compact class. It was my last dive of the competition. Me and my assistant / model Filippo were returning to the boat, because I was almost out of air, when we were attracted by some strange movements. An octopus stepped out of a hole and stopped to watch us. It was very large and had an unusual clear coloring. Shooting with a compact camera, I could immediately mount a small fisheye lens that I always carry with me in my pocket, so that I could frame the octopus and its surrounding environment. The sun behind the octopus, a proper lighting and the deep blue color of the water, which is peculiar of the Aeolian Islands, gave this image a very special atmosphere

Virginia Salzedo

Abimael Marquez

Virginia Salzedo

Domenico Tripodi

Stephane Primatesta

Canon 60d with Canon Nauticam housing and 2 strobes Inon Z240 iso 100 - f8 - 1/200

With winter approaching, during a dive in Liguria (Italy) I found myself in front of a “hunting scene� of a cuttlefish against a mackerel, unwanted victim Fisher, who following the withdrawal of fishing nets has discarded.

Thus rewarding the opportunism of the cuttlefish with a mea not so common in Nature.

EF 8/15 F/4L fisheye minidome Nauticam

Massimo Zannini

Marco Chang

Liang Fu

Claudia Peyer

Christian Schlamann

Shooting data: Camera: Nikon D700 Lens: Sigma 105mm Flash: Inon Z240 to po Snoot “Snooty” by Fab small aperture.

T 1/250, F 22

ower 8 bio Iardino, with medium /

This shot of the Haliotis tuberculata was reasoned. The dive took place in Sistiana (TS) after a morning of choppy sea and, due to the sandy bottom of the place, the visibility was not allowing great chances of obtaining clean images. The snoot was the right solution to that situation. The Haliotis are inconspicuous subjects but the mollusk offers actually spectacular colors, nearly metallic. Since that day there was a large number of that subject, I followed the crawling of one of them until the moment in which it tackled the passage of a rounded stone.

The initial idea was to catch the eye and some tentacle, but when I realized that, for a short time, the head would be all exposed, I did all I could to grab that single instant. First, I calculated the falling point of the snoot light, waiting for the passage of the Haliotis. Then, to obtain a clean light, I directed the snoot almost frontally from the right side, so that the light could penetrate deep on the subject and eliminate any undesired effect of shadow cone. I deliberately chose a small aperture for the snoot, so to giving little chance for other details, such as the rock, to enter into the frame.

Franco De Lorenzi

Rafael Cosme

Violet Ting

Adriano Morettin

Marco Chang

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A MOUNTAIN ABOVE THE SEA

The island of Marettimo

TRAVELS Words

Fabio Tedone

Pictures

Sergio Riccardo

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The island of Marettimo is part of the Egadi archipelago, located at the western end of Sicily, in front of Trapani. The archipelago consist also of Favignana (the largest and better known island), Levanzo and the smaller islands of Formica and Maraone. The whole territory is a protected marine area. We are talking of the largest protected marine area in the Mediterranean! Marettimo is the furthest from Sicily, the most westerly one, right in the middle of the Sicily’s channel, with more protected territory: the wildest! It is an island of the past times, where nature reigns unspoiled. Remained off the pace of modern life, it is isolated, remote and enchanted. There’s a small town on the East side and then end of the concrete. There are no roads outside the village nor cars, but only a mule track passable by the jeep of the Punta Libeccio lighthouse’s keeper, on the Southwest side of the island. Trails sometimes arduous traverse a good part of the island and allow us to explore the interior and the mountain ... Yes, but on feet or by mule maybe! That’s the way it discloses: “A Mountain above the sea”. The top of Pizzo Falcone reaches 686 m. There’s a lot of greenery, especially in the spring: it is the classic Mediterranean scrub, with all its perfumes. It is rich in water, which has carved the rugged coastline overlooking the sea. The waves did the rest. There’s also a luxuriant nature and a rich fauna, not only below sea level: wild sheep, wild boars, rabbits, etc ... The Island is the nesting site of the second colony in the Mediterranean of the birds of the storms and the rare Bonelli’s eagle. There are also many resident birds: herring gulls, shearwaters, peregrine falcons, kestrels. During migration it is easy to meet cranes and storks. The island is appreciated not only for the wonderful diving, but also for its territory. We have the typical Mediterranean seabed, rich in colors and life

as in few other places! The dive sites are many, for different levels of difficulty and suitable for different degrees of experience. There are dive spots along the coast but most are shoals of which the island is rich and all dives are made by boat.

Let’s see some.

We are 10 minutes away by boat, facing the village, a large area of shoals covered with sea grass (Posidonia oceanica) that fall to depths varying from 15 \ 20 m to 35 \ 43 \ 45 m. There are a number of dive spots in this area.

L’Orlata (The Fringe): We are in a spot where we find a shoal of about 18 \ 20 m which drops steeply to 40 \ 42, and where the violescent sea-fans (Paramuricea clavata) are the masters. Flanked to the wall, we find a large boulder that reaches 17 m whose base seems to lie at 40. Such base is very close to the wall, while on top it creates a corridor of a few m in width, along about fifteen with gorgonians to the right and to the left. The rocky substratum is full of sessile life and sponges of every color. Crevices are inhabited by groupers, forkbeards and breams while, resting on the bottom, we may find red scorpion fishes. On high, into the blue, we can easily meet snappers and barracudas. ... We were talking about the big rock ... in fact it is not resting on the bottom but on a couple of large stones. It creates a kind of cave with an easy access and two large windows that make fantastic lights games. The vault is inhabited by porter crabs, lobsters and slipper lobsters.

We are 40 m deep... shame to have to go back!

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L’orlo Paese (Downtown the fringe): Not far to the South we find a vast seagrass meadow at 15 / 20 m deep, falling with scattered boulders on a backdrop of 25 / 30 ... the crazy thing is that below is all drilled and hollow and in some places there is a large amount of passages, caves and tunnels. Light beams filter, passing from cave to cave, some dark and others where sunlight blades enter. Those caves are the domain of encrusting sponges, stony cup corals (Astroides calycularis), porters crabs, slipper lobsters and groupers.

Il Klizia (The Klizia): In front of the small cemetery south of the village, at a depth of about 25 m, there is the Klizia wreck, a small freighter that sank in the sixties. It lies capsized but we can easily get into the small cargo holds and give a look at the engine room. For photographers, the propeller and the rudder that shoot up towards the surface grant some nice shot. Groupers, torpedoes and huge noble pen shells (Pinna nobilis) are easy to meet within the boatswain cove.

Punta Bassana (Bassana point): Sailing towards south we arrive at Punta Bassana: a source of diving spots!

The tip of the underwater promontory is beautiful. The wall falls straight from 9 to 35 m with large colonies of stony cup corals (Astroides calycularis) at the top and forests of violescent sea fans (Paramuricea clavata) up to the bottom that, incredibly, start from moderate depths such as 18 / 20 m. It is easy to meet snappers at the base of the promontory and white bream on top. Wherever moray eels, parrot fishes and clouds of anthias and damselfishes. Large schools of small fry where often small amberjacks and barracudas plunge. In front of the promontory three large rocks rise from the bottom, their basis between the 45 and the 38 / 40 m deep ... to give you an idea, due to the depth you can spend a dive on each one of them. The closer to the headland is called the hollow rock because of a large cavity opened to the outside on the East side. The hollow rock and the promontory create a channel, covered in Paramuricea clavata from both sides. On the summit, at a depth of about 24 / 25 m, there are more.

Easy to meet there big snappers, tunas and large shoals of breams. About 100 m to the North stands the rock of Tramontane, with similar characteristics to the first: about 40 m deep at the base and 26 / 25 at the top, the side facing the North wind rich in sea fans. Worthy of note is the outer rock, separated from the other two to the South, the bottom at 40/45 m. This rock arrives on his top to 29 m, but it is a pinnacle of a few meters. The wall exposed to north-east is spectacular, only a hundred meters wide but wonderful and very colorful: the joy for all the photographers and biology enthusiasts. It is a benthos highly rich in species such as stony cup corals (Astroides calycularis) and yellow cluster anemone (Parazoanthus axinellae), Near the bottom are often encountered St.Peter fishes, big clawed lobsters, newts, lobsters, large red scorpion fishes, moray eels and forkbeards inside the cracks. It is a place of exceptional encounters: I happened to see tunas, mola mola, large amberjacks, turtles.

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The only sore point is the current.

Often the entire area and these rocks are crossed by impetuous currents, meaning that these dives must be led by an experienced guide and require a careful route planning. But on the other hand there is a reason why some places have something more: under water the current is life!

Continuing to circumnavigate the island, we come in the vicinity of the dive which is worth the trip to Marettimo ... If you like caves ...

The cathedral is so called because it was the first thing I said putting my head out of the water, after exploring it in ‘91. I saw the entrance the previous day, by accident, while I was following the edge of Martina Point in search of diving spots. We are in zone “B”, about 30 m deep. The entrance is large, but the interior is very dark and the torchlight, however powerful, does not punch a hole.

At about thirty meters from the entrance we find, in the middle of the great hall, a column! It comes out of the mud and seems to support the vault! Large forkbeards slip in the ravines. We feel like being in an alien environment and this feeling becomes stronger and stronger as we penetrate inside: other columns, large and truncated or fine and thin, stalactites, stalagmites .... Someone is lying, broken, at the bottom. Here and there on the bottom we may see some fossilized bones embedded in the rock and fossil shells: the time has stopped.

Emotions aside, the dive is relatively easy: inside we climb up to 18 m to exit from where we entered. The only really important thing is a perfect buoyancy control, since the light silty fund raises for nothing! A unique dive in its kind!

Now let’s skip a part of the island and go to the limit of the zone “A” of the protected area on the north / north-west side. There is a big shoal, the Cala Bianca (white cove), which covers several hundred meters off the coast. Think of a large plateau about 10/12 meters deep which falls on both sides at different depths, either in the form of an extended landslide of boulders up to a bottom of pebbles at 30 / 40 / 50 m depth, or in the form of large steps in the outer part, with small walls rich in white, yellow and red gorgonians depending on the depth.

There are various dive itineraries on this edge, depending on the depth and the shoal section that we will explore. At the deeper parts, there are beautiful branches of the gold coral (Savalia savaglia) amid sea fans (Paramuricea clavata), elephant ear sponges (Spongia agaricina), yellow tree sponges (Axinellae cannabina), large colonies of stony cup corals (Astroides calycularis) and yellow cluster anemone (Parazoanthus axinellae). In short, a lot of color! In the upper parts, on the summit of the shoal, let’s say between 10 and 25 m deep, we may encounter groupers, goldblotch groupers, breams, sometimes even the pharaoh bream, black sea-breams, amberjacks, parrotfishes and often large schools of barracudas. Sometimes also eagle rays!

How to get there and where to stay Marettimo can be reached by hydrofoil or ferry from the port of Trapani. The nearest airports are the Marsala’s Birgi airport, at 18 km from the port, and the Palermo’s Falcone Borsellino airport, at about 85 km. There are private shuttle services from the airports or public buses. You can also get there by car, but remember that once on the island, you have to park your car which cannot be used anymore.

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At Marettimo there are not many hotel facilities: a couple of apartment hotels and some B & B, but there is a good choice of private apartments that the islanders rent to tourists.

For info: Marettimo Diving Center Via Cuore di Ges첫, 5 91023 Marettimo (TP) Fabio Tedone mobile +39 333 1902720

www.marettimodivingcenter.it info@marettimodivingcenter.it

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PORTFOLIO Yury Ivanov

PORTFOLIO

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Yury Ivanov is a professional diver, underwater photographer.

Since I was ten, I was interested in underwater world. I dove all ponds and lakes in Moscow region without any flippers or mask.

But even those poor underwater worlds hardly let me go to the surface.

Three decades have passed since then.

I’ve graduated Sevastopol School of diving where I dove with three bolt equipment and AVM-5, then joined PADI in 2006. I had more than thousand dives in various parts of the world: Egypt, the Black Sea, Indonesia, Philippines, Maldives, Palau, Thailand.

Nowadays I am a PADI dive Master with a certificate of «Self-Reliant Diver».

This certificate gives me an official right to dive alone by myself what is very convinient for an underwater photographer.

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So we’re about underwater photography.

My first camera, which I bought six years ago, was a poor-quality Sony in it’s original case. Sometimes I go through old photos to remind myself of how I started. Time passed, but I didn’t see any significant difference.

Only three years ago, after I’ve taken courses from one of the best underwater photographers Mikhail Semenov, I made some progress...

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My special interest is underwater macro world and mostly nudibranchs. Now I have thousands of good photos in my baggage and you can find a small part of them on this site... ) diveivanov.com

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GEM OF THE SEA

SEA SAPPHIRES (SAPPHARINA COPEPOD) Words and Pictures: Suzan Meldonian

It is pitch black. Small things are pelting my forehead and hood, but I can see nothing, and thankfully I have a full wetsuit with a hood on my head.

Suddenly I am being bombarded by thousands of tiny tiny squidlings that shift right then left as a group-like a flock of birds evading a predator.

Uh –oh, not good. Ha ha ha. My fear quickly vanishes as the culprit springs forth out of the blackness.

A grin comes to my face as Mother Ocean reveals some unknown funky fish, no bigger than a couple of inches with a long snout zipping by at about a hundred miles per hour... impossible for even a proof-of- life shot.

Off in the distance a large greenish glow is cast from our marker ball, pulsing to the ebb and flow of the ocean’s heartbeat. But the glow fades away with the northerly current, and once again we are bathed in total blackness.

I recall a time when that would have terrified me.

We know that we are surrounded by infinitesimally small creatures that bythe-by are not a threat.

EVOLUTIONARY EDUCATION

In fact, the mere swoosh of my fin could perhaps maim thousands of invisibles – that is transparent larval critters, for all I know.

Every now and then quick flicks of a color blast in staccato beats, like World War II seamen flashing Morse code to one another.

Aha, a new means of underwater communication!

Focus lights off.

I am curious to see if my eyes can adjust to the lack of light on this very dark night dive.

Within minutes, it is quite reasonable to say... that I still can’t see didley.

However, these blue blasts are catching my attention.

Every now and then I spy a sharp POW! a color blast of the purest cobalt blue color, as pure as a laser.

Others light up sporadically around me, reminding me of World War II seamen flashing Morse code to one another across the expanse.

Aha, a new means of underwater communication!

If you were to purse your lips together to say “Pow” - that is exactly how long the flash lasts. Another one to my left. POW. Then off to my right.

Pow. Then PoP – a red laser color pops right in front of me. What the heck is that? Squinting, squinting, I have to find what is causing light in this dark world.

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Pow –Pop, oooh Blue and red together… have to get closer. All my lights are off. Pow- a bright white flashes ten meters off too my left- okay- someone else is doing the same thing, diving without their lights on. POW- blue light right in front of me. I hone in on a white fleck of space junk that I think may be carrying the flasher’ host. Pow- yes! That is it! Gotcha!

So what is this mysterious little ocean gem?

It is called a Sappharina Copepod, also known as a Sea Sapphire.

What we are seeing exactly is completely intricate. A combination of dynamic design and social behavior. Apparently the flashing is only something done by the males, and after that very little is known.

My research turns up evidence that many zooplankton rely on the use of light to divert their positioning in the water column. Consider this as a “defensive photobehavior.”

They light up as a decoy tactic to evade predators. Brilliant! So the predators zoom in toward the light- and the copepod is long gone.

The color variances a dependant upon the closeness of the layers of the crystalline plates, and the gel in between. Other evidence indicates the angle of reflective light will cause different shades of iridescent blue, to purple.

Meanwhile, the females set up residence inside Salps, which really are the undersea taxis for super delicate and small creatures hitching a ride.

We have come to realize that when there are lots of salps puttering about- is when you are most likely to see the “blue flashy thing.”

Maybe the females are parading around in their clear taxis flirting and the males are winking at them as they go by.

Under a microscope, their body is made up of hexagonal crystalline platelets resembling a bee hive with layers of cytoplasm. Blue light refracts off these crystalline layers- causing the “flashy thing.”

The thickness of the cytoplasm and the angle of light refraction may have something to do with the variance in colors or red, blue, purple and golden.

What becomes even more fascinating is that some predatory fish release something called kairomones that are believed to be responsible for inspiring the diel vertical migration in certain sea life, and more specifically copepods.

Copepods are lured in, only to be pursued as food. Likewise, the increase in kairomones has been known to cause changes in the prey’s morphology, perhaps inciting the flashing of colors. What soon becomes extremely apparent is that there is most certainly a scientific soup occurring 24/7 in our oceans. Something we need to pay attention to, learn, discover… understand.

Now for the hard part. Research indicates that they are reflecting light- not emitting light. That is what is completely stumping me. What light? We were immersed in blackness. We were at least at a depth of 3-4 meters, so no starlight, no moonlight could possibly be penetrating. But this animal does not have photophore cells that are capable of emitting light.

And then of course, what always kills me, is this was first discovered in 1849.

So while this is a new discovery for us, it has been known about for a very long time.

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Founded in 1972 in Germany, DIWA was the first dive training agency that specialized on the needs of professional scuba-diving instructors.

DIWA’S DEPARTMENT OF UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY After observing the market of underwater photography for years, analysing past and future tendencies and the needs and expectations of professional instructors and newbie uw shooters alike, DIWA assigned in January 2015 the professional underwater photographer Rico Besserdich to develope a new training concept of underwater photography and to be the international head of DIWA’s underwater photography training department.

Rico wrote 2 student’s workbooks about underwater photography (“basic” and “advanced”) for DIWA, developed new training standards for divers and instructors and put the entire new department into shape. For the concept development, Rico used his experience of 38 years being involved in photography, 17 of those in underwater photography.

DIWA’s training concept of underwater photography helped many now well known underwater photographers on their way, professional photographers, contest judges, photo-journalists and uw photography contest winners among them.

DIWA’s concept of how to teach uw photography consists of 2 levels for divers and for instructors: LEVEL 1 (BASIC) does not confuse new uw shooters with technical details but motivates them to improve their uw photography by just following 6 simple guidelines which are now known as the 6 points concept of successful underwater photography™.

LEVEL 2 (ADVANCED) helps the keen uw shooters to understand, create, specify and finally realize their very own way of photographic expression - regardless of what camera used.

DIWA believes that the key to successful and meaningful underwater photography lays in the imagination and creativity of every single uw photographer.

Its training concept is designed to awake and support the creativity of every human interested in uw photography, no matter which camera used.

Every single new DIWA UW Photography Instructor has to attend a seminar for qualification.

Such seminar usually takes 1 day for the “basic“ instructor level and 2 days for the “advanced“ instructor level. To become a DIWA UW Photo Instructor does not urgently require to be a scuba diving instructor. The minimum requirement for to attend a underwater photography instructor seminar and become certified, is the diving certificate level of Divemaster or equivalent (such as CMAS*** diver).

However, adequate knowledge about underwater photography must be proved before participation.

The next date for DIWA underwater photography instructor courses and qualifications will be April 25-29, during the INON Underwater Photography Days at Anilao Photo Hotel in Anilao/Phillipines.

As a very special offer to the readers of SCUBASHOOTERS magazine, DIWA kindly offered a price reduction of US$ 75,00 ( US$ 350,00 instead of the standard rate of US$ 425,00 for the instructor course. Book, instructor manuals, license card and certification fee are included ). Please kindly mention the promo code „SCUBA_S_DIWA“ in case you are interested in becoming an underwater photography instructor and want to attend the event in Anilao.

Contact: Rico Besserdich, Head of UW Photography Department, Course Director #4021, DIWA – Diving Instructor World Association. E-Mail: ricobesserdich@gmail.com

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PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Visconti

TRAVELS

PART 2: PICTURES BY Matteo

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www.matteovisconti.com

INON UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY DAYS – ANILAO/PHILLIPINES As a world premiere, the INON Underwater Photography Days will take place from APRIL 22-29 at Anilao Photo Hotel – Anilao/Phillipines.

The event is packed with interesting offers and activities:

FROM APRIL 22-24 (with the 25th as optional add-on day ) participants will have the opportunity to try and test the newest INON underwa-

ter photography equipment for free. D-SLR housing ( D-SLR included ) with bug-eye lens setup and alternatively with wide-angle setup, INON Z-240 and S-2000 series strobes, snoot sets, LED torches, arm-systems, GoPro utilities and attachment lenses for the Olympus TG series will be available for free.

TAKUYA TORII FROM INON will be on site to give speeches and workshops about effective usage and maintainance of INON gear.

PRO UW PHOTOGRAPHER RICO BESSERDICH will be present for workshops, presentations, individual coaching and photo clinics.

TIM HO will be present as special guest during the photo clinics.

US$ 240,00 per person/day - RATES INCLUDE: - Single room (different rate apply if you share a twin room) - 3 meals per day + free flow of coffee, tea, soft drinks & purified drinking water - 3 guided dives out per day / tanks & weights, Marine park fee, Diveguide - Free use of newest INON uw photography gear - Underwater photography workshops with Rico Besserdich - Daily photo clinics with Rico Besserdich & Tim Ho - Daily INON workshops with Takuya Torii (INON) For more informations and booking requests please mail to: anilaophotohotel@gmail.com

BECOME AN UNDERWATER PHOTOGRAPHY INSTRUCTOR! Daily, FROM APRIL 25-29, keen uw photographers who would like to teach others, will have the opportunity to become trained and certified as Underwater Photography Instructor according to the standards of DIWA, Diving Instructor World Association.

This offer is open to Divemasters (or equal certification level) and scuba instructors of all dive training agencies.

US$ 425,00 per person - RATES INCLUDE: - Instructor course & qualification for DIWA UW Photography Instructor I - Certification fee - Student’s workbook - Instructor Manual & Standards - DIWA Specialty Instructor Card & international certificate (Instructor Diplom) For more informations and booking requests please mail to: ricobesserdich@gmail.com As a VERY SPECIAL OFFER TO THE READERS OF SCUBASHOOTERS MAGAZINE, DIWA kindly offered a price reduction of US$ 75,00 ( US$ 350,00 instead of the standard rate of US$ 425,00 for the instructor course.

Book, instructor manuals, license card and certification fee are included ).

Please kindly mention the promo code “SCUBA_S_DIWA“ in case you are interested in becoming an underwater photography instructor and want to attend the event in Anilao.

TDEX 2016 THAILAND DIVE EXPO 12-15 MAY @ Queen Sirikit National Convention

I begin by selecting the right tool

X-2 for creative photography 2016

It is a journey of illusion and fantasy which lead to an artistic freedom of expression by the art of luminance

photo by Evon Yap

ZUL NG

Saturday 14th May 2016 Time 14:00 - 14:45

Talkshow PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY

Sunday 15th May 2016 Time 14:00 - 14:45

In a search of the art of

LUMINANCE

The art of Topic

Topic

Haybols Scuba Hub is a homey, comfortably furnished, bed & breakfast inn that offers scuba diving courses, rentals and services.

Bauan-Mabini RoadAnilao, Batangas, Philippines +63 917 856 6887

www.facebook.com/HaybolsScubaHub

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CARBON TELESCOPIC ARM by INON INC. is pleased to announce official release of “Carbon Telescopic Arm” series on January 21st, 2016. The Carbon Telescopic Arm series is made of ultra light yet super durable carbon fiber offering telescopic arm section to have any desired length.

Features

The Carbon Telescopic Arm System offers free adjustable arm sections by loosening/tightening two lock dials benefitting for easy advanced lighting.

As well as making your camera system more compact and comfortable to carry both on land and underwater by collapsing the Carbon Telescopic arm when not in use.

The arm section is made from super rigid carbon pipe which greatly reduce underwater weight, water resistant, and enhance the durability.

Three different lengths of Carbon Telescopic Arm products are available for different applications.

Options The dedicated optional float system, ”Mega Float Tube S” and “Mega Float Tube M” are available.

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Specification Carbon Telescopic Arm S Carbon Telescopic Arm M Carbon Telescopic Arm L

We are located exactly 74 km far from Trieste, near the small town of Our Diving Centre is right under the swimming pools area, directly i Major (Ucka) and on the other, we face the beautiful islands of Krk a Our flagship is wreck diving by boat: three wrecks situated at d ride. And there’s more! Our shore dives directly from our Center’s be courses. Finally yet importantly, our diamond tip dedicated to macr pleasure of diving.

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

Kantrida, which is about 5 to 6 km before downtown Rijeka. in front of the open beach. On one side, we are overlooked by Mount and Cherso: in brief, we are right inside the Kvarnaro Gulf. different depths, each one no farther than maximum 20 minutes boat each offer an easy and colorful training ground for any kind of diving ro photography lovers: a wide variety of critters to increase the

www.diving-marcopolo.com

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THE SCUBA DIVER’S CRUCIFIX Loch Posta Fibreno (Italy) I look around and I‘m able to see what fascinates and captures me the most: water.

I’m really attracted by it, when submerged I’m a free spirit, it instils me peace, staring at its varsity I feel fused as a tiny living part of it, deeply shocked and thrilled at the same time, my mind is slow nonetheless it

remains open and active recording this memorable scenes... memories that I’m craving to pin in my mind through photos and words.

Wholeheartedly welcomed by the association, the morning of the immersion I met Maria, Lello, Raffaele and Riccardo that put at my disposal the headquarters of “il punto blu”. I’m utterly speechless when I met Antonio Faiola, one of the 12 scuba divers that dedicated to the loch and its inhabitants a cross that can be admired in the deepest point of the loch ( about 15m ). Made of steel and platinum, every year in August’s first weekend the cross resurfaces thanks to the co

FRESH WATERS

All this emotions were unleashed by a loch... i heard rumours about this place and since then the idea to orchestrate an immersion was glittering in my mind, finally i had that chance when I met Maria, a member of the Assoscuba association that along with the president Lello Capasso, invited me to the city of Posta Fibreno (Frosinone), where’s located the namesake’s loch, in the countryside. The crystal clear water, creates play of reflections of weeping willow and you can hear loud the honk of the geese.

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operation of many under water’s associations during the event of “Festa del crocifisso e del subacqueo”.

Eagerly awaiting with my buddy Pierluigi, we begin this lovely immersion that from the start leaves us breathless, we’re submerged in 5 metres of water, on a bank of the loch and then suddenly the horizon widens and we found ourselves in the centre of the loch, a basin tub awaits us and

placed in the middle of it is the cross, rays of lights enlighten the area around it of a blue , a blue known to all divers, what a magnificent view.

I circle round the cross thrilled, my buddy already knows where to place himself, i try to get a hold of myself, must be concentrated, even it is really hard, i must set the camera properly, once again I’ve missed my chance to shoot a perfect picture since I’m far too much an emotional person... even if the water is 10 degrees, usually referred to as “icy”, i don’t feel it at all due to my exalting state.

Words and Pictures

Immacolata Moccia

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