Luko

I used to shoot with a 7D 15 years ago, at the time it was a really good camera with fast AF (comparatively to what was available) and a good sensor . It's an APS-C cropped sensor, which is good for macro, even excellent for supermacro when coupled with the 100mm. I used a Canon EF100/2.8 USM lens (Canon EF100 IS/L woudl be better, watch out the Canon non USM 100mm is painfully slow) and the CAnon EFS60mm for macro. For wide angle my preferred choice was the Tokina 10-17 fisheye with a Zen 4" domeport (great for travels!). The Canon 10-22 lens didn't have a good reputation AFAIK, fisheye lenses with or without 1,4 Kenko multiplier had better results. Problem is that for 100mm macro/supermacro it definitely needs an external viewfinder such as a cheap Inon45. WHile it was a good choice this camera is outperformed by newer mirroless cameras (equivalent now would be the Canon R7 in the APSC sensor category) and its eletronic viewfinder which can give you a clearer view especially in low light as well as much faster AF. The sensor and image processor are also outdated, the 7D 24MP sensorused to wash out highlight/sunballs too easily, in the opposite range of lower light the noise at high ISOs has so much improved then. It was impossible to get clean images above 200 ISO, while now I don't see so much difference between a 100 and a 800 ISO pic with the R7's 35MP sensor. You'll find plenty of 2nd hand EF lenses for the Canon 7D however the newer RF lenses for the mirrorless R series prove to be faster and better, such as the RF100L/IS which is one the sharpest macro lens ever allowing a 1,4 magnification ratio (40% more than the older EF100). Problem is that you cannot fit R lenses on EF systems while you can use EF lenses on the R system with an adaptor.

I was replying to NandoDiver asking for general tips in the Visayas. But to your question about Moalboal, not a specific critter but for me outside of teh sardines school the hightlight would be the coral walls on Pescador island, which is one of my favorite dives in the Philippines. Go the earlier you can in the morning, ther used to be operations that scheduled early morning dives on Pescador for REAL divers, however I don't think anymore as all the dive centers are now waiting for the truckloads of Asian group divers coming from Cebu around 10 AM. = where you can find HUGE spanish dancer nudibranches (I really mean HUGE like 40-50cm large!!!), but you need to go deeper around 35-36m to find them .. or the usual giant frogfish on a sponge in the shallower parts.

My take on the philippines Visayas which I haved dived regularly these 15 past years : Depend on whether you have itchy feet and want to see a lot or you want to settle in 1-2 places. In two weeks you could do at least three spots (even a fourth one if that is on the road and you optimize your itinerary, but let's not spoil it), traveling in the Phils is quite easy. It will also depend on the way you fly out (either Manila or Cebu) I would list thise potential places for diving with their pros and cons : Malapascua up north of Cebu is known for threshers, sometimes tigers, some macro it's a nice sandy beach island, however IMO there is not much., I would say plan 3-4 days diving not more of you want travel to other spots. Problem is that it will take you some time to get there in and out since it's 1hour boat+4 hours car drive from Cebu. You should go there first to secure your fly out since it's far out in the sea and not the most reliable place. If ever there is a storm or a typhoon you may not be able to cross the channel (been there, done that). Alona beach on Panglao/Bohol provides all range of resorts from small villas to huge 5 star resorts and restaurants. It's also a good starting point for sightseeing Bohol (chocolate hills, tarsiers, etc.) True it's busy, however to me it provides the best coral and blue water diving on Balicasag island, which has a limited number of diver per day. You'll find there schools of Jacks and Cudas as well as great corals, somtime sin feb if you're lucky a whale shark roaming around. ideal for both diving and family snorkeling. YOu'll have to be selective with the dive center and book your Balicasag trips beforehand, I can wholeheartedly recommend Philippines Fun Divers german/japanese run dive center (think reliable), they answer very fast and they are also very flexible., Since they own two large bankas they always have more "allocations" going to Balicasag, even other dice center join on their boat They will also dive other islands around such as Pamilacan or even Cabilao on demand. Alona local dive sites are not that interesting except for Napaling with sardines schools as well, sometimes a jack school at Doljo. You could stay anythying from 4 days to a week in Alona if you do some land tours with the family, it's also easy to get to since there is an airport that flies internationally or to Manila and a ferry at Bohol Tagbilaran port that takes 2hrs going to Dumaguete (Dauin). Otherwise Anda on the same island is only 2hours drive. It's much quieter (I would say too quiet) than Alona, has good beaches, However I was really disappointed with meh diving consisting of boring uncolorful tan/beige corals with limited fish life, although turtles are plentiful or white sand macro not nearly as productive as Dauin. Your family might like the place personally I haven't seen anything exciting to me. Another option off Bohol is Cabilao island, extremely quiet, used to have great wall diving with lots of coral and snorkeling option for the family but I don't know how it went after Odette typhoon in 2022. Cabilao divers at Cabilao Marine sanctuary beach resort would be my top choice. Excellent accoms and very flexible dive center. Only worth 3 days max on h s small island though. If you take a ferry from Bohol to Dumaguete on Negros island, you easily get to Dauin which is mainly black/whie sand macro diving, black sand beaches. there are a few upmarket options to stay there as well as mid range. Negros is quiet and tidy, however if macro is not your thing, I wouldn't recommand diving Dauin. Apo island is not far away (and day trips can be arranged with the dive centers) tahta said it doesn't compare with Balicasag with regards to schools of fish and fish life in general. Another less traveled option would be Sipalay which is on the opposite side of Negros. Good sandy beach, Good midrange accoms and dive center at swiss run Easy Diving. Deeper diving (in the 30-40m range) is great with schools of fish, however the shallower dives are not that spectacular, a mix of coral, white sand and algae rubble. It takes something like 4 hours car drive to either go to Dumaguete or Bacolod in order to fly out of Negros. Moalboal on Cebu is not that far from Cebu city, I wouldn't stay there with a family (been through I've been 5 times there) it's devoid of beaches. and used to have some "bar life". Lots people coming from Cebu in the morning by busloads or some other men staying overnight with "paid company". However Moalboal hosts two main dive attractions : the sardine school with is a shore dive in front of Savedra and Pescador island which for me used to be the best coral wall dive in the Phils (incredible colored soft corals on the southwestern corner of the isalnd). That said I wouldn't give it more than 2 days diving to flee the mix of backpackers, taiwanese & korean divers, the advantage is that you can do Moalboal just before coming back to Cebu for your flight out (4 hours drive from Mactan airport). I am ruling out Padre Burgos/Sogod Bay which IMO is too far to get to, doesn't provide any beachside and wouldn't advise to take your family too due to uncomfortable resort options (My non diver wife did not like at all the place although she was Ok with all the other ones and honestly I thought that divewise it suffered a lot from Odette typhoon)

I was NOT assuming OP had multicore 613 fiber (that's why I recommended purchasing this kind if he couldn't solve the issue). Believe it or not when I had sync issues with older fiber optics, I found that sometimes unwinding fibers caught around the clamps and even loosen the velcro straps attaching the cable around the floats (I also use velcros for 2m cables) helped, it proved it worked "somehow" better. Hence my experience is that for with lower quality fibers too much twirling does impact on the signal liability.

Had a similar issue with an old Nauticam Port which 67mm thread was completely damaged, it couldn't screw and hold anything like a macro wetlens. I used a neutral filter mount I had removed the glass before, and glued it to the damaged thead. It worked for a year and 2 dive trips, I anyway had to buy another (new) port since I changed my whole rig as well.

FWIW I've had similar issues with strobes from other brand (Fotocore) for which the strobe light detector is known not to perform that well (unlike Inon or Retra strobes for instance). Here are some actions that willl allow you to test and may improve the light transmission, at least it did on my side : (if none works, I'd suggest you purchase new fiberoptics, S&S multicore 613 fibers would be my choice) I assume you're using S&S type connectors : check your cable bush plugged into the strobe port. do not use double hole bush, it might not work (I got this hint from the owner), it seems critical that the strobe end cable is centered into the optical port, hence a single hole type. check how the cable connector is fitting in its hole (I had a loose one that didn't work). In this case I'd rather change the connector & use a new rubber bush : first cut the cable end with a sharp razor blade (not scissors!!!) and try triggering your strobe adjusting the cable end with various insertion depth into the bush (ie. cable barely visible from the bush end, protruding 1/2mm from the bush, etc.) until you get a consistant firing. Make sure your cable does not twirl too much around the strobe arms or the clamps, the light might be lost through those twirls.

I guess you know NIck More's fantastic slow shutter images of blue sharks : https://www.divephotoguide.com/underwater-photography-special-features/article/motion-blur-blue-sharks-uk/ Personally I would definitely bring a strobe, -maybe just one would be enough, just to get at least a sharp front part of the shark-, sometimes available light images look a bit washed out when you need to balance the sunlit surface and the shark itself .

NIce ones, I love shooting gobies on tunicates too, especially with the help of our mutual guide and friend Ajiex. btw I think I saw you dining at Chops & Hops when I was in T'ben 2 weeks ago with some friends (around april 28th). Did you have a good trip? I thought Tulamben was pretty deceiving this time, water was much too warm (30C!) and many critters AWOL.

Up for me as well, there was someone still posting until yesterday...

Landbased at TBD, it was the third time I tried to go then either canceled or on a (denied) waitlist. I could have been their 2nd client 10 years ago : 4 months before my planned stay, I met a manager from a very famous resort in Raja Ampat who told me Triton Bay Divers was a joke and that they'll never open in this area. Usually I don't listen to such "opinions" and like to go my own way, unfortunately I did this time. However it confirmed how some famous people of a very famous resort can be full of BS. Would never trust this guy.

Great video! Still a month to get there, can't wait.

I don't know who are are the freelancers operating from La Chevrerie. However if you can book Dennis Corpuz, besides being a very nice guy to dive with, he's hands down the best photography guide/instructor in Anilao, you'll have a great photo time. I''m not sure he can work with La Chevrerie however I already booked him while staying to various resorts such as Eagle Point, Acacia or Aiyanar some of them not mentioned in his webpage . You may still check out with him https://anilaounderwaterphotography.com/ Otherwise anyone from the Corpuz family (Obet, Ronald) can be recommended as well.

Tulamben in Bali has a lot of (freelance or inhouse) guides that cater to specialized macro photographers. Some of them are very good at lighting or snooting assistance in particular, you'll see many contest winning photos that were taken in Tulamben. Most of them are proposing one to one private guiding. PM if you want names or more specific details.

Actually I have... without knowing who he was, he was sitting next to Mikiya and describing me the endemic japanese pygmy seahorse in Osezaki.

A Japan "dive tour" is on my wishlist since a couple of years, I am also looking for all sorts of information (besides Ben and Kayo's insights), especially around this area. FWIW 2 weeks ago at Paris Salon de la Plongée (The french dive show) I discussed with Mikiya Watamatsu the chief guide from natureinn.jp an Osezaki operation (the macro site located inside the bay). He told me it was possible to organize both Mikomoto and Osezaki dives, probably they have a partnership whith Mikomoto hammers op (they were neighbors sharing the same Japan booth) It requires a 2hrs drive from Osezaki to get to the south of the peninsula where Mikomoto dives start. From the photos he showed me, it seems there is more than macro in Osezaki, like 2-3m high dendronepthya soft corals (!!) and monkfish. Maybe worthwhile mailing this op on whether they organize "best of both worlds" package or try to meet them while they're on tour attending the european trade shows (I suppose they were also at BOOT, probably Houten and Bologna too... a bit late for Tampere) .