Davide DB

Yes Surrender, you're surrounded!!!

Yes the typical footage is like the last clip. 3/4 from behind. I usually lose my patience right away. This one was particularly quiet. It happens once in a blue moon.

Wow, tough decision!

Good to know! Were you using an original Nauticam cable? No problem on my GH5 housing but I couldn't find a third part cable compatible because the space is really tight! BTW I was referring about the external bulkhead position. The combination of its position and straight monitor connector gives me just one option to mount it and not the best one. I had to completely change my arms configuration and i'm not satisfied.

Even if I encounter them for the thousandth time, I still find these fish fascinating. They move almost magically, like ghosts, with an unexpected swiftness. In the depths of this dive spot, there’s a resident colony of about ten individuals. Speaking of rebreathers, thanks to the fact that we were diving in closed circuit, some individuals allowed us to get very close—a rare occurrence here. In the end, we were the ones who left, not them 👋🏼 Technical note: With the WWL-1B, I can't get this quality while zooming (perhaps also due to the flimsy 14-42mm kit lens), and the footage always has a slight wobble. I believe the camera’s OIS is thrown off by the focal length change caused by the wet lens. This dive confirmed my impressions. I was using the Panasonic 12-35mm F2.8 with the 6" acrylic dome. It had been a long time since I used it, and this dive brought me back in sync with my camera. The footage is finally rock steady, with stabilization working perfectly, and the lens is incredibly tack sharp, especially when zoomed in. All the shots are at F4-5.6. Put on your headphones and turn up the volume!!! 🔊🔊🔊

Is it very heavy? How about cable routing? My Nauticam GH5 has the worst hdmi input position.

I was also considering upgrading to a 7” but I saw one in person and it is really huge. I don't know. IIRC the Weefine 7” has a brightness of about 500 NIT. Classic value of the older generation of monitors. I would look for a last generation 5" monitor with at least 1000 NIT brightness. Especially for you, diving in tropical waters. Lately I bought a new 1000 NITS monitor to use for land shooting and I am delighted. It is priceless to shoot in bright light and not need the sunshade.

Hi Toby, Did you have the opportunity to test it?

I don’t want to hijack Dave’s thread and spoil the next article, but I’d like to add my thoughts here, since I’ve been diving exclusively with a rebreather and camera since 2012. I’ve used three different rebreathers and logged over 1,000 hours of dive time. I can’t even remember my last open-circuit dive. I’ve heard that rebreathers are the future for over twenty-five years now. I have a 1999 issue of Aquacorps Magazine where PADI’s president at the time was convinced we’d all be switching to rebreathers within five years. PADI and SSI have tried several times to make rebreathers more accessible for recreational diving but haven’t really succeeded, at least according to their commercial plans. Nowadays, though, it seems like the time is mature for a partial switch and these machines are becoming increasingly popular among advanced divers. The cost of helium has skyrocketed, and if you want to do technical diving (even without going to extremes), a rebreather is a must—unless you’re a billionaire. But for recreational diving, there are important factors to consider: cost, logistics, and mindset. Cost To generalize and keep with the theme of our forum, the entry cost is about the same as a complete underwater photography kit. This cost raises the same issues we’ve discussed countless times about young people and underwater photography: only those with a high income can afford it, which often translates to an older average age. Mindset Even though today’s rebreathers are much more reliable than in the past, they still require attention and a certain mindset for care and maintenance, which not everyone has. Open-circuit gear is infinitely more resistant to rough handling and neglect. A rebreather requires the same care and upkeep as your very expensive photography equipment. Let’s be clear: it’s nothing out of the ordinary, or all that different from what many of us are already used to doing. Logistics There’s nothing to add for so-called "home" dives. If you’re used to bringing your gear to the dive center and mounting it on a tank right before your dive, with a rebreather, you’ll need to prepare it the night before (just like your camera gear) and bring it ready to go to the dive center. Before the dive, you’ll need to do some routine checks that I’ll skip for simplicity. As for travel, it’s a bit more complex. It mainly depends on the unit you have. Some are lighter and more compact and can even fit in a backpack, while others require a dedicated suitcase, with all the associated hassles and additional transport costs. Naturally, you’ll need to find facilities that can provide the necessary logistical support. Anything not available on-site must be brought with you. Without going into too much detail: dedicated tanks (if necessary, depending on the unit), oxygen, and filter material. Think back to whether you’ve seen rebreather divers at the dive centers you frequent, or if they offer oxygen refills, dedicated tanks, and (scrubber) filter material (like Sofnolime or equivalents). I’ve personally been diving exclusively in locations I can reach by car for years, so I’m probably not the best person to offer advice on travel. My current unit it's the side-mount version fo Dave's unit. It fits in a backpack but then I need tanks on the dive site. The most popular destinations are Indonesia and the Philippines. How many "rebreather-friendly" dive centers are there? Exercise I’d like to add a point I think is important—you can choose where to place it in your own considerations. IMHO, diving with a rebreather requires constant practice. Personally, I find it hard to imagine only using one on two or three trips a year. If I haven’t been diving for a couple of months, I need a few hours to feel comfortable with the unit again. Unlike open-circuit diving, experience in closed-circuit diving is measured by hours, not the number of dives. Bonus Point I hope I haven’t scared anyone. As Dave rightly pointed out, the benefits for a wildlife photographer/filmmaker are huge. Marine creatures generally let you get much closer without the noise and visual disturbance from bubbles. Bottom time is longer, and the diving comfort is unparalleled. Two weeks ago I made a multilevel dive for 180' with max depth 32m. I spent nearly one hour at 30m. The maximum deco time was 26'. About dive comfort, one thing Dave didn’t mention: in open circuit, we breathe compressed gas. Compressing the gas to fill the tanks nearly removes all the moisture. Plus, due to a known physical principle, when the gas returns to ambient pressure, its temperature drops. As a result, while diving, we’re breathing air that’s as dry as a desert and ice-cold. This leads to dehydration. Without getting into too much detail, in a rebreather, the chemical reaction that filters out the carbon dioxide our body produces, creates water and heat. So, in a rebreather, you breathe warm, humid air. This is why diving comfort is at its peak—even in tropical waters. Ciaoooo

Sad news form the Red Sea: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AeGDfRMna/

A ballpark estimate is around 10K euro. It depends on the specific unit. latest, more advanced rebreather are in the 12K euros. Some simpler units can be bought for less than 10K. On top of this you have to add specific training. Each step costs about 1K.

Welcome aboard! I am an old subscriber to your channel. Congratulations on your videos. Ciao

Guys, after countless tests, comparisons and heated discussions, you can't tell me it was all a bad dream 🤣 Edit: I will split these messages in a new discussion.

Beautiful animals. I had no idea wild creatures interacted with divers like that.

Yes, great footage. It's easy to find incredible photos but few good video. Looking for a Davinci AI plugin to remove swarm and Backscatter from video 😉

Welcome aboard! I hope you will enjoy the forum.

Yes, oceans are huge heat accumulators which they then release in the form of water vapor that then has to be discharged somewhere. Heat = energy. The thing that impressed me the most this year was that apart from the mucilage, when the first autumn swells and currents cleaned everything up, the soft corals seemed to have held up well. at the beginning of October we had taken some beautiful footage of this forest of shallow gorgonians that seemed to be doing just fine and the idea for the video had started from here. Then editing the video we realized that we needed more footage and so, last week, we went back to the exact same spot. My buddy had a wide angle setup and I had the macro because at the base of the gorgonians we had found some beautiful alcyonarians and I wanted to get some fine detail. Unfortunately, half of the gorgonians were stone dead and there was no sign of the alcyonarians. Unbelievable. Guides and biologists confirmed to us that the process that leads them to death is slow and damage becomes visible even two months after the heat wave.

I have been informed that my recent posts have been perceived as somewhat melancholy, with a particular focus on the challenges of climate changes while diving in the Mediterranean. Personally, I don't like those who scaremonger as opposed to rampant denialism. But I can't pretend otherwise either. Glorifying (with a magnifying glass) only the beauties of the sea while everything is falling apart seems to me like burying my head in the sand. As divers, we have a unique perspective on the impact of climate change in our seas, and it is our responsibility to raise awareness about these issues. Data from the Copernicus Climate Change Service show that Europe had its warmest summer on record. The period from June to August was the warmest ever on a global scale, with temperatures 0.7 degrees Celsius above the 1991-2020 average. The summer period was wetter than average in western and northern Europe, and drier than average in eastern Europe and the Mediterranean. All this results in the Mediterranean Sea warming at a much greater rate than the oceans. And the results are there for all divers to see. English subtitles

IMHO the two best stories are the Moorish idols and the Mudskippers. BBC succeeds as usual in creating real stories by artfully editing the images. The stories about the Sea Bunny and the collaboration between snakes and fish for hunting are also very good but the first two mentioned are incredible. I can imagine the enormous amount of footage required to edit these stories. However, credit must be given to the skill of the BBC that manages to make a nudi walk interesting. It is by no means easy. However, I got the impression that some scenes are filmed in the aquarium but I could be plain wrong. Unfortunately, BBC chose to show only the BTS of the whirlpools.

Time to start a dive spot drawing contest here 😉

Next step: salted 🧂 water in the tub 😄

Maybe this is the reason all use the "blackwater" term opposed to the copyrighted "black water"? AFAIK a copyright/patent is a costly process. I don't get how much money you can get from these rights. So it seems BW diving is highly overrated...

.... vpn 😇

Wow, I live in the Mediterranean, which is a basin of water by comparison, and currents are rarely a problem. The only place where currents are raging and dangerous is the Strait of Messina where we dive at the strangest times with tide tables. Here the current easily reaches 6 knots, and depending on the geography of the coast and seabed, impressive whirlpools form that are spectacular to watch. The Greek legend of the monsters Scylla and Charybdis originates here

Users from all Europe are discovering the sad news and all of them think it's a bug. https://www.reddit.com/r/vimeo/