Pooley

thanks for the comments, much appreciated Hi Luko, according to the boss we were in chops and hops on the 28th. Pity you didn't say hello - I'm sure my 5 words of Italian would have come in useful 🤣 Ajiex said similar to you, but said Batu Niti and Baturinggit were productive so we mainly went there Hope to see some of your shots Mike

I fully get that the big attraction of muck diving is to find tiny weird creatures but I'm consistently drawn to gobies, mainly because I think their environment adds an extra dimension to photos

I'm a Sony user with the 45 degree viewfinder, and I find reviewing everything through the viewfinder works best for me. For macro, it's not even a contest as it removes the need to back off the subject and then have to reposition again afterwards. All the info you need is there for you without having to move. I don't do a huge amount of wide angle but I'm that tuned into reviewing through the viewfinder now it just comes naturally I do find though that I change batteries after most dives unless it's been really unproductive. After an average much dive I'm usually around the 50% mark at the surface interval

Hi, thanks for getting back to me, but I've just landed back in the UK (soooo happy....) which is a shame as I would have been up for a chat Given that length of stay I'm sure you'll cover most sites but I found Batu Niti and Baturinggit to be the most productive sites this year for photography. Sheep nudis are at Melasti and Cantik point and rhinopia can be found a short boat ride away from Gerombong which normally involves a short jukung ride with a guide called Nengeh

Mere youngster here at 53 (!) but currently in Tulamben until the weekend. When do you arrive?

I shoot the A1 with a 90mm and am very happy with it. I use it bare, with the SMC and EMWL without too many issues. Even with nudibranchs I always use continuous AF, we're always moving slightly, and enough to move you off critical focus at such close distances. For me, the key is learning which AF mode to use. For macro I use one of the spot modes and move the AF area as necessary for framing, if I'm shooting moving fish with the 90 I'll switch to a zone / tracking mode Once you get the right setting I'm pretty sure you'll find the hinting drops dramatically Mike

I'm booked on a Maldives Liveaboard in April going through Doha as well Tim - making all sorts of backup plans! In regards to to OP, Id say go with the smaller dome, easier in currents and travelling , only pixel peeping to a serious extent will show up with the different dome sizes with the 10-17 behind it. I doubt very much all divers will be in currents and I will certainly be expecting to use my macro setup at times Strobes will be very useful with large subjects like mantas, maybe not so much if you get lucky with whale sharks

I'm lucky enough to go to Bali regularly, never had a single issue, but I know as Yorkie says above there are different rules around 'temporary imports'. Back there in May, I'll ask around, but certainly talking to other divers around Tulamben its never been raised before

I've done a fair bit of diving in the Red Sea, maybe not as much as some here, but I have tried most areas. As a general rule its 'middle of the road' type diving, fish and reefs rule, and whilst there is plenty of variety on that front its not the best area for really small or really big stuff. Northern sites from Sharm are generally based around the Ras Mohammed and Tiran areas with a decent selection of wrecks available. Very nice but busy and whilst there are a couple of specific times such as snapper aggregations around June or Hammerheads off Jackson reef late summer these are really bonuses rather than basing your trip around. A little further south is Hurghada, and if you prefer day diving this may be worth a look. My favoured area by far is El Gouna to stay in as you have far more freedom of movement than Hurghada itself, and a few choices of boats. Personally I dive with a local guide called Moustafa Housin but private guiding can push the price up quite a bit. Going further south you're getting more into Liveaboard only territory (yes I know the Marsa Alam area has day boat diving). The classic route is based around Daedalus, Elphinstone and the Brothers, and whilst the diving is excellent it will be busy. The boats do their best to stagger divers but you won't be alone at any of the main sites. A big draw there are the oceanic whitetips in autumn but due to a few incidents elsewhere in the Red Sea I've found the boats nervous about diving with them unless you're on a specific shark itinerary. All told, my favourite area is the Deep South, which generally means liveaboards from the Marsa Alam area. Coral bleaching has occurred over recent years but the reefs are nice, there are some small cave systems to explore, and little gems like snorkelling with spinner dolphins at Sataya reef if that can be organised for an early morning Water temp is nice a. year round, but over winter it can get a bit breezy getting out of the water, and you'll often find guides in drysuits simply because of the wind. Personally I jus dump my gear and take a quick shower (no the ones on the rear dive deck) and put on dry clothes - problem solved) Boat wise, the Aggressors are nice but not what I'd call luxury. You can get fantastic deals on them st the start of the season around March though. I had a nice experience on the Ghazala Explorer and the Emperor boats are generally well regarded

If you fancy using the 16-35mm that you already own, then the last thing you need to be concerned about in this particular scenario is soft corners - you'll be shooting open sea blue backgrounds with no corner detail. I have a WWL-1b and last year did a dolphin snorkelling trip - in and out of small boats quickly, no time to burp and never had a problem I'd certainly have the opposite opinion to Chris though, I can't see a 2x converter behind a zoom lens and a port matching the IQ of a wet lens Mike

I did similar to you a few months ago. I had an older MacBook Air, which was used for travel, downloading onto an external SSD and maybe half edit some shots for fun whilst away, but serious processing done at home I went for a MacBook Pro this time due to the extra port meaning I can charge, download and use the external SSD all at the same time I went for 512 and have downloaded PS, LR and photo mechanic which takes up about 110GB of hard drive on the MacBook, so could probably have gone for the 256 and got away with it. Just a few figures for you to think over Mike