Troporobo

Very nice indeed, especially for a challenging scenario! I love weird and wonderful macro subjects, and the way you captured the head-on shots seeming to look into the camera gave it impact. Well done.

Very cool - congrats!

I’m now confronting the same issues, as my current location means every trip starts with a flight on an ATR-42 with a strict 7 kg limit for the carryon bag. My usual camera backpack (Lowepro RLX 450) weighs 15 kg when loaded. Now I put the camera in the housing, and it goes into a light commuter style backpack along with a port, two strobes, torch, and wrist computer and transmitter. Everything is lightly wrapped but honestly pretty vulnerable if dropped, so it never leaves my sight. Then I have a briefcase style laptop bag into which goes my personal electronics and all the batteries. Everything else goes into a motley collection of smaller padded bags in the checked equipment duffle. The backpack weighs 6.9 kg and the briefcase has never been weighed. It helps very much that I am a m4/3 user!

I’ve been an Olympus user for about 15 years. I have never been able to get their RC mode to work reliably and gave up on it completely. Try switching the camera to to fill flash and/or manual flash and leaving the strobes on TTL to see if anything changes That’s weird to be caused by only one lens. It almost has to be a contact issue.

Very cool images and video. I especially liked the UW sequences of the salmon, it adds so much to this story. Thanks for sharing! Alaska is epic. I did a similar trip a few years ago. Anyone thinking of going - just do it!

Great images Dave! I love the two portraits of the warbonnet.

Guys - Thanks a lot for the super helpful advice! Ben - Do you recall the focal length used for your video? You got some great action. John - Nice shots and very helpful ti pre-visualize focal lengths. You’re almost right, I would be using the 8mm FE and 12mm rectilinear, as both work well in the mini dome and one tiny extra lens is manageable. Tim - I’ll be diving the day before the new moon so maybe there’s a chance to see the bumpheads in action, to contribute to your proposed “fans only” mating thread!

Hola UW comrades - I’m heading to Palau the week after next for work, and because of the flight schedule from my location, I’ll have two days of diving, one each before and after the week’s business, three dives each day. I’ve read everything I can find online about the typical land-based trips and have booked my two days with an operator. Now I need advice to strategize my photo gear. What I don’t have a grasp of is the minimal viable photo setup, which I need to optimize to incorporate into luggage for a work trip. My usual setup isn’t possible as I will start on a small plane with a strict 7 kg limit for my carryon. I am at heart a macro photographer trying to learn wide angle and CWFA. I am leaning toward minimal WA only, with a fisheye and a wide rectilinear that both work in the same dome port. Given the less than ideal season, I’m concerned that any pelagics won’t be close enough for that setup, but I don’t have a better idea. I’m OK with winging it, but if anyone has advice it will be most welcome! Robert

The third link that I posted will show weight and give a clunky size comparison of body+lens combos. The permutations created by adding housings and ports would increase the task by an order of magnitude or more!

There are several camera size comparison tools available online: https://pxlmag.com/db/camera-size-comparison https://camerasize.com/compare/ https://cameradecision.com/size-comparison/7zSI-vXzL

Great info, thanks a lot!

That’s a fabulous image! The composition is a perspective I’ve not imagined before. Well done. But I’m struggling to imagine the lighting to make it so smooth and even without harsh shadows. Please give some hints!

Volivoli is a beautiful resort with a very high caliber dive operation and a great camera room, although the groups on the boat can be larger than I like. It’s not cheap, but the best option for diving the Bligh Water without a liveaboard. Over on the Rainbow Reef, Taveuni Dive Resort and Paradise Taveuni both get good reviews. I’ve not been to either. There’s also the Cousteau Resort for legacy cachet and other resorts around Savusavu but the boat trips are longer from there. There are lots of reviews over on ScubaBoard. On Kadavu, there’s a range of prices, from Oneta and Matava up to Kokomo. The attraction out there is oceanic mantas from about June to October. That’s going to be my trip next year.

I’d like to offer a quick additional insight. Tonga, like many south Pacific destinations, is a developing country with many local tourism operators still learning the ropes of international marketing. Many will deliver a great experience but have an amateur internet presence, or even none at all. Email and even phone calls may work better than websites. The slick websites are often run by overseas operators, though to be fair, some may be palangis (non-Polynesians) who’ve dedicated their lives and investments to the place. I know it’s difficult to judge from afar, and a risk, but sometimes the more local the presence the more authentic the experience. As always, your mileage may.

I have not been to Tonga for the whales yet, so I can’t recommend an operator. Here are some useful links. I’ve been sending inquiries to the the operators directly, rather than packaged tour operators, to ask for rates and availability for next year. The first link lists all of the licensed operators. https://tongapocketguide.com/the-guide-to-whale-swimming-in-tonga/ https://tongapocketguide.com/10-best-whale-swim-tours-in-vavau/ https://tongatourism.travel/swim-with-whales/