Troporobo

I've just come across this, though it has apparently been in the works for a while. A most welcome bit of good news! From the report: "The government of Indonesia announced this week a deal to redirect more than US$ 35 million it owes to the United States into the conservation of coral reefs in the most biodiverse ocean area on Earth. The “debt-for-nature” swap will fund coral restoration in two key areas of the Pacific Ocean’s Coral Triangle — the Bird’s Head and Lesser Sunda-Banda seascapes, which encompass three-quarters of the world’s coral species and more than 3,000 types of fish, turtles, sharks, whales and dolphins . . . " Raja Ampat debt-for-nature swap

Thanks a lot Bill, these two articles are very helpful. I think I’ve got it now.

OP: How about we keep politics out of this forum? Diving and photography are my refuge. Please keep it that way.

This is a brilliant thread that should be pinned - so many great ideas! I agree with all recommendations so far. For me, learning the hard way that strobe triggers are unobtainium in most destinations made carrying a spare essential. Plus, ALL the batteries and ALL their redundant backups. Finally a good multitool goes with me everywhere - never underestimate what you can bodge together with a blade, some wire, and a set of pliers!

I’m curious why adding a closeup lens would work this way for wide angle. It’s not explained in that old thread. Can anyone elaborate?

Agreed, an excellent sequence!

Given the original question, I’d hate to give up RAW files, especially if shooting without lights. I’d suggest a compact and one good light, either small strobe or reasonably powerful continuous light depending on use case. I’d probably choose the Olympus TG7 for its excellent zoom and macro lens.

That looks potentially like a replacement for the Inon S2000 for macro work. I really liked them for getting into tight spots and still regret selling my pair

Easter 2025 will be on April 20. If you’ll be there the week on either side, but especially the week before, it will be very busy. I’d recommend talking to the resort about arranging a private banca and guide rather than a group boat, if possible.

It’s possible, as Whiskeyjack notes, but there’s not much point as there are not better places to stay nearby, and the cheaper places could just as easily arrange diving. Doing so only makes sense as a day trip from Manila, if you can endure the traffic both ways in one day!

Asked and answered here: Philippines advice

You probably already know this, but just in case, Solomon and Carol at Nautilus are CCR divers and know what’s possible.

Nice article Dave! I’ve never been tempted to go CCR, mainly because I don’t love the added complexity in general and (perceived?) difficulty when traveling, but you make a great case for the advantages it brings to photographers. I will say that an extra 45 minutes of cold darkness at 90 feet in the Sound does not immediately jump to mind as an advantage for me!

I’ve seen that first one around Anilao quite a lot and always assumed it was just a skinny example of an orangutan crab. Undernourished perhaps! Good to know it’s a different species.

Great work! Thanks for sharing.

I have Eneloop AAs that are over 10 years old and used at least monthly. As long as they last for 2 dives, and they do so easily, I see no reason to replace them.

The BBC’s iPlayer requires registration and confirmation of a UK television license (ok, sure 🙄). I’m able to watch with NordVPN set to the UK.

I always found it interesting and puzzling that certain nudis - nembrotha in particular - could be abundant at predictable sites one year then vanish the next. N. chamberlaini were always everywhere, N. kubaryana seemed to come and go with the seasons, and N. milleri disappeared completely for several years. Where do they go? It’s not like the slugs are migratory is it?

Thanks a lot for the explanations, it’s clear now. This does look very promising!

The best guarantee that you’ll encounter a manta or whale shark is to set up for macro! Your dive buddies will thank you. 😅

Re-reading the announcement and thinking about everyone’s replies, it does seem to be about increasing the maximum focus distance when using a close-focus diopter. I remain confused. If I want to do that, I just flip the diopter out of the way and with that the maximum becomes infinity. Why would I want another lens to cancel the effect of an accessory lens that can instead just be removed? Hmmm . . .

Don’t try, is my advice. It’s tempting to want to shoot every possibility - I tried doing just that for a long time. But that puts you in a mindset of looking at everything all the time in a sort of frenzy and often missing the opportunities that closer attention would have presented. Much better to decide whether macro or wide will be your objective for a given dive and making those good images while simply enjoying the view of the other, then switching it up for the next dive. As for normal foam, it will compress at depth and lose buoyancy. Buy the Stix floats, they are cheap and last forever.

I don’t understand this at all. I use a 60mm lens on m4/3 with a flat port and it will focus just fine at any distance from macro to infinity. I don’t see any “aberrations” either. What am I missing?

Yes, though you could safely extend that range to December - March