Deb Fugitt and I have made 6 trips to Raja Ampat starting in 1999, we were the first americans to dive there and now have over 500 dives in that area.
Deb wrote the 2003 Periplus Guide, Raja Ampat section.
When we first started diving Raja Ampat the dive operator wanted to do each dive on a different reef or bommie. We had a heck of a time getting him to return to a dive site because it was great for photography and not because it was a fast drift dive or a 130' down-welling. Our photos at first were not very impressive but..
We finally put our collective feet down and told him that it is our trip(s) and we will dive when and where the conditions are right for great photography, and then we started great stuff.
Our images and articles speak for themselves, see the link below.
It is not enough to just dive in the area, you must go with guides that are experienced in that area, and there is no one leading trips to Raja Ampat that has even 20% of our experience diving this area
We've spent over 18 weeks creating images on 4+ dives per day in Raja Ampat over the past 5 years and know the reefs and conditions necessary for optimal image making.
There is a thread in the
Commercial/Organized Dive Trips
section that has more information on our trips to Raja Ampat in 2004
Raja Ampat Trips 2004
For more information, 2 photo galleries, and the Scuba Globe
Dec. 2003 article on Raja Ampat Diving click on the link below.,
Visit Raja Ampat Galleries and article
Cheers
Tony Matheis
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