Maldives macro?

Hi!

Earlier this year I was scheduled to do a liveaboard at the Maldives. To noone's suprise that didn't happen but I still hope to go at a later date, bringing my new ILC rig.

My question: would any of you who have been at the Maldives before ever elect to use macro for a dive there, instead of wide-angle?

I've been there before and I know there are macro subjects, such as nudibranches. But I can't think of a single dive there where macro would have been a better choice for the whole dive than wide-angle. If you agree with that assessment I could possibly leave the macro gear at home.

Not that this is an immediate problem, travel being what it is (not). But bereft of actual dive trips I can at least daydream about them.

Hey horvendile

Bummer on your trip - as you say, no-one's surprise.

We've been to the Maldives a number of times but not liveaboarding - always resort-based and mainly shore diving. There  I found I used macro a lot. Nudis, ghost pipefish, whip coral gobies. I then used wide-angle when out on day boats for all the usual Maldives classics, eg, mantas.

I wouldn't rule out macro but, obviously it depends to an extent on which type of sites the liveaboard takes you.

Always do house reef diving in the Maldives and lots of macro; don,t find the boat trips very photographer friendly and you often get dumped mob-handed in a raging current. Tons of macro subjects and you get to know where things are so you can go back  and try different angle, lighting etc. Fish are used to divers and snorkelers and many are very approachable. Good luck

4 minutes ago, JimG said:

Always do house reef diving in the Maldives and lots of macro; don,t find the boat trips very photographer friendly and you often get dumped mob-handed in a raging current. Tons of macro subjects and you get to know where things are so you can go back  and try different angle, lighting etc. Fish are used to divers and snorkelers and many are very approachable. Good luck

Yeah, my experience there is very similar to Jim's. But maybe it's different from a liveboard rather than day boats. I'd sure hope so!

Thanks for the replies! I've done two trips there, both liveaboards, so I have barely set foot on Maldivian soil and have done no shore dives. Well, one in the vicinity of a shore, but then with nurse sharks.

It's correct that the liveaboard dives have been mostly about larger species such as manta and sharks. That's not to say there haven't been macro subjects, only that if I would have taken a macro lens I would have missed the main attraction of the dive. Maybe not with a 60 mm macro, depending on how close we get.

Well, I have time to think.

Been diving up in the Baa Atoll on 4 different occasions. Agreed that the majority of the subjects are larger (used to have many [many] sharks up in that area, now more focused on mantas, turtles, the occasional whale shark). There are macro subjects, but to take full advantage you do need to talk to the dive staff and be clear what you're looking for.

With just 2 dives a day at many resorts it's tough to dedicate an entire dive to macro (given the potential number of divers on a boat, etc.), however if you have a good relationship with the dive staff it is possible. 

Now with many Maldives resorts moving to 3 dives a day (or even 4 a day, if you include a night dive on a house reef), it is getting easier to dedicate an entire dive to macro. I've found that committing an afternoon dive (sometimes with a private guide) to macro is the way to go.

We are (hopefully) headed back to the Maldives next June to head to the South. I'll likely commit the afternoon dive most days to macro, and we've made sure the dive team can accommodate this before booking (2 morning dives each day will likely be focused on wide angle).

On 8/10/2020 at 5:32 AM, TimG said:

Hey horvendile

Bummer on your trip - as you say, no-one's surprise.

We've been to the Maldives a number of times but not liveaboarding - always resort-based and mainly shore diving. There  I found I used macro a lot. Nudis, ghost pipefish, whip coral gobies. I then used wide-angle when out on day boats for all the usual Maldives classics, eg, mantas.

I wouldn't rule out macro but, obviously it depends to an extent on which type of sites the liveaboard takes you.

Do you have any recommendations for resorts?  I'm also interested in macro with the occasional pelagic boat trip.

Thanks

5 hours ago, davec13o2 said:

Do you have any recommendations for resorts?  I'm also interested in macro with the occasional pelagic boat trip.

Thanks

I have heard very good reviews from Fulidhoo Dive resort. I booked there but my Feb trip was cancelled given EU lockdown measures

9 hours ago, davec13o2 said:

Do you have any recommendations for resorts?  I'm also interested in macro with the occasional pelagic boat trip.

Thanks

Hi Dave

I've been to Vilamendho three times. Excellent resort - especially for the non-diver - with very good house reefs all around a very small island and daily local dive trips to sites with mantas etc. Macro dives for sure but also good wide-angle.

I've also been to Ellaidho (as there was no room at Vilamendho) and it was ok - but you know how sometimes you go to a dive location or on a dive and everything goes wrong? Ellaidho, for us, was the place: broken gear, stuff went missing, things didn't work, spooky feeling.... brrrr.