Sidemount Diving Photographers

Hey all,

I am taking sidemount in water class this week, I know I need to get several (20+) dives under my belt to get comfortable with my new kit but I am wondering if there are any other side mount divers in this group that can share tips and tricks you use?  Thanks in advance.

This is a great topic. I love sidemount, and dive with the configuration a lot.

BUT I don't find it very productive for photography. The task loading of monitoring two breathing supplies and the continuous swapping of regulators detract from my photographic focus.

While it encourages perfect "flat" trim" this is not an optimum position for taking pictures either. We typically need to be slightly head up for many shots. I tend to go out of trim to shoot, and then return to trim onceI have finished.

I do use it in overhead environments, where its advantages outweigh the drawbacks!
 

That's interesting to know. Do you find any benefit in getting in/out with SM and a camera rig compared to twin backmount, or does the worse posture underwater outweigh any benefit of just being able to clip stuff off in the water and climb in?

For me, the key is to keep my diving gear as simple as possible for a given task.  I am too stupid to be able to deal with distractions! If I am in the water to take pictures, I would always favour tools that make those pictures better/easier. 

Entry and exit considerations are secondary...