I’ve just added an album of photographs that I took on my recent trip to the Caribbean. It was the first time I was using my camera in the sea, so any comments or tips would be greatly appreciated.
The album is a bit short on pictures of fish (the blasted things kept moving) but fans of sponges and coral should be in seventh heaven.
You can see the pictures here.

Now that I’ve moved on to a dSLR I’ve got a great compact camera outfit for sale:

1. Olympus 5050Z camera
2. PT015 housing
3. Inon D180 strobe plus tray, arm and optical synch cord
4. Inon UWL100 Type 2 wide angle lens (67mm thread - removable underwater)
5. UR Pro (CY) Red Filter (67mm thread - removable underwater)

Available individually or together.

If you’re serious about wanting to get into underwater photography 1 & 2 make a great starter system - with lots of potential for expansion. If you’re looking for an external strobe for your current system, the Inon D180 will suit a lot of compact cameras (and will make an extraordinary difference to your photos). Likewise the wide angle lens - it makes a phenomenal difference to the clarity of your photos and what you can fit in! (Some housings will need an adapter which you can almost certainly get at Ocean Optics.) The Red Filter puts the colour back into natural light photography and will give you wonderfully colourful reef scenes.

If you’re a GLUG member you can contact me by logging in and clicking on the envelope at the top of this post. If you’re not a GLUG member, email me at: photos(at-symbol)alanlarsen(dot)co(dot)uk. Either way, leave your number and I’ll give you a ring.

London Divers are holding a Festival of Diving at the London Welsh Centre, Gray’s Inn Road, on December 2nd, sponsored by the London Diving Chamber.

The day kicks off at 9.30am, with free tea, coffee and pastries served before 11am.
Among the presentations are

• Dr Oli Firth from the London Diving Chamber - “The Trouble with Bubbles”
• The Marine Conservation Society on their campaign for British marine reserves
• Bite Back – the shark conservation agency
• Top underwater photography tips from the British Society of Underwater Photographers
• Technical diver Jeff Cornish will also give the first ever UK presentation about this year’s outstanding diving expedition to the wreck of RMS Carpathia – the liner that rescued the passengers from the Titanic and which now lies in 160m, 200 miles off the Scillies.
• Viktoria Batten, one of the UK’s top diving instructors, will share her amazing cave diving adventures.

Mark Ellyatt, the world record diver who discovered the wreck of HMS Victoria will be on hand to sign copies of his book. There’s also a wide selection of diving equipment, diving holidays and diving fashion on offer – including designer jewellery from Aquamarine Silver.

Tickets are just £6 for the day, and give you an entry into a draw to win an Otter Drysuit worth £900 !

To book your ticket, go to the London Divers website.

At last week’s monthly meeting, several people were kind enough to congratulate me on winning 3rd Place in the Visions 2007 Underwater Photography Competition.

However, since Alan hadn’t warned me that he was going to tell everyone, I didn’t think to take the photo with me to the meeting so, for those who wanted to see it, here it is. (You can click on it to see a larger version)

I was particularly pleased to win a prize, because of the way the competition was run: The photos were displayed throughout the Visions conference, and rather than the pictures being judged by a panel, every delegate voted for their three favourite photos in order of preference. I narrowly missed 2nd place - my photo had the same number of overall votes, but one less “first preference” vote.

The winning photo was a stunning image of a wave recoiling from a rock wall - a perfect tube of water, seen from below.

BTW, the conference was excellent, and, as always inspired me…now if I could just win the lottery, to fund all that expensive dSLR equipment, and a few dive trips…!

I’ve just come back from a trip (with Huw Jenkins) to the ecolodge at Marsa Nakari and have posted a few of my photos in the gallery.

The diving was great (as was the ecolodge). The house reef is good and you can dive it unaccompanied at any time - including being taken out and picked up in a rib if you want, which gives several different dive options. In addition we visited Marsa Abu Dabab twice - open to shore divers, but not to boats - and saw the Dugong on both occasions (twenty minutes on our own with it the second time!). We also saw Spinner Dolphins at Dolphin House Reef (Sha’ab Samedai) which involved a trip on the most luxurious dayboat I have come accross.

We were there in the last week of October and the weather was still hot and sunny (over 30C) and the water 27C. I recommend it for a relatively cheap week with some good diving.

Ocean Optics are holding an Open Day, with renowned Underwater Photographer, Mark Webster, on Saturday Jan 12th.

Mark’s credentials are impressive - a well established photo-journalist writing regularly for the major diving, photographic and wildlife magazines. He has also been selected four times to represent Great Britain at The CMAS World Championships of Underwater Photography winning silver and bronze medals. Further competition successes include the BBC/British Gas Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the Agfa Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Blue Earth 2000, Geographical Magazine Photographer of the Year 2000, Ocean Realm Magazine Marine Photo 2000, Diver Magazine Image 2001 and 2003 and Subios 2004 along with numerous other awards.

I went to the launch yesterday evening of a ‘coffee table’ book called Reef. It’s been produced by Scubazoo, who are the team who filmed with Monty Halls in his Great Ocean Adventures series for Channel 5. This isn’t just another book of great underwater photos though; they are passionate about marine life and conservation and their passion comes through in the way they present life on the reef - not only coral reefs, but all off-shore underwater habitats - in all its great variety and various life-cycles.

‘Reef’ costs £25, which also includes a DVD (since they started as cameramen rather than photographers). It’s published by Dorling Kindersley.

I have no interest to declare in this, other than I think it’s a great book. (I was invited to the launch through Ocean Optics, from where I buy my underwater camera kit - and, I think, so do Scubazoo.)

So if you’re looking for an Xmas present for a dive buddy - or something to suggest that you would like - I strongly recommend it.

“Visions in the Sea” is the UK’s biggest Underwater Photography Event, and is now in its eleventh year. As well as talks from some of the World’s leading Underwater Photographers, they will also be hosting Photo Clinics, where you can take along up to 10 of your own photos and get professional advice about how to improve your technique. Also on site will be Ocean Optics, with a range of Camera Housings (dSLR and Compact), Strobes, Lenses, etc.; the Shark Trust; and BSoUP.

For anyone keen on Underwater Photography, this is a great weekend (I speak from experience), and although the cost (£69 for 1 day, or £99 for both) might seem high, when you consider the quality of the presenters, and the price of similar events, it’s well worth it. (For example, the RGS (Royal Geographical Society) has a Wildlife Photography event the following weekend, which costs £66 more!). The price also includes tea & coffee, as well as a buffet lunch each day.

For more information, click the logo above. If you want to book, download the booking form.

Since I’ve still only had 6 entries for the Fish ID Quiz, I’m going to extend it for another 3 weeks 10 days, but I promise that I won’t send any more emails until I publish the answers - some of you are probably sick of these emails by now!

At present, a score of 58 out of 86 will win you a prize of an “Absolut Scuba” Scuba tank cover, or an Underwater Photography Coffee Table book - since there’s over £60 worth of prizes on offer, it would be nice to get at least a couple more entries!

I’m on holiday from 12th September, so I’m making 11th September the new deadline.

Click on the creature in the top right of the page to start - and don’t worry, they’re not all that hard!

Hi Everyone. For those of you who may have a keen interest in sharks, especially Oceanic Whitetips and Hammerheads, I am going to Red Sea Safari Shagra on 21st November for one week. This is prime time to see the Oceanics especially at Elphinstone. Elphinstone is a 30 minute rib ride from Shagra and, although challenging, is an amazing reef. Please feel free to read my reports (here and here)on my dives there and my stays at Shagra.

As well as Elphinstone, there is Dolphin House reef which is great for photography. Shagra also offers its house reefs and truck diving. Please check out the Oonasdivers website for further information on Shagra.
Flights, transfers, full board in a Madyafa with ensuite and unlimited diving £695.00 except for Elphinstone which is an additional €35 for 2 dives and Dolphin House which is €50 for a days diving.

Feel free to get back to me if you want any further information.

Charlie

Just back from some glorious walking in North Wales (which started the day after we returned from the Red Sea), so a bit later than usual, I’ve now posted some of the photos I took on the recent GLUG trip to the Red Sea (arranged excellently by Charlie again). Take a look in the Gallery.

Actually, these are all of the decent ones… my new camera proved more of a challenge than I anticipated!

As ever, all comments and constructive criticism welcome.

Enjoy!
Alan

Announcing the GLUG Marine Life ID Quiz!!

So, you think you know your Marine Creatures? Test your knowledge with the GLUG Photo Quiz, with the chance of winning some fabulous prizes!

There are 25 photos. For each photo, you must identify the creature (either by common, or latin name - no bonus for givnig both though). Most of the photos have one or more additional questions, for bonus points. You can download the GLUG Quiz Answer Form, and fill it in on your computer. Once it’s complete, click the “Email” button on the form to send it to me.

The Questions have varying degrees of difficulty - there will be some that just about everyone can answer, and others which I don’t expect more than a couple of people will know. In the event of a tie, there will be a tie-break question. The Quizmaster’s decision is final!!

To get maximum points, make your answers as complete as possible - for example if the creature was a “Klein’s Butterflyfish”, then putting “Butterflyfish” would only get you half the available points.

Click on the Photo of the first creature (shown here) to start.

Prizes (donated by me - having a clear-out!):

• An “Absolute Scuba” Scubahide
• A Photobook by Kurt Amsler: “Carribbean“
• A Photobook by Cathy Church: “My Underwater Photo Journey“

Winner will get first choice. There will also be a booby prize! Note: You don’t have to be a GLUG member to have a go at the quiz, but you must be a paid-up member to win a prize!!

Closing date for entries is September 1st - so get thinking!

(If you have any problems with the Answer form, please leave a comment below - but bear in mind I’ll be away from 18th-26th July!)

Ocean Optics / Mavericks Diving are organising an Evening with Martin Edge, a well-respected Underwater Photographer.

Here’s their mailshot:

Apart from our year-round diving GLUG also organises regular social events so that our members can catch up, compare stories or photographs from recent trips and chat about… well, diving.

In addition to our monthly meetings in Soho we also have an AGM and Christmas party in December and a picnic or barbeque in the summer. We host stalls at Pride events, go shopping en masse at the Dive Shows and sometimes meet up with other gay social or sports clubs for joint social events. Our members have organised dry dives in a compression chamber and we have had clubs outings to evenings of lectures on subjects ranging from cave diving to marine life to digital underwater photography.

We also have GLUG weekends at inland dive sites for training and skill maintenance. Whilst not as exciting as real diving holidays these trips are essential in making sure that our openwater diving can be enjoyed safely and that our members have the opportunity to advance their training, should they wish to. These weekends also provide the opportunity for more club socialising and almost always include a few nights in a local pub comparing tall tales and chatting about… well, diving!

On this page you will find details of some of our past non-diving activities. Click on the pictures to be taken to the relevant gallery.
Details of upcoming events can be found on our Events Page.

Please choose from the following:
London Zoo Gay Sunday - September 2008
London Aquarium - August 2008
London and Brighton Prides - 2008
Christmas Dinner - December 2007
Picnic - August 2007
Dry Dive - 2007
Dive Show dinner at La Tasca - March 2007
Cardiff Mardi Gras - 2004

London Zoo Gay Sunday - September 2008

Thanks a million to Brian Broadbridge for bagging Glug a free stall at last weekend’s Gay Sunday at London’s Zoo.
The day was a great success with several new members signing up on the day and 30+ potential gluggers signing up for information on local training.
A special thanks to Brian, Steven, Doug and Chris for lending a hand on the day!

London Aquarium - August 2008

Mother nature had other plans for the GLUG summer picnic this year so, instead of eating our packed lunches in the wind and rain, we decamped to the London Aquarium. The displays and tanks were great and it was lovely to see the fish of the British Isles to well-represented (and with good vis, for a change).

London and Brighton Prides - 2008

GLUG had stalls at both London and Brighton Pride this year. Thanks to all the hard work put in by our volunteers on the days we managed to find a number of new members, both experienced divers and non-divers eager to learn!

Christmas Dinner - December 2007

We concluded 2007 with our AGM, kindly hosted by Gerhard at the Gray’s Inn branch of Konditor and Cook. We then wandered down to Strada St Pauls for our Christmas dinner. Some of us may have gone out in Soho afterwards too… luckily by then the cameras had been put away.

Picnic - August 2007

We finished up the year’s dive season with a picnic in St James’ park. Over two dozen GLUG members turned up and we had enough food to ensure that fitting into our wetsuits at the start of the 2008 season may prove rather challeging.

Dry Dive - 2007

Eight intrepid GLUG members undertook a (loggable!) dry dive to 50 metres in the London Dive Chamber.
We were very impressed by the professionalism of the medics and technicians who run this important facility. During the course of the dive they provided us with a series of cognitive tests and also gave us information on how to recognise and respond to DCI symptoms.

Dive Show dinner at La Tasca - March 2007

After a day of strenuous shopping at the London International Dive Show (during which GLUG members must have poured a few thousand pink pounds into the coffers of the dive industry) two dozen of us met up for a tapas meal at La Tasca. We showed off our new gear, boasted about the bargains we’d found and drank enough sangria to refloat the Scylla.

Cardiff Mardi Gras - 2004

A big “Thank You” to those who came along to help at Cardiff Mardi Gras: Ceris & her partner, Paul & Sian, and most especially to Rob & Neil, who not only stayed for the whole afternoon, but also brought along all sorts of nibbles: chicken legs, sausages, smoked salmon pinwheels, and a particularly nice cheese & bacon flaky pastry concoction. What with all that, plus the Metropolitan Community Church handing out cakes from the stall next to ours, we didn’t need any dinner!

Once again, there was a lot of interest in GLUG, and although we only signed up one new member on the day, we gave out almost 300 leaflets. The encouraging thing was that although by the end of the day there were hundreds of other leaflets lying discarded on the ground, we didn’t see a single GLUG one that had been thrown away.

Finally, also a special thank you to Ignacio, Neil’s partner, who has been tireless in helping to promote the club, even though he doesn’t dive!

I’ve just uploaded to the gallery some of my pics from a week’s ‘muck diving’ in the Lembeh Straits in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, which I did at the end of March.

For anyone who hasn’t heard about ‘muck diving’, it’s quite unlike anything you’ve ever done underwater in warm seas. It’s essentially diving over a black sandy (and often rubbish-strewn) bottom, but in which you can find the most amazing array of weird and wonderful critters. For photographers it’s a high-yield destination - there is so much to see that you almost run out of media on a two-tank boat trip!

If anyone wants to see more, I’ve got loads more pics… Enjoy!