Underwater News
November was a big month for Deepblu Inc. The company that built the world's first dive computer featuring social integration made waves at the DEMA Show 2016 in Las Vegas with a series of surprise announcements and product launches.
Introducing COSMIQ+
Deepblu upgraded its product line with a new addition, the COSMIQ+, introducing a brand new performance feature for technical divers in two new lines. Available in two distinct color families?Noir and Lumin? the COSMIQ+ comes in five new colors. Staying true to its roots as the best price-to-performance dive computer on the market, COSMIQ+ is priced at the same US $299 as its COSMIQ predecessor.
As for tech specs and operability, the COSMIQ+ builds on all the existing features of the COSMIQ with the introduction of Bottom Timer Mode. This feature specifically targets the needs of tech divers for a secondary device and will expand Deepblu's customer base to include an important niche in the diving community.
Slated for a Black Friday (November 25th, 2016) release in North America, the COSMIQ+ will be available globally in December 2016.
Deepblu 2.0-Everything Under the Sea in the Cloud
Deepblu also announced a beta launch of Deepblu 2.0?a major expansion of the Deepblu online platform. Accessible across mobile ...
This is the sixth part of our special articles about Thecnical Diving. Read also [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5]
After our last course the wrecks of a.o. Malta and Croatia have been our playground, building experience and confidence until the dives worked like clockwork, letting us fully enjoy the beauty of the places we dived. Wreck's like the Um el Faroud, HMS Hellespont, HMS St Angelo, SS Vis and SS Kalliopi...if you don't know these and ever get the chance, go dive. Every single one of them is worth multiple dives. If you need information on excellent diving centres that make your diving great, just contact us.
But...an increase in bottom time in the range we were diving and ? to be honest ? the longing of the deeper wrecks eventually made us decide to go the final mile. We spend many an evening discussing with whom we would like to take the Tech-2 class and ? more important ? were we would like to dive.
Decision was made and...
Finally you have to grab all your diving gear together for a final check and see if it fits the bag and meets the luggage restrictions.
Malta, here we come...6 course days ahead and some additional days for fun diving ? hopefully in the Tech-2 range (75m) - the beautiful Maltese wr...
This is the second part of our special articles about cave Diving. Read also [Part 1]
I can still remember my first happy trip to Mexico and the joy of receiving my first temporary certification diving card. Finally I was ready to explore underwater and really push my boundaries. That was until my diving instructor asked me if "I Would like to go Cenote diving at the weekend?" My initial thought was that cave diving was dangerous, and not really a great pursuit for a novice diver. However once I entered the gateways to the Yucatn's underworld I had no regrets with my choice.
Underneath the Yucatn Penisula run three of the longest water systems in the world. Controlling the location of human settlement in this area for thousands of years. The Mayan people could only access this precious water through sacred entrances called ?Cenotes? This was a path into the underworld, and was filled with their gods and spirits. They are formed through the Combination of subterranean cave ceilings collapsing and the gradual erosion of the limestone bed. Which has created a magical world with caverns, tunnels and mystery.
For divers news and information on cave diving has sometimes revolved tragic stories of cave systems taking lives, or terrible hazards that were encountered by untrained divers. Creating for some a b...
Sheikh Coast : a diving center UWP friendly
In recent years, I have visited Sharm several times. It has always been my favorite destination since 1993.
Its proximity and abundance of underwater life have always made it, to my eyes, a place of incomparable quality/price ratio.
My approach to underwater photography has started in 2011 and since then I realized that, talking about logistics, my needs have progressively changed.
Comparing with friends sharing the same passion, the emerging common thought was that in Sharm you could hardly find the ideal conditions to meet the needs of the "annoying" category represented by underwater photographers.
The organization of the diving centers, the "traffic" of boats at the diving sites and the sites themselves, were not the best for photography.
Then I learned from some friends that recently, at the Sheikh Coast Diving Center (inside the Domina Coral Bay of Sharm El Sheikh), is growing a pole increasingly attentive to the needs of fans of underwater photography, under the influence of Pierpaolo Peluso, the diving center responsible for sales and marketing, as well as guide and underwater photographer.
Hence, after that in recent years my diving and photographic destinations have been especially Maldive...
This is the fifth part of our special articles about Thecnical Diving. Read also [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]
As you may have read in the previous issue, all members of Team Pitch Blue managed to pass the brutal T1 course. Amazingly enough, the whole team stayed together after that and we did a lot of diving together. In fact, since then we have been joined by Cees (nicknamed Case / father of team-member Jeroen), Richard (nicknamed UMM) and Thomas (nicknamed TL). These divers were certified a year earlier, but unfortunately Case saw his team fall apart due to a combination of money and time constraints of his other team and UMM? just wants to dive as much as possible and is actually diving in two teams. Team member Thomas is also our technical support. If TL can't fix it...no one can. With his ridiculously heavy toolbox he more than once managed to save dives that otherwise would have been cancelled.
They were more than welcome in Team Pitch Blue and an additional benefit for us is that Case is a more than gifted underwater photographer. The pictures in these articles and all pictures on our Facebook page are of course taken by Case. They have joined us to keep practicing and we maintain our team dive skills every Sunday at Scuba Academie Vinkeveen. But they also plan t...
This is the fourth part of our special articles about Thecnical Diving. Read also [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]
It's October 2012, 05:00 a.m.
As quietly as possible I try to get out of my bed without waking my (then) pregnant wife. As all fathers know: waking up a pregnant woman is a very unwise thing to do, so I do my utmost best not to make too much noise. Happy that I made it out of the danger-zone I pick up pace and: WHAM! My left toe hits the blunt side of an open door in the dark. I am never at my best in the morning, but the surprise of the sudden pain in my sweet pinkie toe totally wakes me up. The monologue towards our dear Lord takes care of the sleeping wife... But it gets me a nice cup of coffee and a goodbye kiss. On my way I am!
At 08:45 I arrived in a village near the German border. From here, my passenger Rob Vierwind accompanies me. Rob is in his final part of his 'Tec one instructor'- training and joins me on the 750 mile drive to Krnica Croatia. He has brought about half a dive shop with him: D-12's, D-18's, 80- and 40 cuft stages and scooters. The spacious bus that I borrowed from my company comes in very handy. The "Sopar bus" will proof to be the preferred transportation for Team Pitch Blue in the years to come.
Rob will teach our T1 course, but in turn wi...
This is the third part of our special articles about Thecnical Diving. Read also [Part 1] [Part 2]
In this third part things are getting more serious. This is where the actual courses start: with the Intro to Tech / Fundamentals. This basic training is intended for everyone who wants to step into the world of technical diving. Regardless of what religion you are (PADI, NAUI, GUE, SSI, NOB), dive-master, instructor or even course director, this program is the first step and you simply can not go any further if you have not completed it with a Tech-rating.
As already said in the previous parts 1 and 2: it is essential that everyone you (are going to ) dive with has the same mindset. In this way, every diver knows that every one of his team members has the correct and the same equipment, but most importantly: has the same procedures as you for every part of the dive. This way each team-member will know what's coming and therefore will easily see if something is out of the ordinary /wrong. So if the inevitable problem occurs, everybody will react in the same way. The diver in trouble will recognize and predict the behaviour of his helping team members so that there will be no panic and everyone knows that the problem is dealt with in the most efficient manner.
The fir...
This is the second part of our special articles about Thecnical Diving. Read also [Part 1]
The major misconception about technical diving is: Extensive and expensive equipment makes the difference between technical and recreational diving. We strongly feel this is not true. The real "technical" bit of technical diving is in the necessary skills and mindset. In fact, if you do not know how to deal with your equipment, you are actually adding risk instead of creating additional security.
The foundation for these extra skills and mindset is a mayor part of our training called: "Intro to tech" or "Fundamentals". Both training courses are a basic program that anyone must complete before taking the next step towards technical diving. No matter what level you are or how many dives you already made.
This way every diver knows that every one of his team members has the same procedures for every part of the dive. From the checks before setting up the equipment, the final pre-dive checks on the boat to the actual behaviour during an emergency. Shooting a buoy, the passive and active communication or gas-switch procedures, each team member will perform them in the same way. Therefore each team member will know what is coming and will easily see if somet...
A form of diving that fires most people's imagination. "Deep, dark and decompression" are normally the first things that come to mind. "A lot of gear" would be a second thought. All apply, but there is so much more to it. This is the story about the path we followed from recreational divers to technical divers. This journey started approximately five years ago and is an ongoing story of courses and personal development. In the next couple of issues we will explain what the term technical diving actually means. We will tell more about the equipment we use and about why we always carry it around (even during dives where we do not need the amount of gas). In part two we will explain a bit more about the standardized equipment used. After that we will publish some articles about the courses we have followed / are following.
Why exactly do we like those deep dives? We carry enormous amounts of heavy equipment and spend more time getting back to the surface than on the wreck... We all have our different reasons. I have actually no idea. In my normal life I am quite a brisk person, but when I am underwater everything becomes relaxed. Being underwater calms me down and life becomes more easy. As a kid I always dreamt I could fly. Up until today I haven't been...
Nauticam is pleased to announce the latest release in its acclaimed line of precision crafted camera housings, the NA-D810 Housing for Nikon's 36.3 megapixel D810.
NA-D810 is the first underwater housing for Nikon D810 to be shown publicly, and will be on the shelves of dealers, and in the hands of users, by the end of August. Nauticam once again leads the industry by delivering this superior system less than 6 weeks from the initial camera ship date.
The NA-D810 Housing
The NA-D810 is an evolutionary marvel. A long list of pioneering engineering breakthroughs from previous Nauticam designs are now standard in NA-D810. The patented housing Locking Latch System has received acclaim worldwide for its ease and functionality. These recessed latches are equipped with safety locks, reduce bulk and require minimal physical effort to engage and release. Port changes have never been simpler than utilizing the Patented Nauticam Locking Port Release. No wrestling, no twisting, no misalignment - just seat and lock. Lens changes are also easily accomplished without removing the camera from the housing using the lens release button logically accessed on the housing front. The lightweight, rugged Nauticam handles are generously contoured with a durable over-mold pr...
The Natural History Museum has now officially become the charming and cozy choice for the International Competition of Underwater Photography Deep-City of Venice, now in its seventh edition. The exhibition of thirty-three winning images in the Galleria Cetacean under the impressive whale skeleton has ever seen as the influx of hundreds of Italian and foreign visitors. Ninety participants from the United States, Spain, the Netherlands, Greece, Indonesia, England, Norway and Italy have submitted three hundred ninetytwo underwater photographs taken around the world.
The photographers competed in the categories SLR and Compact cameras, divided into Macro and Wide angle Tropical and Mediterranean. Added to this are the categories Crabs, dedicated to the Museum, Plastic Sea, born from a project of Eleonora De Sabata in collaboration with Medsharks, and Donna Fotosub. Claudio Bertasini, Gianni Neto and Giuseppe Pignataro had to struggle hard to select the top ten photos of each category because of the high technical level. Isabella Maffei wins again the prize Woman Fotosub, while the Spanish Elisabeth Espinalt yook the first place in the category Crabs, which was attended by 68 competitors. The ranking still speaks Spanish thanks to the laurels that have ...
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