Originally Published for DIVER April 1995 By Phil Nuytten So there I was, right at the edge, one foot actually in the water.  I kneeled down to pull on my fin and lost my balance.  Just a little.  My knee moved forward and down, perhaps six inches, no more.  In …

First Published in DIVER Volume 38 Issue 5 By Phil Nuytten The problem: A swillion, or so, years ago, we humans were designed (or evolved, or left here by aliens – please substitute your desired flavour) to function best under a fairly rigid set of specifications. These specs include …

Former Egyptian special forces soldier, Ahmed Gabr has just completed the world’s deepest scuba dive to a whopping 332.35 meters that’s 1090.3 feet! Verified by the Guinness Book of Records, the dive trumps the former official record of 318.25 meters by Nuno Gomes, or the unofficial record by Pascal Bernabé to …

Since we wrote our Netflix for Divers feature, a new, feature length documentary from the Oscar winning producer of The Cove has been released. Mission Blue focusses on famed oceanographer and eco-activist Sylvia Earle, and her mission to educate the world about our oceans and their importance to all life on …

Advances in gear design & technology over 60 years may not make diving more fun, but it is much easier. And, a picture’s worth a lot of words, we think! Text by Phil Nuytten  Bouyancy Compensators Bouée Fenzy / Aqua Lung Axiom i3 The French Navy’s Bouée Fenzy, left, was …

In Orda of priority it’s No.1 Text by Bogdana Vashchenko / Photography by Victor Lyagushkin  – The Orda cave revolutionized cave diving in Russia. In every respect it’s a ‘dream’ compared to other sumps in the Russian Federation, and it also claims some bragging rights on the world stage. Extending more …

Dive Rite O2ptima Rebreather $8,500 This fully closed circuit, constant P02, electronically-driven rebreather features built-in decompression ability. Dive Rite’s O2ptima is great for overhead environments where immediate surfacing is not always possible, and it will appeal to open water and wreck divers too.  Features include 5-litre total loop volume counter …

By Michel Gilbert & Danielle Alary Tired of making all those adjustments to restore underwater photo contrasts and colours? If so, you’ll be interested in some new software that we tested recently. No one needs to spend more time in front of a computer screen these days and for …

Pelican iM2050GP1 Pelican Storm Case $TBC Tough as a house, watertight, and guaranteed for life. Keep your GoPro and a range of accessories safe and dry with this padded, lightweight hardcase. Optional shoulder strap. www.pelican.com Nauticam Super Macro Converter 1 $480 The first underwater macro conversion lens that is …

By Jill Heinerth We’ve all seen them: over-under split images that show a dive boat on the surface and a happy diver or colourful marine creature below the surface. These all-in-one images often grace the front covers of dive magazines and featured resort ads. They are compelling shots that …

By Dr. David Sawatzky Cave diving is a very unforgiving activity.  You have to keep track of a large number of variables, concurrently.  If you make a mistake or lose track of one of these variables, you will very likely die.  There is very little margin for error. In …

Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen has just begun his seven day, sub aquatic  adventure at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The 38 year old from London, Ontario will be leading a crew to explore the ocean floor as part of a simulation to help prepare for future space missions. NEEMO (NASA’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations) …

A new study suggests fish are behaviourally complex and possess a mental capacity that can match or exceed other vertebrates A paper just published in the scientific journal Animal Cognition states that “fish perception and cognitive abilities often match or exceed other vertebrates.” Dr. Culum Brown, a professor in the …

Gorgonian corals become rockfish communities Photograph by Lou Lehmann – Text by Neil McDaniel Gorgonian corals are common in the cold waters off Canada’s Pacific and Atlantic coasts, but they usually dwell in deep, dark water well beyond SCUBA depths. But on the Pacific coast, a few species are …

A team of 10 women divers from around the world recently completed a successful ‘proof of concept’ exercise in arctic waters in preparation for the 2016 Sedna Epic Expedition ‘main event’ snorkeling 3,000 kilometres through the Northwest Passage in the summer of 2016 Text by Susan R. Eaton ** …

In a mission through time Nuytco’s robotic Exosuit is set to dive on an ancient shipwreck in the Greek isles for an uncommon artifact called the ‘Antikythera mechanism’. Used for predicting astronomical events, the advanced mechanical calculator was developed in antiquity and is often characterized as the world’s oldest …

A third generation of diving’s famous family follows in the footsteps of pioneering grandfather, Jacques-Yves Cousteau  ByJean-Michel Cousteau As a proud father, I always look forward to watching the accomplishments of my children and these past two months of May and June proved to be an amazing milestone for …

Streaming video provider Netflix has millions of North American viewers, so we’ve ‘logged the dives’ to bring you the best, and sometimes the worst, of its undersea offerings Titanic – Movie 1997’s blockbuster is well worth revisiting. The opening scenes featuring real dives on the Titanic wreck are superb and …

Recalls pioneering Conshelf experiments At press time the saturation diving component of Fabien Cousteau’s Mission 31 had just  completed. The son of DIVER columnist Jean-Michel Cousteau, and grandson of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Fabien spearheaded the initiative, underscoring the human-ocean connection through the lens of exploration and discovery. Along with two …

September 12th ‐ 14th, 2014 Over $14,000 worth of prizes Bluewater Photo is excited to announce the 4th annual SoCal Shootout, happening September  12th‐14th, 2014. This weekend long competition brings together underwater photographers of all levels throughout Southern California. Starting Friday morning and spanning through Sunday night, photographers have the opportunity to shoot photos in the Pacific …

Wedding magic in the Florida Keys Text and Photography by Adam Opris I grew up in the ocean and to this day there is always sand in my car, an agreeable reality of life in coastal Florida. I became a professional photographer specializing in weddings and family portraits and love …

Clearance divers of the Royal Canadian Navy’s Fleet Diving Unit (Atlantic), with a little help from their nimble little ROVs, revisit the remains of HMS Breadalbane during the military’s annual arctic readiness exercise – Operation Nunalivut 2014 A dive into the past serves the future. That’s how clearance divers from …

Text and Photograph by David Fleetham As a rule, waves can be tricky to shoot underwater. In the shallow surf zone it’s not unusual that you’ll take a bit of a beating in the quest for a worthy wave shot, but this image at the Molokini Marine Preserve near …

Scientists have recently revealed the true champion of the deep Even the whale watchers among us are impressed by the scientific revelations released recently by cetacean researchers at the Cascadia Research Collective (CRC) in Olympia, Washington. They’ve been studying Cuvier’s beaked whales over the past few years and what …

Text by Ivo Scepanovic  Now in his eighties, legendary Italian free diver Enzo Maiorca is still getting wet, though he’s no longer actively involved in breath-hold diving and long ago gave up spearfishing. “Apnea is behind me now, but I do SCUBA dive. It wouldn’t be responsible to keep …

Site of the country’s largest marine park, Cenderawasih Bay boasts endemic species and biodiversity that make it unique in the world ocean and worthy of your dive site bucket list Text and Photography by Michael AW Rising above an indigo sea, the fog-shrouded Arfak Mountains evoke the image of …

Atomic Aquatics BladeFins $179 Feel the need for speed? Then these new fins designed specifically for a flutter kick will give you a powerful swimming style that will allow you to move through the water fast, even in strong currents. Designed with sweeping curves and a unique two frame structure …

By Michel Gilbert & Danielle Alary New photographers often struggle with some concepts, and depth of field is one of them. Learn how to use it creatively. We may be taking digital images today but the laws of physics and optics still apply. One of them relates to depth …

Nauticam FIX Neo Prices vary A new line of lights that have an LCD display, removable battery, 100 degree beam angle, interchangeable heads, remote control and sealed recharging. Wowsers. What more could you want? www.fixneo.com Backscatter Macromate Mini $88.95 This well-priced, flip on and off, lens for your GoPro 3 …

By Dr. David Sawatzky Diving is an activity with some degree of real risk.  You can get hurt while diving and you can die.  You should have some degree of anxiety and apprehension when you are diving.  This ‘appropriate’ level of arousal is reasonable, normal, healthy and actually reduces …

By Jill Heinerth In my last column I provided tips to assist in comparing the quality and brightness of underwater video lights. Most underwater videographers buy a couple of lights and mount them to their camera on arms, illuminating the environment, or a dive buddy at close range. Camera-mounted …

Text and Photograph by Joseph C. Dovala Today the SS Saganaga rests peacefully on the bottom of Conception Bay, Newfoundland, in the cool, clear North Atlantic. The World War II story of how she came to be such a great wreck, and dive, is anything but peaceful, however, and unravels the …

We sincerely hope you don’t, but our intrepid contributor, Stephen Weir, has taken steps just in case, and he’s not alone Text by Stephen Weir If at some point in the future someone who is not my dentist gets up close and personal with me and they see my …

To accompany our rather good feature on breath hold diving and yoga, here are a few extra tidbits:   Yoga literally means ‘union’ and is based on the principle of harmony between the mind and body. All freedivers can benefit from it but yoga is particularly helpful for those …

It’s been said that if you want to know why dolphins are always smiling you should join them. Welcome to the world of breath-hold diving! Text by Richard Fleury  One of the world’s top wrecks, the SS Thistlegorm attracts exotic marine life. And today a creature seldom seen on …

Text by Sierra Cardenas History was made in July of 1964, when four U.S. Navy divers successfully lived and worked for 11 days in an underwater habitat called SeaLab I that was submerged in 192 feet (58.5m) of seawater off Bermuda. This man-in-the-sea experiment helped prove the viability of …