2nd Komodo Photographic Workshop (September 09 - September 19, 2009)
Following a very successful and popular photography workshop in 2008 we are happy to be running another trip in 2009.
Reduced from 16 passengers to just 12, with expert coaching from Kitty Jempson and myself this is where you need to be if you are a new or budding underwater photographer. With one to one feedback and dives in very small numbers, you will leave a better photographer. You will have talks on subjects such as composition, macro, wide angle, strobe use and lighting, camera maintenance, editing in an enjoyable relaxed atmosphere. You will have the opportunity to work with a professional underwater model.
The difference with our trips are the extent to which we get to know all about your chosen camera set up and ensure they are familiar with it all before you join the trip. They also listen to what you wish to learn and where your personal photography interest lie. The trips are suited to both digital compact and slr users.
During the cruise you will have the opportunity to submit one picture you have taken during the trip. This is entered into the on-board photo competition and the winner will win a return free trip! That is an amazing one in twelve chance of winning!
Komodo offers an amazing array of photography options from macro and critter to large pelagics such as sharks, mantas. We also of course do a number of land visits to look for the world famous Komodo Dragon.
The SY Siren is ideally suited to host an exciting photography workshop. With plenty of wet storage areas, dry prep areas, charge points, rinse tanks. The saloon has a 42” plasma screen to review your days work with feedback from us. Each cabin has a 20” flat screen Dell Vostro computer to enable post dive downloads and editing of your photographs. These can then be sent up to the saloon for viewing.
SAMPLE DIVE SITE ITINERARIES
The following are sample itineraries for each of our destinations. We follow basic and familiar routes through our destinations. However we are flexible to alter a dive route subject to customer request and satisfaction. Plus we endeavor to dive a site when there are no divers from other boats. (Of course, this is not always possible on very popular dive sites). Our flexibility sets us apart from other liveaboards that operate to strict schedules and thus
manufacture the diving experience. We take a relaxed, personal yet professional attitude
towards our customers by providing them such versatility.
Ultimately, however, whenever we set sail we must have complete respect for the sea.
We study weather conditions and ensure we have the latest weather news so we can plan our
trips accordingly. In light of this, the Crew Coordinator may re-route the dive trip to ensure
the safety of all on board, or to re-plan a more desirable route for diving within the limitations
of predicted weather patterns. We provide detailed dive site descriptions and destination maps on our website under each relevant destination.
KOMODO & SUNDA ISLANDS, INDONESIA– 10 DAYS / 10 NIGHTS
UP TO 32 DIVES INCLUDING UP TO 6 NIGHT DIVES
• Day 1 – Arrive Bima, Sumbawa Island, met at airport and transferred to boat.- (2 dives)
3:00pm – Depart Bima and head toward the Island of Sangeang.
Dive 1 – Bima Bay – A great location for a check out dive with the possibility to observe some small critters.
Dive 2 – Optional night dive.
• Day 2 – Sangeang Island – (4 dives)
A small and active island where lava ridges can be seen leading to pristine hard and soft corals.
Dive 1 – Menjang Wall is a macro heaven but currents can be strong.
Dive 2 – Tikno’s Reef has dark volcanic sand and is home to critters.
Dive 3 – Black Magic where mimic octopuses can be found.
Dive 4 – Night dive at one of the above sites.
• Day 3 – Banta Island – (4 dives)
Experience strong and cold currents from the Flores Basin rush through the widest point between the islands of Nusa Tenggara.
Dive 1 – GPS Point has suffered some coral damage however offers great opportunity to meet pelagics such as sharks, dogtooth tuna, spanish mackrel and barracuda.
Dive 2 – GPS Point
Dive 3 – Tanduk Rasa is another great spot to see sharks including Grey Reef Sharks, Blacktip Reef Sharks and Whitetip Reef Sharks. Dive 4 – Star Wars is a gentle slope down to 30 metres and has great coral, fish in numbers and Pygmy Seahorses can be found.
• Day 4 – Komodo Marine Park – Satonda Island – (4 dives)
Famous for it’s fruit bats, Satonda Island has patchy coral however is a muck diving hot spot. We shall spend four dives here looking for the rare clown frogfish, ghost pipefish, boxer crabs and other small critters.
• Day 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 – Komodo Marine Park – (18 dives)
We spend five amazing days in the Komodo Marine Park and on land looking for the Komodo Dragon! Rinca Island is home to various species of wild animals such as black buffalos, pigs, deer, monkeys and of course the Komodo Dragons. We spend one morning with a park ranger trekking and learning about these legendary animals.
The diving is just as memorable and you will dive sites such as Gili Darat, South Passage, Taka Toko, Gili Lawalaut, Crystal Rock, Pink Beach Entrance, Cannibal Rock, The Three Sisters, Manta Alley, Takat Makasar, Tatawa Kecil and more. Of special note is Manta Alley where you can expect to see large numbers of Manta Rays lining up to be cleaned. Canniball Rock is one of the best sites in Komodo. Here you can observe Pigmy Seahorses, Yellow Ribbon Sweetlips, Sea Apples and frogfish. Castle Rock is an awesome site where you can see huge schools of trevally, barracuda, sharks, rays and dolphins.
• Day 10 – Return to Bima, Sumbawa Island.
We do a couple of early morning dives allowing plenty of time to be able to fly the following day (dependant on airline schedules). The sites chosen are shallow but offer great critter spotting opportunities. We party on our last night together and normally have a BBQ.
• Day 11 – Disembark
Disembark for return flight to Bali.
Price
The price for 10 days 10 nights, four dives per day, enriched air nitrox (if suitably qualified), all meals, all drinks including beer (excluding wine and spirits), the full time support and assistance from us, all talks and of course the chance to win a free return holiday is: 2750 Euro per person excluding flights.
Reservations
If you would like to reserve your place, please contact Kitty or me using the following contact details:Gerald Rambert Sun Divers Ltd, Mauritius Contact for more infos Kitty Jempson, England Contact for more infos.
Places sold out very very quickly on our last trip, do not miss out. After the success of the previous trip to the Komodo, we have decided to renew the experience and share with you the passion of underwater photography.
Komodo Photographic Workshop News & Results
We came back last week and it was hard to go back to work after such a great time. The trip was absolutely amazing, with loads of pictures opportunities. it run smoothly as we had the best group of photographer ever, and it was a great pleasure for me to run this workshop.
During the week the participants were gavering pictures and er launched a small competition to spice up the atmosphere. The participants had to enter 3 pictures of their choice, either 3 macro or 3 wide angle or a mix of both. The photographer with the best average won a trip to the back to the Komodo
The winner of the competition is: Edouardo Spacca
In Second place we have: Kathryn Prince
And in third position: Kathy White
And below the other entries:
Komodo Photographic Workshop (September 27 - October 6, 2008)
An amazing 10-day workshop is awaiting you this year. The SY Siren, the luxury yacht, is constructed from ironwood and teak in the same traditional Indonesian style as her sister Sampai Jumpa.
The 34-metre yacht carrying seven sails is being used for a very exciting 10 day trip concentrating around the Indonesian island of Komodo and the Sunda Islands. She can comfortably take care of up to 20 guests on each trip; however we are selling spaces for 14 guests. This allows for better personal tuition, less crowding underwater and plenty of space for kitting up your camera equipment.
She offers an expansive leisure deck area, a spacious air-conditioned saloon with cocktail bar, a dining area and 8 large air-conditioned cabins, each with their own personal computer, audio-visual entertainment system and en-suite bathrooms with hot water. All rooms feature a port hole sea-view and are lavished with luxury extras including bathrobes, hair dryers, hot towels, individually controlled mood lighting and individual controls for your air-conditioning unit. We offer a Laundry Service on the Yacht, as well as a Massage Service! Ideal for those sore muscles between dives. Our Yacht features a Boutique which will make available to customers Worldwide Dive and Sail merchandise, including hats, log books, t-shirts, shorts, bathrobes and lighters just to name a few items.
The SY Siren provides Enriched Air Nitrox and all equipment and facilities required by underwater photographers. Enriched Air Nitrox is FREE for all certified Nitrox divers! If you are not a certified Nitrox diver we can certainly teach you the Enriched Air Specialty.
She is perfect for those looking for that extra luxury, extravagance and comfort! This special charter for photographers whether new or experienced makes this an even more special. There will be plenty of dedicated camera only rinse tanks for your equipment, charging points and work tables. Of course each suite has an individual computer to allow downloads of the days photos and allows you to edit your work.
A competition for the best photo taken on the trip will be held and will be judged at “Visions in the Sea 2008″ in London. The prize will be very special and you will have a one in fourteen chance of winning!
Kitty Jempson will be onboard. The two of us will be on hand to offer advice, techniques, and will give constructive feed back on your pictures. We will give fun and informative talks, demonstrations of their own work and will even give advice on editing your pictures with the use of a computer.
This trip is best suited to those with a digital camera, whether compact or SLR. Those that own film cameras are welcome but will find the lack of processing opportunities frustrating as they watch their fellow guests download their pictures. This trip is also open to Videographers and again the facilities onboard cater for your needs.
We also hope to have a pre departure day in London at Ocean Optics. On this day you will have the opportunity to purchase last minute spares (o rings, silicon, lenses etc) or discuss your needs with Steve. We are also trying to secure some special treats for this trip and hope that INON who make great strobes and lenses will allow us to play and test some of their kit on this trip. Kitty is a superb dive instructor and photographer and will be on hand to give advice on SLR and also your techniques underwater including buoyancy. You will also have the opportunity to work with a professional underwater model Estee, my underwater model, will be onboard to give advises and will be happy to help you on your creative and composition side.
Itinerary
Day 1: Depart Bima at 14.00 for the islands of Satonda, Moyo and Medang. We will wet our feet with the first dive of the trip and spend the evening at Satonda.
Days 2 & 3: We dive Moyo Island, exploring the dive sites of Angel and Panjang reef where we will see massive barrel sponges, schools of long-fin banner fish, red tooth triggers, frogfish, nudibranchs, eels, surgeonfish, snapper, dogtooth tuna, and if we are lucky we will catch sight of the elusive pygmy seahorses. On Moyo we will visit a local village before heading to Medang to enjoy the afternoon and evening.
Days 4 & 5: Leaving early in the morning we depart for Satonda Island for 3 day dives, and after a dazzling tropical sunset speckled with the silhouettes of hundreds of native bats, we will plunge into the dark blue for a world class night dive. Following a delicious feast we depart overnight for Sangiang Island, famous for rare nudibranchs, pygmy seahorse and underwater hot springs that support this very unique aquatic ecosystem. We explore further towards Banta Islands where we can encounter the big fish! The dive sites of Tanduk Rusa and GPS Point are well-known for sharks and large pelagic.
Days 6 - 10: The remaining days will be spent navigating and diving the Komodo Marine Park, visiting the famous dive sites of Gili Darat, South Passage, Taka Toko, Gili Lawalaut, Crystal Rock, Pink Beach Entrance, Cannibal Rock, The Three Sisters, Manta Alley, Takat Makasar, Tatawa Kecil and many more! The variety of aquatic life is enormous in Komodo – from spanish dancers, manta rays, sharks, eagle rays, maori wrasse to frogfish just to name a few.
Price
We have two specially selected people on board to maximise your trip and photographic experience which is unique and offered at an unbelievable price. The 10-day trip which includes all diving, free nitrox (if qualified), free dive equipment (excluding computer) if required, all food, all drink (including beer, not spirits), and our services! Remember this trip has reduced numbers on board. The price is £1,450.00 which excludes flights. Flights are likely to be £500.00 to £700.00.
Reservations
To reserve your space for what is to be an amazing trip, you would need to pay a 30% deposit of £435.00. If you would like to reserve your place, please contact Kitty or me using the following contact details: Gerald Rambert Sun Divers Ltd, Mauritius Contact for more infos Kitty Jempson Dive Solutions, England Contact for more infos