X-Ray Mag #73
Features in this issue
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British Columbia's Newest Wreck Celebrates First Year
ImagesBarb Roy
One day the Annapolis will resemble surrounding dive sitesFor the local diving community, it is hard to imagine a full year has already passed since the sinking of the HMCS Annapolis in Halkett Bay, off Gambier Island in British Columbia, Canada. It only seemed like yesterday when crowds of onlookers gathered to watch the sinking on 4 April 2015. In little over two minutes, the ship was on the bottom, and Howe Sound had its first substantial wreck at 371ft (113m) in length!
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British Columbia's Sunshine Coast
Frosted nudibranchs can be found in both Upper and Lower Sunshine Coast. Photo by Barb Roy.With over 53 miles (86km) of scenic picturesque coastline along Highway 101 and less than 40 inches (104cm) of rainfall per year, it’s no wonder the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia in Canada is a popular getaway for travelers from around the world. Both the upper and the lower sections offer an array of great dive sites and a myriad of other fun activities on a year-round basis.
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Florida Manatees: Sirenians of Crystal River
ImagesDon SilcockA winter’s dawn is a special time to be on Kings Bay, for as the first rays of the Florida sun appear over the horizon, they light up the soft mist on the warm waters of the bay and create an ethereal, almost mystical, feeling. Listen carefully and you will hear the gentle ripples from the swirl pools formed by the paddle-like tails of the sirenians, as they make their way towards the freshwater springs that are the source of Crystal River.
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Florida's Storm Wreck: Conserving Three Muskets Found Off St. Augustine
Archaeologist Brendan Burke carefully brings an artifact aboard. Photo courtesy of St. Augustine Lighthouse Maritime Museum.In 2009, underwater archaeologists from the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum discovered a site dubbed the "Storm Wreck"""" in the murky waters off St. Augustine, Florida. Analysis of the artifacts revealed that the Storm Wreck dates back to the end of the American Revolutionary War.
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France: Focke-Wulf 58 Wreck
ImagesSeverine Bar and Sabine Kerkau
Tail of Focke-Wulf 58. Photo by Severine Bar.There are places in the world where time seems to stand still, where you will find contemporary witnesses of events that can take your breath away. I visited just such a place more than 100 meters deep in a French lake—Lac du Bourget. Here, for more than 70 years, rests a Focke-Wulf Fw 58C—a German WWII airplane. This particular aircraft is one of the last of its kind that exist in the world.
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Geometric Shapes: Tools for Image Composition
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The eye of a pufferfish—a perfect circle. Photo by Rico Besserdich.Today’s underwater photography is pretty much subject-oriented. Let’s take it as a fact—and there is nothing bad about this fact. Those who dive without an underwater camera like to describe what they have seen underwater, and those with a camera do exactly the same, but with the added advantage of providing visual proof: an underwater photograph.
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Grand Cayman: Inspiration for Photographers
Southern stingray at Sandbar, Grand Cayman. Photo by Jennifer Idol.A once-in-a-lifetime chance to learn from the world-renowned underwater photographer, David Doubilet, brought US diver Jennifer Idol to the Caribbean island of Grand Cayman where an immersive workshop for underwater photographers offered rare insights into how to capture on camera the beautiful underwater realm of this fabled oasis.
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In Defense of Diapers
Well, when using an adult diaper don’t hold it in, just relax. The first time you feel like you need to go, go!As divers, we all learn very quickly that staying too long underwater can often bring about an urgent call of nature. A rush back to shore or back on to the boat is one of the first experiences for many new Open Water Divers, if not that ignominious feeling of having no choice but to make our wet suit slightly warmer for a short time.
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In Search of Seahorses
Long-snouted seahorse on reef, Mediterranean Sea off Capo Noli in Liguria, Italy. Photo by Marco Daturi.It was early morning and our dive team was in the process of loading our gear into the car when my friendly neighbour, Walter, greeted me, asking where we were heading so early.
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Margaret Juul Portfolio
Twisting and Twirling Waves, from the Atlantic Coast series by Margaret Juul. Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 48 x 1.5 inchesAmerican artist Margaret Juul creates vibrant and dynamic paintings inspired by the ever-kinetic, tumultuous states of water, as it may be experienced above and below the waves. X-RAY MAG interviewed the artist to find out more about her artistry and her perspectives on the watery world we inhabit.
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Shark Diving: Tips on Photographing Sharks
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Showing the shark and the bait can help a viewer understand what was happening during this experience.On one of my recent dive trips, a post-dive dinner conversation turned to the topic of capturing epic shark photographs. A magazine photo editor was in our group, and I wanted to know how photographers got those perfectly lit, very close shots of sharks, which are typically quite shy around divers. He told me shark feeds, or using bait to lure the sharks, is one of the only ways to get sharks close enough for those types of photos.
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Singapore's Pulau Hantu
Chromodoris nudibranch, Pulau Hantu, Singapore. Photo by Nick Shallcross.Singapore is not usually the first place that comes to mind when you think about diving in Southeast Asia. And no wonder—we are so spoilt for choice in this part of the world, with Thailand and Malaysia to our north and Indonesia to our south. Well, these places are great if you have some vacation time or a long weekend, but what if you are too busy to get away for so long, or just want a reason to get your gear wet?
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Tahiti's Humpback Whales
Breaching humpback whale, Tahiti. Photo by Gregory Lecoeur.As our dive boat glided through Papeete Channel off the northern coast of Tahiti, two distinct spouts appeared on the horizon. We were carefully making our way toward them when suddenly two tails emerged out of the water and then majestically disappeared again. Benoit, our guide, carefully got into the water. He quietly swam in the wake of the whales until finally, he lifted his fist into the air to indicate their presence.
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The Other Side of Checkout Dives
ImagesPeter Symes
When divers understand the benefits of a checkout dive, then everything works perfectly. They do the dive, have a nice time and get back into the “swim of things”.Francis was an instructor working at a dive centre in French Polynesia. One day, he picked up a couple from a nearby hotel to go diving. They had asked to do a drift dive through a pass in the reef, a site notorious for fast currents and scores of reef sharks.
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