Welcome to our online newsletter. We thank all of you who read it and thank you for your encouraging responses. Our intent is to disseminate information relevant to divers and underwater photographers. We welcome your questions and suggestions. This month our newsletter is a photo lesson on care of your camera system

Back from Palau

Click here to see more great images taken by the Palau travelers.

Just wanted to tell you how great the trip was and how much I enjoyed being with you both once again for awesome diving.  We really had some grand experiences.  I'm still reliving the dolphin experience.  I'll be dreaming about it for the rest of my life!

Joan Adair

Thanks again for organizing a wonderful trip. It was great to be part of your group.

Tom Aplin

Thanks for putting together a first-class, incredibly awesome trip! It was beyond my expectations and hopes!! Now I have to come back down to reality and face the "real world"—yuck!

Bruce Weller

Sipadan/Mabul/Kapalai
Sabah, Borneo Malaysia
September 12-26, 2008

I have been to Borneo several times and diving the Mabul-Sipadan-Kapalai trio of islands is always extraordinary. Sipadan is host to huge schools of mackerels, barracudas and other pelagics as well as sharks and turtles, lots of turtles. Sipadan is a turtle sanctuary and has closed its resorts to preserve the environment. We dive there but no one can sleep there and we hear the sea life has increased in numbers dramatically. Mabul and Kapalai sites are in shallow water, host to an amazing array of unusual and hidden critters that us macro hunters love. On our way home we will stopover in Kota Kinabalu and visit the Orang U­tan Sanctuary where we’ll sharpen our skills as land photographers.

$4385
Tour Includes
9 nights, 10 days accommodations at the Sipadan Water Village
8 days of 3-tank dives
Unlimited diving on the house reef
Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks
Boat guides, weights and belt
Roundtrip airfare Singapore Air from LAX
Roundtrip domestic air
Roundtrip airport transfers
3 nights plus breakfasts at the Hyatt Regency in Kota Kinabalu
Taxes and transfers
Per person, double occupancy
Not included: gratuities, Visa fee, departure tax, day tour
Price subject to change.

See details on our website. Click here. Call if you want to reserve your space now or know more: 949-448-0499.

Annual Fall Whale Shark Expedition
The Sea of Cortez
La Paz, Baja, Mexico
October 8 – 13, 2008

Whale sharks in your face. Mantas circling above your head close enough to touch. Sea lions dive bombing and nipping at your fins. Morays, morays, morays. Jacks and barracudas schooling. Dolphins. Giant jawfish found nowhere else. 100+ vis. Bathtub warm water. Bright blue skies and calm blue seas. Exotic. Exciting. Jacques Cousteau called it "The World's Greatest Aquarium." And a two-hour flight from Los Angeles! It's La Paz!

Tour Includes 5 nights, 6 days accommodations at the La Concha Resort American breakfast 3 days of 3-tank diving Whale Shark Spotter plane Box lunch, snacks and beverages on dive days Boat guides, tanks, weights, belts La Paz Airport transfers Taxes Adios Amigos Party at the Sunset Bar & Grill Gifts and Prizes Per person, double occupancy. Land package only. Does not include airfare Price: $1059

Photos by Joe Liburdi and Cara Sherman

To make your reservation, click here.  See why we go back year after year.

The Most Important Underwater Photo Lesson

Question: What is the most important thing you need for underwater photography?

Answer:
a) The right lens.
b) A megapixel camera.
c) An off-camera strobe.
d) None of the above.

If you answered c) An off camera strobe, you are close but still wrong. The correct answer is d) None of the above.

Because the most important thing you need in underwater photography is a consistent, diligent, meticulous, pre-dive system care procedure.

There is not a week that goes by that I don’t get a call or an e-mail from a diver wailing that his or her system flooded. Just last week after I returned from Palau, I learned that three of my students had floodings while I was gone: one was a strobe, another a video housing, and another a DSLR housing. The student with the video camera had tested the system twice in the pool, dove with it twice on vacation, and then on the third dive noticed water had penetrated the port. He claimed the housing was defective. But of course, if it were, it would have flooded in the pool or on one of the previous dives. I didn’t have to be there to know what had happened.

Murphy’s Law

The saying is sometimes referred to as Finagle's law which means "Anything that can go wrong, will—at the worst possible moment". And a flooding during a long-awaited dive trip is the worst possible time. Usually, it’s our own fault.

With that being said, what can we do to prevent water from entering our camera systems and strobe?  If you follow the following, it will help.

1. Make sure there is adequate lighting to perform camera/strobe maintenance. Good lighting is a must when preparing a camera/strobe system that must be properly cleaned and sealed before diving. I struggled with poor light in our hotel room in Palau. One of our divers, Zoe Ann Brown, showed up at dinner one night with a light on a head band. She used it to light the dark pathway.  A light went off in my head. What a great idea! Why hadn’t I thought of it? There are many models and prices to chose from. The one I got  (after the trip) is an LED headlamp with low, medium, and high power levels, takes AAA, lithium or ni-cad batteries, and provides really bright coverage for hands-free work. Liburdi’s now carries a few headlamp models made by Pelican.
2. First check the camera. Do a careful visual check for external and internal damage. Moisture in the air can wreak havoc with the electronics. Look for corrosion. Satisfied that there is none, review all camera settings to make sure they are set properly. Install fresh batteries in the camera. Make sure your memory card has enough shots left to complete the dive. Test fire the camera to make sure it is working. If satisfied, place the camera in the housing.

3. Inspect and prepare the housing. Each time the housing is opened, the sealing surfaces and the inside of the housing are exposed to the air environment; therefore, it is very important to inspect and clean the inside of the housing and all O-ring grooves even before you service the O-rings. Clean the inside of the housing with a soft lint-free cloth or blow  (at slow speed) cool air from a hair dryer to remove dust, dirt, etc. Remove the O-ring from the O-ring groove. Check the O-ring to make sure it is damage free. Place the O-ring/O-rings in a clean safe spot. Next, clean the O-ring groove with a cotton Q-tip.  I put a little dab, about the size of a grain of rice, of O-ring grease on the Q-tip, then I twirl the Q-tip between my thumb and index finger.  This procedure tightens the Q-tip into a small egg-shape configuration, the grease holds any loose fibers from the Q-tip in place, and the grease also extracts dirt/fibers from the groove.
4. Inspect, clean, and grease all O-rings. Get the O-ring and place a dab of the recommended o-ring grease, the size of a grain of rice on at least two/three areas around the O-ring. Don’t use too much grease.  Just enough to coat the O-ring.  Then with the O-ring placed between your thumb and index finger on each hand, run the O-ring around several times coating the O-ring.  This procedure will also clean the O-ring of dirt, dust, etc.  Keep checking the O-ring to make sure all debris is removed from the O-ring.  Then check the O-ring groove once again to make sure it is clean. You are now ready to install the O-ring and seal the system.   Add sidebar
5. Perform the above prep procedures for strobes and strobe sync accessories
6. Assemble the system and perform a pre-dive leak test.  Place the entire system in a bucket or tank of fresh water for several minutes to make sure the system is leak proof before diving. Note:  If you see large air bubbles or small trails of air leaking from the housing/strobe, remove the system quickly from the water.  Something is wrong. Check it out. Repeat the pre-test.  Only take the system diving when you are certain it is watertight!

What to do if it FLOODS
Okay, you “think” you did everything right but water got in anyway. A little bit of moisture is a minor flood. What to do? Immediately remove all batteries (wet batteries will leak acid), memory cards/film, and clean up the mess.  Do a thorough inspection to determine the source of the leak. Dry with a cotton swab or dry with a hair dryer set on low heat.  If the electronics imbedded within the system and the lens have not been affected, you can probably save the system. After you are convinced that the system is dry and clean, install a fresh battery and see if it works.

Okay, it’s not moisture, it’s running water. Oops, that’s a major flood. If the camera is a digital and has been soaked with water, you’ve got yourself a doorstop. I hope you have insurance. However, sometimes the lens is spared. Give it a good cleaning and test to see if it works.

If it’s your strobe that has flooded, turn it off, of course, disconnect the sync connector, carefully open the battery compartment and remove the batteries. Check to see where the water penetrated. Clean the affected area with fresh water and if the electronics have not been flooded, gently dry with a hair dryer. Chances are good you can return the strobe to service.

Tip: After any system interior is exposed to water, it is a good idea to send it to a repair facility for examination and evaluation.

Condensation
Condensation may not be a flood but it is moisture, and moisture will ruin the electronics. I devoted one newsletter to just this subject. Click here to read the May 2006 issue in my newsletter archives..

 A special note on after dive rinse buckets.  After a dive, divemasters and photographers routinely place the cameras in a fresh water rinse bucket. That’s good. But often the system is left there. That’s bad. Systems get stacked on top of one another, and it’s easy for arms, brackets, cords, etc. from another system to entangle with yours and something on yours, such as a port or housing clasp or sync connector,  to disengage or break. Don’t leave it there!!!  I’ve seen three floodings in the rinse bucket this past year. Stay with yours. Give it a brief soaking and place it in a safe area.

Precautions

If a camera system floods, it is usually your fault. Yes, we know we said this already, but it's a point that needs repeating. Most floodings are caused by carelessness. You assembled the equipment hastily. Or neglected to inspect the O-ring. Or didn't reseat the O-ring properly. And so on.

• Check your equipment before you enter the water.
• Immerse system in a rinse tank to check for leakage.
• Check that all power switches are in the OFF position before entering the water.
• Never take a giant stride off a boat with your system in hand. Ask someone to hand it down to you after you've made your entry.
• Never jump in the water with your system in hand.  Have someone hand it to you after you have entered the water.
• Underwater photo equipment is most vulnerable to flooding in shallow water where the seal is weakest. A jolt can dislodge the O-ring and break the seal. Be gentle and be careful.
• Be alert! Camera, lens, and strobe should be inspected upon descent. A steady stream of bubbles from camera or strobe or moisture inside the lens indicates flooding. Make a safe ascent and check your system. If you act quickly and correctly you can prevent more serious damage.
• Don’t take your system any deeper than the recommended depth rating listed by the manufacturer.
• Finally, don't wait for a catastrophe to get your system serviced. The old adage, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" doesn't hold water with photo gear. So learned the sorry photographer who hadn't had his camera serviced in eight years and saw it flood on the very first dive of a liveaboard trip in Baja. He was very surprised. We were surprised it hadn't happened sooner.

Camera Care and Maintenance Class. Private session. One hour $50. Call Joe at 949-448-0499 to schedule an appointment.

Joe-Buy Special of the Month

Ikelite dome port system for most Ikelite SLR housings. Practically new!

Dome Assembly	Port Body

#5510.45 Dome Assembly and  #5510:10 Port Body

The injection molded acrylic 4" radius dome is specifically designed for underwater photography to provide superior optical performance. Its larger radius reduces edge distortion on pictures taken with certain super wide-angle lenses and makes shooting over-under shots easier. The compatible port body is required to attach the dome to the housing.

Regular retail price: $525. Joe-Buy’s price: $375.

Call Joe at 949-448-0499 or email: orca2@cox.net.