South Tour, Egypt / Saltwater Diving / Photos

Fig. 1: Two divers with a table coral in the foreground. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/3.5; ISO 200; 30 May 2014 15:58:40

Fig. 2: When swimming against the current it helps putting the arms closely beside the tank on the back. This reduces the resistance profile. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/4.0; ISO 200; 30 May 2014 16:10:54

Fig. 3: A swarm of anthias are grouping together with a large stone coral. View from below towards the water surface. One has to hold the breath until all fish are coming back from their hiding place and form a cloud again. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/6.3; ISO 200; 30 May 2014 16:30:06

Fig. 4: And yet another block of corals clouded with orange anthias. View straight up towards the water surface. I had to hold my breath until all bubbles are gone and the fish came back. According to PADI I should be dead now. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/6.3; ISO 200; 30 May 2014 16:36:48

Fig. 5: A steep reef wall full of anthias. On the water surface there is our safari boat covering the sun. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/2.8; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 04:36:49

Fig. 6: Clownfish are protecting their anemone. I had to get very close with my fisheye lens to the anemone which made the clownfish even more nervous. In the background is my dive buddy and are bubbles from some other divers. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/2.8; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 04:41:37

Fig. 7: Here's a nice reef wall with many soft corals and orange anthias hiding between them. The view upwards shows the sun and the pattern of the waves on the water surface. Hold your breath and all fish are coming back. One short flash and all are gone again. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/4.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 04:45:38

Fig. 8: And another rock full of soft and hard corals with many orange anthias. Usually I shoot with 1/250s exposure and use the f-stop for choosing the brightness of the water surface and the sun. The intensity of flash determines the brightness of the foreground. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/7.1; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 05:01:45

Fig. 9: A softcoral growing top to bottom underneath a rock. It looked more interesting live than on the picture though. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 05:06:18

Fig. 10: And another block of corals in backlight with the sun. I probably should have repositioned the strobes to the left and right when shooting in portrait mode. There's a long shadow across the coral and it's illuminated from below. So many things to think about when underwater. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/8.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 05:12:34

Fig. 11: The i-Pix underwater housing for the iPhone 5s is really 100 percent waterproof. Once the water comes in, it never gets out. The O-ring was squeezed unevenly. Things that one should never doo nr. 13421: Buy an underwater housing that is cheaper than it's content. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/2.8; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 08:32:17

Fig. 12: This napoleon wrasse is obviously trying to escape from the divers here. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/9.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 08:41:03

Fig. 13: This sea turtle seemed to show interest in the reflection of itself in the camera's dome port. Unfortunately it didn't want to position itself so that I could shoot it in front of blue background. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/4.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 08:46:05

Fig. 14: A white scorpionfish is lying on a small stone coral on a steep wall. I better should have positioned both strobes to the right side. The light is on the top and bottom of the image and the scorpionfish lies in the shadow. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/4.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 08:52:19

Fig. 15: A small scorpionfish is sitting on the sandy ground. It didn't want to let me getting closer for a head shot. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=105 mm; f/14.0; ISO 200; 31 May 2014 17:59:34

Fig. 16: Picture of a diver in the blue, shot out of a cavern. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/3.2; ISO 200; 1 June 2014 05:20:58

Fig. 17: This small fish was very nervous and fast moving. It is probably the juvenile form. But I don't know which kind. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=105 mm; f/11.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 04:30:46

Fig. 18: A hawkfish is sitting on top of a coral and is guarding it. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=105 mm; f/8.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 04:58:00

Fig. 19: A red seastar on a yellow stone coral. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=105 mm; f/16.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 05:13:38

Fig. 20: A fish is hiding in the branches of a stone coral. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=105 mm; f/11.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 05:18:21

Fig. 21: The wreck of a small sailing boat at dive site Abu Galawa Soghayr. In the blue water there are hanging some divers. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 08:50:00

Fig. 22: The wreck of a small sailing boat at dive site Abu Galawa Soghayr. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 08:51:14

Fig. 23: The wreck of a small sailing boat at dive site Abu Galawa Soghayr. My buddy and me stayed at the wreck while the oders took a tour against the current around the reef. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/6.3; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 08:55:18

Fig. 24: The wreck of a small sailing boat at dive site Abu Galawa Soghayr. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.6; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 08:56:23

Fig. 25: The interiour of this small sailing boat was too small for a diver. It also didn't appear to be very stable as it was shaken a bit by the surf. A swarm of glassfish is hiding inside. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.6; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 09:00:05

Fig. 26: A canyon made by stone corals. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.0; ISO 100; 2 June 2014 09:13:14

Fig. 27: Another boring picture of a firecoral. At least there are a few small fish on it. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/8.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 09:18:42

Fig. 28: My dive buddy and me are enjoying a quiet dive at this wreck. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/11.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 09:31:25

Fig. 29: Four divers are swimming through the reef. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/6.3; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 15:12:38

Fig. 30: A diving couple is kissing each other. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/8.0; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 15:13:19

Fig. 31: And again a firecoral. This time with two yellow butterflyfish. It's a crop. The picture was shot freehand but the diver I wanted to shoot was partly out of the frame. There wasn't a second chance. Nikon D200; Δt=1/250 s; f=10.5 mm; f/5.6; ISO 200; 2 June 2014 15:41:06