Diving the Maldivian Seas - 28 Aug to 6 Sep 2009

[antacid]

Hi everyone,

Just sharing some pictures from my recent trip to the Maldives. Spent 8 nights on a nice boat, great crew, friendly service, and some pretty decent diving. Visibility wasn't very good in general - maybe 10-15m, with some sites having very good vis.

We didn't manage to see alot the first couple of days, as you practically had to bump into the rays and sharks to see them. But we got lucky and were accompanied by a pod of 100+ dolphins to the dive site. It was surreal to dive while listening to them clacking and whistling away. Unfortunately, a japanese group jumped right in on top of them, and the dolphins went away.

*disclaimer: the diver you see touching the manta is not from our group... she was from another group which had very bad diving practices. really spoiled the experience for everyone at the site. they used twin-tanks for 45 minute dives. go figure! but they had hot japanese chicks on board though! hahaha

#1

#2 A blatant copy of one of the shots I saw in Aaron Wong's website

#3 A solitary eagle ray within arm's reach

#4 A school of 30+ Mobula Rays splitting up in confusion after running into us

#5 Winging into the sun

TBC

 

[antacid]

#6 A Maldivian Sunset - taken with Magic Filter, really brings out the warmth

#7 A turtle checking me out before running into my dome port.

#8 A rain of yellow snappers

#9 A dive site I call "The Runway". Excellent vis, enjoyable drift dive in medium-strong currents

#10 Manta manta

TBC

 

[antacid]

#11 Manta again

#12 A third time

We didn't manage to see any whalesharks, and only saw mantas on the last day during the last 2 dives. The last dive was especially nice as we spent a full 45 minutes with mantas as they came in for cleaning.

We were also incredibly lucky to see a Great Hammerhead at 27m during our only "Hammer Dive". It came close enough for me to kick! A far cry from the shadows and silhouettes that most other people see!

All in all, a very nice trip, going back again in 2011!

You can see more of the pictures here: http://www.colouredshots.com/site/underwater.htm

Enjoy!
((=

 

[swee sin]

nice set of photo ...
thanks for sharing ...
feel itchy now!!

 

[lovells19]

Woah the japanese running out of dolphins to kill and they are now in maldives!!!

 

[mikeng77]

nice pictures....envious of your encounter with the mantas and the dolphins, love the winging into the sun...majectic

 

[2evans]

Some great photos and thanks for sharing! :thumbsup:

Mantas are such amazing creatures.

 

[siewmai59]

man, what i would give to dive with mantas and a pod of dolphins!! the best i've done is a leatherback turtle!

nice shots btw. I didnt think the maldives had such poor vis though.

 

[kthan]

the schooling modula rays is way cool!

 

[foxwagon]

I like #5 Winging into the sun.
Which LOB boat did you dive from?

 

[limwhow]

Hi, antacid. Wow, under-water photography! Really remarkable shots that brings the viewer (me) to a totally different (under-water) world! Thank you for sharing your work.

 

[antacid]

hi guys, thanks for the replies..was away at genting for the weekend. hehe

mikeng> thanks, that's my fave shot of the trip too!

siewmai> you just need to dive more...the more you dive, the more likely you'll encounter something special! i'm still waiting for my dives with dolphins playing around me..one can only dream

kthan> yes, the school of mobulas were definitely a highlight of the trip. the dive guides said they usually see schools of 5-6, very rarely in such large numbers. we practically ran into them because the vis was quite poor, maybe about 8-10m only, causing the school to split up

foxwagon> we dived off MV Eagle Ray on a full charter. very good service, and we were severely pampered for a very reasonable rate.

limwhow> you're welcome! that's one of the joys of taking photos underwater - to share it with people who otherwise wouldn't be able to see it. you should check this section more often..we have lots of other members with great shots from a variety of destinations

 

[rebaccawood911]

Wow man they are beautiful and nice pics thanks for sharing with us,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Lolrence]

I love #5... manta rays flying in the water.. :heart:

 

[brownie01]

#07 is nice... Simple