Constructive Criticism for Instabuddy

[donhealy]

Fishpie,

I am a photographer and I have to admit that when I'm seriously taking picts I am not the best of buddies. (something I'm not particularly proud of) I also have to work extra hard to not disturb the reef. I am a much better buddy when I put the camera away and just dive. Paying more attention to my buddy is something I work on every dive. I find that its much better if I'm buddied up with another photog and we both focus on the same area of the reef.

 

[fjpatrum]

Just a quick note.
Inexperienced navigators/leaders will almost always swim much faster than the followers. They're fixed on a single task and tend to swim in straight lines whilst the rest of the group are meandering about looking for stuff.
And another is, photographers are often by nature poor buddies.

Thanks for that bit of information. I hadn't considered he might be "faster" just because he was being more aware of his nav. I tried to count to 10 and be finished with any still pictures I was taking in that 10 seconds. That can certainly be a long time but I didn't think it was excessively so. I'll definitely be more aware and try to communicate better with buddies when I see a shot I want to take in the future.

 

[Krazytomdiver]

As a dive guide,just a story about dive buddies; I was getting my DM cert in Roatan,I would put my name on the dive board as "Krazy" everyday. One day a big guy was talking to me and said " I do not want to buddy up with any guy named "Krazy!" I answered him "What makes you think it's a guy? I heard 'Krazy' was a knock-out beautiful young women..." He said " Really? I'm in !" Not that it proves anything but some divers have different priorities. Dive safe,Have fun!

"living life without a hard bottom"
KT

 

[moodoweewah]

I'm inclined to agree Fishpie. I dive rarely enough and am myself a novice, but I do try hard to make the safety aspect of any dive my priority. Although I'm sure I have room for much improvement, I have found quite often when I have been buddied up with a diver wielding a camera I have spent much of my dive following or waiting for them whilst they seem pretty much unaware of where I am. And god help me if I want to get a look at some interesting wildlife. Not a hope, they're all over it and I can't get a look in. I'd rather dive with a less experienced diver, at least they aren't so cavalier about the risks.