Dive Boat Camera Protocol/Etiquette Question

[ce4jesus]

Soft-sided cooler for me as well. As a matter of practice I usually sit up front of the boat near the head. Yes I'm last in the water, but I'm also last out. No one has to walk by my gear heading to the water. In all liklihood you'll be the only guy on board with a beast of a rig. You can make friends by collecting email addys and sending folks underwater portraits. So being "that guy" is not all that bad.

 

[Slaveeye]

Wow. A soft-sided cooler! Man why have I never thought of this. Makes perfect since. Padded protection and doubles as a rinse tank. I'm getting one today!!!!

Thanx to everyone. You all RAWK!

 

[OceanObsessed]

I got mine from NRS. I got the large one: 20"L X 13"W X 12"H. My whole Ike housing with 8 inch dome port & DS-125 will fit in it and I can zip it closed. There is still room for foam padding etc.
-Chris

 

[Teamcasa]

Slick idea! Now, off to find a sutiable cooler that will fit into my camera backpack!

 

[Blair Mott]

One thing I would be careful of is handing your camera up to the deck crew and having them put your camera right into the rinse bucket while they are working hard to get everyone on the boat. I have seen this 3 times on different boats. Everyone excited to be back on the boat all cameras go into the rinse bin and and once your gear is off and stories are told you go to get your camera out of the bin with a scratch on the lens from all the other cameras in the bin. Good luck and have a great time!

 

[ce4jesus]

Good advice Blair...or it could be worse. You could go get your camera and pour water out of the housing as another camera's wrist strap grabbed a latch on the way out. Happened to my wife last year in Coz.

 

[Teamcasa]

One last piece of advice. Tip the deck hand early, before the dives begin. Tell them there is more if you and your gear get handled with care. Works wonders – unless you are on the boat with me!

 

[Charlie59]

Sure great advice for not using the communal rinse bucket, however, what is it about the camera bucket that draws people to wash their masks in it? What is the incredible and irresistible need to put soap in this bucket with camera cases that may leak due to this exposure.

GEEZ!

 

[Allison Finch]

Make sure you get a soft sided cooler with wheeles on it. It's much easier to drag your gear than carry it. Also, once on board, you might try to fill it with water to use as your private rinse tank.

 

[alcina]

Alcina, what are you shooting now? Just wondering if my bulky great Ike rig and 5D might also fit.

Got a fair bit of travelling coming up this year and would like to get it right - your cooler bag sounds very sensible...

You should be able to find one if you have access to something like Kmart etc. Maybe even on the web.

I'm shooting subal and Inon strobes, so my kit, even with the big dome, is likely smaller than yours is.

I'm not a fan of the wheels as they don't pack as well and it's one more thing that go wrong. But my kit isn't that heavy or bulky so it's easy to sling over a shoulder and hike with.