I found myself first on a thread about teaching water entry with only options being backroll, and giant stride. Than I found myself on this thread about fins. And it seems only water entry anyone knows is with their rig on their backs. Why isn't anyone putting it on in the water? Not the fins, but the bcd. It was one of the basic skills we were taught, and that we are now teaching our beginners. It is almost an exclusive way we get in.
Basically our dives look like this:
1. put on wetsuit on shore (I do it in the water - much easier).
2. prepare your bcd
3. load everything on boat and go to location
4. put on weight belt, fins, computer, mask
5. jump in
6. dive leader, or appointed person opens the bcd valve, inflates it, and throws it in the water (if you are the dive leader, or last, you throw your tank in before putting on fins and jumping in after it)
7. you check the valve is completly open, and put it on. check stages, and dive.
As for fins. If you are properly weighted, which we make our beginners check when before they start, it will not kill you to jump in without fins. It may however be more difficult to put them on in the water, depending on the type. And if there are currents or waves, it is definitely not recommended. I wouldn't recommend it in any case, except for a very high jump.
We are often diving of a very crowded inflatable tube motorboat. And in case of currents or waves we can adjust accordingly.
