My next scholar adventure took place in Grand Cayman where I had the chance to follow an underwater photography workshop with Alex Mustard at Ocean Frontier.

When I first arrived on the Island, I did not know anything about photography. Reef Photo & Video lent me a Sony NEXUS 5 with a Nauticam housing for my scholarship year but I did not know how to use it. I always thought underwater photography was an important tool for raising awareness and to document non diver about our underwater world but I never invested time to learn how to make a nice picture.

Alex Mustard took his first underwater photograph at 9 years old and has since published his images in books and magazines around the world, and has won many national and international awards. But Alex is not only one of the best underwater photographers; he is a passionate teacher, a very kind and patient person. It is not surprising that amateur and professional photographers come from all around the world to participate in his workshop. It is unbelievable how much I have learned with him in only a week! Besides, as there is no competition in the end of the workshop, everyone is sharing ideas, tips and helping each other. You can really feel a team spirit.

I guess Cayman Island is a really nice place to do a photography workshop, especially focused on wide angle and lighting. The seabeds are colourful and it is not rare to see turtles, stinger ray, eagle ray or even sharks. But my two favorite subjects were the USS kittiwake wreck and the silversides. Every summer the caves and caverns of the East End are entirely fill with big school of the silversides. Being entirely engulfed by a school of those tiny fish is an incredible experience.

The workshop was organized at Ocean Frontier. It is the most organized and efficient dive center I have ever seen. The stuff is professional and super friendly. They are very helpful finding animals and are really keen on modeling!