Sorry for giving all you readers the silent treatment – but I have been in Indonesia for 4 weeks now, with very limited internet access. Hope the pictures and the upcoming video make up for it.

Before Indonesia I had a short pit stop in Norway to repack my equipment and also test out some of the newly arrived TUSA gear. Because of a transport strike in Norway during the Spring, I did not get the gear in time before I left for the States. So, this was my chance to finally try it out. I loved my pink fins from the moment I put them on (yes, I am a girl). They are beautiful, and I am not the only one who thinks so. In Indonesia one of the underwater photographers actually said he would love to use the fins on a model for underwater shots.

Indonesa with its 17.000 islands is the greatest archipelago on earth, and a hot spot for biodiversity both below and above water. There is no need to say I was looking forward to this experience. The reason I was heading to Indonesia was that the Belgian award winning UW videographer, Danny Van Belle, generously offered me a 2-week course in videography, which was sorely needed. My end product for the Scholarship year is a movie, and I remember the feeling I had as I was handed the camera and the Light & Motion housing in April. How could this story get a happy ending? I had never been near a videocamera before, and had even less experience with an UW housing for one. Danny saved me. From my first unsteady, over-exposed images totally out of focus – I now have really nice video of ghost pipe fish, seahorses and nudibranchs. Since the course was taking place during the HUGYCUP 2010, a competition for UW photographers, the environment was perfect – I was surrounded by photographers who were happy to answer my silly questions.

Our base for the course was Scuba Seraya Resort, just outside of Tulamben, Bali. We  practically lived on the beach, and all we had to do after breakfast was to slip into our wetsuits and we were ready for amazing muck diving right outside our door. However, first things first. Danny spent 2 days with me in ”The Dark Room”, giving lectures on all the basic concepts of videography. After the theory lessons I was ready to try out underwater videography in practice. And here is where all the problems started. Have you ever heard of Murphy´s law? If something can go wrong, it will. This is me learning things the hard way.

For my first dive the housing refused to give me anything but a black LCD screen, and we left it above water this time. After the morning dive, time came for hours of struggling to get the housing to work. It seemed as if it communicated with the camera, but the screen was still black. After checking EVERYTHING we started sending e-mails and making phone calls. Little did I know that I had massive humiliation in sight. During one of the phone calls the expert asks; ”..and the four batteries is in place?”. Dead silence. FOUR?? We only put two in there… Please use this advice; Get the manual. Read the manual. Twice. If you can´t get it right after doing that, it´s probably still your fault.

But, when we finally got everything working – a new world opened to me. Since the area is heaven for muck diving, I could play around with lights and the close-up lens as much as I wanted. I have never paid as much attention to small details as I have this course, and at the same time had the opportunity to widen my view and make panorama video of a 1,5 meter long great barracuda. The barracuda lures around the wreck of the USAT Liberty, which we visited frequently during the course for panorama shots. The Liberty wreck is probably Bali´s most famous dive site, and I understand why. The wreck is easily accessible, it´s huge and the wildlife around it is stunning. You can spot everything from barracudas, garden eels and a tornado of Trevallies to color explosions of nudibranchs and soft corals.

During the HUGYCUP 2010, Beyond Scuba offered a free try-dive with a semi-closed rebreather. Me, Ronny and Stijn, two of the participants in the contest, went together, and all I can say is that its the weirdest dive I have ever had. It seems like everything is opposite when it comes to buoyancy with a semi-closed rebreather – and I was seriously struggling keeping myself neutral. If you breathe in using normal scuba equipment – you will go shallower, but with this setup it was the other way around. Even though I struggled a lot – it´s always fun to try new things.

After 2 weeks of video, my stay was about to end – and that is the part I always find hardest. Leaving good friends is never easy, but the prospect of maybe seeing them again sometime makes it worth it. And the diving world is not so big as one might think.

NB! I am putting together a video from my stay as I am writing this – and I will post it on the blog as soon as it is ready!