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Re: [OM] underwater photography

Subject: Re: [OM] underwater photography
From: WayneS <om3ti@xxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 14 Nov 2008 10:40:27 -0500
At 10:08 AM 11/14/2008, you wrote:

>In a message dated 11/14/2008 9:00:48 A.M. Central Standard Time,  
>d.rhein@xxxxxxxxxxx writes:
>
>I'm a  
>bit embarrassed to admitt this, but I really can't swim much at all.  Maybe, 
>if I were lucky, just enough to be able to save my hide if I had  to.
> 
>One should be able to swim and be comfortable in the water.  The  diving part 
>doesn't require tremendous swimming skills as you make yourself  neutrally 
>buoyant with your vest/buoyancy compensator however one can never  tell what 
>might happen that would require you to swim.  I would not want to  be with som
>eone who could not swim well while diving.  It would be a danger  for both of 
>us. 
> Bill Barber

The hard part of not being a good swimmer is getting into the water from
a boat, as the waves, boat rocking, etc, then hitting the water for the first
time, sometimes induces a bit of panic. So your comfort level of being
in the water is tested.

The hardest part of diving is panic, and it can creep up on even the best of
us. I'm an OK swimmer and will go out in crashing waves with
snorkel gear. I know that with a breath of air in my lungs, I cannot sink
in salt water. If I were you, I would test how well you like snorkeling and
whether breathing through a tube is OK. Also practice clearing a mask
and clearing a snorkel tube.

During training, one of the exercises is removing a mask, then putting
it back on and clearing it. That is the moment when a bit of water can
get up the nose. And is when many people start to panic.

Besides panic and keeping a rational mind, controlling buoyancy is the
second hardest. That is why I like warm water diving, so I don't have to
wear a suit. The suit will expand and contract with depth, making it harder
to control buoyancy. But when the main source of control is your own
lungs, the control is easier.

So one does not have to be a great swimmer, but comfort in the water
is important. Afterall, that big fish is going to know about you long before
you know about it.... And when you start to think about those small cuts
on your arm, and whether .... gulp... :-)

Wayne


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