Towards the end of my stay in Florida, I managed to embark on some great opportunities and brandish my new Aqua Lung gear and OTS Guardian full-face mask!

East of Palm Beach, amidst boat channels and what at first appears to be only muck, is where I attended Reef Photo & Video’s  photography class taught by Chris Parsons from Nauticam. The dive site, Blue Heron Bridge, is definitely a diamond in the rough that has actually been voted one of the best dive sites in the world. It has an incredible diversity of rare species just a few kicks from shore! Here, I learned how to use my scholarship camera set-up, a Sony alpha 5000 digital camera with Nauticam housing sponsored by the great people at Reef Photo & Video.

Thanks to Chris’s careful instruction on shutter speed, aperture, lighting and strobe positioning – I managed to get some decent shots! 

Right after the photography course, I made my way down to Biscayne National Park to get checked out to dive with the National Park Service Submerged Resources Center. The National Park Service has millions of acres of submerged land, protecting important cultural and natural resources, all of which are worth visiting! 

After performing some skill dives and swim tests – I passed my Blue Card certification test and am now ready to take on the National Parks this year!

 

Now I’m off to the Pacific!