Planning a Deep Dive

In diving, as in your personal life, planning for future events always takes place in different stages. Some portions of the plan are quite long range, while others are more immediate and take place just prior to the dive itself. For example, if you are planning a dive trip on a local boat, you probably already have a good idea about local conditions and gear requirements. However, if you are planning a diving vacation outside of the country, you will probably need to spend more time researching what gear you will need to take with you.

What’s Your Objective?

To properly plan for a deep dive you need to give some thought to what you want to accomplish during the dive. Are you going to take photographs, or explore or map a wreck? Do you want to look for shells or are you planning to observe fish behavior? Whatever it is that you plan to do will dictate many aspects of your plan.

Deciding your objective can be a part of long-range planning or can be more immediate. For example, if you’ve planned a vacation to shoot underwater photos of the wrecks off Bermuda, you may realize that you need to have your underwater camera serviced prior to the trip. You also know that you’ll probably want to take a spare o-ring kit for your camera, and that you’ll want to buy batteries and film before you depart the U.S. You might also decide that you want a wide-angle lens to get the best photos of the wrecks. These actions are all part of your long-range dive plan.

Changing environmental conditions can frequently make you change your dive objectives. Even though you planned to shoot photos of the deep wrecks, what would you do if you got out to the dive site and discovered there were dolphins cruising on the surface over the wreck? If you’re like most photographers, you would probably change your dive plan to take the opportunity to shoot photos of these fascinating creatures.

It’s okay to change your objective as long as you and your partner both agree upon the change before the dive and revise your plan accordingly.

Contact SDI TDI and ERDI

If you would like more information, please contact:

SDI
Tel: 888.778.9073 | 207.729.4201
Email: Worldhq@tdisdi.com
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