2 – 9 June, 2012

Marine Photography with Daniel Schwartz and Jean-Michel Cousteau L’Aventure

Under the guidance of skilled underwater photographer, Daniel Schwartz, we’re offering two very special weeks of diving and photography in Savusavu, Fiji.

Diving will be at the famed Namena Marine Reserve and the magnificent reefs around the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort.

Daniel will lead daily dives (with cameras!) and guide you to the best photo opportunities. After the dive, you will show each other your work and discuss what has worked and what hasn’t; how to improve your shots; what you might have missed – and why some shots just stand out from the rest.

You will need your own photographic equipment and a USB stick for viewing the photos on a laptop.

Daniel Schwartz lives in Oakland, California. He has been a keen diver since 1996 and his stunning photographs of the underwater world can be seen at his website www.seawindows.org. He has become increasingly involved in working to protect the marine environment: he is a volunteer with the The Marine Mammal Center in their Rehabilitation and Water Rescue Departments, and is certified as a Specialty Diver for Reef Check California where they monitor the local ecosystem – surveying indicator species’ diversity and abundance.

It will be a wonderful week for both the experienced and novice photographer.

Details of the dive sites can be seen below.

Cost: FJ$ 3200 /US$ 1820

Includes:

• all diving (10 dives)
• dive equipment
• tuition
• 7 nights accommodation at Daku Resort
• meals
• airport transfers from Savusavu airport

Not included: Travel – but we are happy to advise.
Make a Booking – Use our booking form at Paradise Courses

Dive sites visited by Jean-Michel Costeau L’Aventure (as described by them):

Namena Island
This small island 20 miles to the south of Savusavu is surrounded by mile after mile of unexplored reefs. Seemingly bottomless drop-offs, multi-colored soft corals and perfect coral gardens support an abundance of marine life. This is the place to see the big fish cruising in from the depths of the Koro Sea. Barracuda, spanish mackerel, dog-tooth tuna, mantas and large sharks regularly patrol these reefs.

(Note: Jean-Michel rates Namena as the best dive spot in Fiji, and one of the 10 best in the world. We are one of the only diving resorts in Fiji that visits Namena on a regular basis. Weather permitting, we visit Namena 1-2 times per week.)

Canyons
Swim through beautiful grottos of hard coral extending into vast unexplored underwater canyons. See Reef Sharks resting in the grottos.

Shark Alley
A maze of swim-throughs, overhangs and chambers hide white tip reef sharks resting on sandy bottoms. Giant Mouri wrasse and grouper can be found hiding around the next corner.

Nuggets
The nuggets are two coral heads. One is a myriad of soft corals surrounded by schools of fairy basslets, masked banner fish, leaf fish, with jacks and barracuda circling. The second is covered in golden soft corals. Lionfish, scorpion fish, nesting trigger fish and moray eels are abundant.

Goldilocks
This site is a favorite because you can swim completely around the edge of the reef. It offers great diversity of hard and soft corals, with a very abundant reef fish population.

Jacksons
This spectacular wall features gigantic sea fans at depths of 90 feet. Divers finish among luxurious purple soft corals at 40-60 ft.

Fingers
This site is known for a beautiful spur and groove reef system, jutting fingers of hard coral alternating with high flow grooves., plus painted crayfish, giant tridacna clams, and eagle rays.

Light House
This is a good, deep dive — 100 feet — with a large aggregation of fish, such as groupers and snappers, and octopus. This is an active spawning site of both these large fish and smaller reef fish.

Mystery Reef
This isolated reef is scattered with coral heads covered in multi-colored soft corals, spanish mackerel, coral trout and unicorn fish.

Hole in the Wall
This vertical drop off supports huge gorgonian fans. Large tuna, spotted sweetlips, mackerel, barracuda, with bronze whalers lurk in the depths below.

Big Blue
This spectacular drop off features giant gorgonians covered with feather stars. It’s a perfect place to watch for sea turtles and large fish.

Alice in Wonderland
This site is an open water large patch reef, where small reef sharks often lurk underneath large mushroom-shaped corals. The upcurrent end has good flow and huge aggregations of reef fish and larger pelagic life.

Nsonisoni Pass
This is a drift dive along a wall covered with every variety of pristine hard and soft corals imaginable. Divers can swim across the passage to the purple bommies, a mass of purple soft corals fed by the nutrient-rich Koro Sea waters. Large barracuda, circling gray reef sharks and white tips cruise everywhere.

Barracuda Point
Beginning on a reef wall just off the coast of the resort, this dive involves swimming along a hard-coral reef finger to join a school of 50-60 resident barracuda. Be on the lookout for hammerheads and schools of batfish as well.

Dreadlocks
In the middle of Savusavu Bay, this site is home to a lavish array of multicolored hard and soft coral

Last week, one of our guests, 11 year old Joe Howard learnt to scuba dive at Daku Resort while on a diving holiday with his parents. With instruction from Colin of Koro Sun Dive he was diving the reefs of Savusavu in no time. Joe had this to say about his experience:

When I was staying at Daku resort, I had a resort dive with Koro Sun Dive in the pool. I had to learn how to how to use the PFD (personal floatation device) and also how to suck air from the tank with the regulator. The air tasted funny and fake.

The next day I went out to the reef with Colin, my instructor.

On my first dive I saw two cute turtles and one scary manta ray. It was so cool!!!

Diving is not difficult as long as you are relaxed and you do not panic if you take your mask off or take the mouth piece out.

It is very exciting to be able to go under water and not run out of air for a while! I went down to 10 metres tops. The first thing I saw was lots of brightly coloured coral and the first thing I thought was “this is amazing!”

The equipment is not heavy under water – you cannot feel it at all.

I recommend diving for everyone!!! (above 10 years of age)

Joseph Howard (age 11)

Joe and Colin in Daku pool

We would like to compliment Daku Resort for their sincere efforts to make our dive vacation on SavuSavu a success.  The Daku staff acted as our liaison with Korosun Divers before we even arrived in Savusavu.  They set up our dive package, confirmed dates, times, and pick-up status.  Once we arrived at Daku Resort, our week of diving was completely organized.  Daku Resorts, their owners and staff are perfect individuals to coordinate this type of vacation; experienced and organized, yet flexible, helpful and fun.

Diving at the Dream House, Savusavu

We dove in the SavuSavu area during one of our weeks in Fiji, and were delighted to see such pristine reefs and so many critters.  The dive master’s desire to show us the best of what SavuSavu area had to offer left us awed at all the underwater beauty.  A number of dive sites had fabulous swim-throughs; especially beautiful when the suns rays flowed in and illuminated large schools of sweepers, squirrelfish, and soldierfish.  There were many dives with impressive colors and diversity of both soft and hard corals.

The variety of brilliant colors of the soft corals became mesmerizing; like looking at the most gorgeous flower gardens.  Our favorite dive site was Dream House.  We saw a hammerhead shark, a school of barracuda, 10-15 large batfish, two white tip reef shark, along with a plethora of beautiful smaller reef fish swimming amongst the corals.

On other dives we saw; anemone fish of all varieties popping in and out of their host anenomes, leaf scorpionfish, popcorn shrimp, lion fish, nudibranchs, shrimpgoby, eels, sea snakes, schools of grouper and sweetlips, turtles, and blue-spotted rays.

To say the least, we had a tremendous dive experience and cannot say enough wonderful things about the Daku Resort staff in creating the perfect dive vacation.

Vicki, October 2008

The diving was fabulous and the hospitality at Daku Resort was superb. Diving couldn’t have been easier. Keni and Eileen made sure coffee and breakfast was available before I left. All I had to do was swan up at the last minute in my bathers and step onto the boat to be assigned my gear. The water was the deepest turquoise blue with visibility ranging from 50-100ft. Diving was relaxed and easy but safety and the protection of the reef were obvious priorities for the Cousteau team.

Diving with the Cousteau team

Whether the micro world of nudibranchs and miniature shrimps is your thing or you prefer the big critters- Hammerhead sharks and Manta rays- diving in Savusavu Bay has something for everyone. Selo, Dan, Ezra and the others know these reefs like the back of their hand. They can find the favourite resting places for the sharks, the sandy bottoms where the Sting rays hide out and only their eyes can be seen and the coral overhangs where turtles might swim past

The names of the dives sites are enticing- Alice in Wonderland, Mystery Reef, Grand Central Station. Towers of corals, pretty swim throughs and beautiful coral walls that drop away to infinity – this place has it all. Large schools of barracuda keep some distance while the Wrasses and Angel fish swim in and out of the soft corals and friendly Bat Fish keep a close watch on your activities- hovering around nearby.

If you are lucky enough to get a day out at Namena Marine Reserve, you are guaranteed an unforgettable experience. In this underwater wilderness there are so many fish that it is a wonder you don’t actually bump into them in the water. There is an enormous array of Gorgonian fans, soft corals, Bubble corals and many more that I cannot name, in every colour imaginable. I wish I had eyes on stalks to take in all the action around me.

Common Lion Fish at Namena Marine Reserve

Back on top of the reef doing a safety stop, was a riot of colours. Anemones form homes for all the variety of clown fish and psychedelic Christmas tree worms pop in and out of their holes. I saw my favourite tropical fish several times- the Clown trigger Fish. Who thought up a fish with black and white spots on its belly and orange lips? I am sure all its friends laugh at it.

It may have been 10 years but I will not let that much time elapse again before I get back into SCUBA gear and go swimming with the fishes.

Margie Welsford, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.