When is the best time to go to Tubbataha?
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at April 21st, 2011
One of the many sea turtles that rest along the white sands of the reefs. This one was more accommodating and let me swim with it for a few minutes.
OK pardon me for this ultra-SEO’d title 
But Tubbataha Reef is one of the diving highlights of the world and last April 14-20, I joined the second trip of the M/Y Hans Christian Andersen for 4 days of diving: In every dive you’re guaranteed sharks.
Tubbataha National Park is open from April to June. You can’t just “go there.” You need to take a live aboard boat and as far as I know you need to be a diver to go. Tubbataha is not an island. It is a coral atoll in the middle of the Sulu Sea composed of walls with great visibility with two sandbar islands which you cannot set foot on. The vis is so good, there was one point I went down to 138 ft thinking I was only at 80 ft. Great vis! Great diving!
The schedule is literally Eat, Dive, Sleep. Our group did a total of 15 dives. What we saw: schooling jacks and huge barracudas, manta ray, several eagle rays and marble rays, big tuna, turtles galore, more than 50 reef sharks (sharks guaranteed in every dive!) and lo and behold, a tiger shark. There were also sightings of hammerheads but our group did not see them.
One of our chase boats resting on the flat iron ocean surface.
Our dining area / cleaning area / where we load the chase boats.
Let’s do this!
Because of the odd weather patterns we were the first lucky group of the season on board the HCA. When we arrived on day 1, the waves were still a slightly strong but slowly got better come day 2 and finally, flat ironed calm. On the last day we were also able to make a trip to the Ranger Station that guards the reef. Since summer came late, I would honestly suggest booking your trip towards the end of April or maybe even early May regardless if you’re taking the HCA or Expedition Fleet. So yes, book on a later date and not early April. It’s a global warming thing methinks.
Underwater photos in this post were taken using a 18-55 kit lens on a standard Sea & Sea port with surprisingly good results despite having only one strobe. If you want to borrow these shots, I won’t mind as long as you give proper attribution. Thanks! Here’s the complete low res album.
Spawning barrel sponges jut out of the wall. This was a Nat Geo moment for me as when barrel sponges spawn, all others in the vicinity spawn as well.
At 40 ft under a small crevice, we found a lot of lobsters. All of the flora and fauna in Tubbataha are protected by law. No touching. No fishing.
A playful manta ray makes it way towards my lens. One of the tricks to shooting mantas is to pinpoint where they will end up when they make a turning gliding arc. I was lucky!
One of the many white tip reef sharks taking off from a dive site called Shark Airport.
A Napolen Wrasse whizzes by my lens. Happy I was able to take a photo.
In a group, I feel more comfortable going up close and personal with this school of barracudas. If they were solitary, it would mean they are hunting.
A peeping turtle probably annoyed that we disturbed him.
Tubbataha is known for its huge fan corals.
WOW talaga!
Pushing a school of jacks for 30 minutes was a bit tiring but we did it. These guys stayed with us for half the dive.
Jules and Jan chasing the manta for a quick photo op.
Where Tuna Sashimi comes from.
Another shark parked on the white sandy bottom.
Zoomed + Cropped + White Balanced: I shoot in RAW because I really have to do a lot of adjusting afterwards such as removing a little backscatter, and white balance adjustments. Other than that, all photos are as is.
Jules taking her time with the school of jacks.
My Tubbataha postcard shot with a very cooperative turtle.
Costs:
PHP 40,000.00 for the M/Y Hans Christian Andersen (price varies)
PHP 3,000.00 for park fees
Ranger Station
On the last day we were able to take a short visit to the Ranger Station. These are the brave men who stay for 2 months at a time, protecting the oceans from poachers and illegal fishers. The sand bar is amazing. It’s just there right in the middle of the ocean. We came in at low tide.
At the station we gave a small donation of canned goods (MEAT!) and bought some t-shirt souvenirs.
What an amazing trip! Next stop, Palau!
I’m now back in Manila and definitely missing the ocean. It’s lovely out there. I think, for what it’s worth, being away from Twitter and Facebook — and the city — really helps put many things in perspective.
Dear Internet, I finally found it. Presenting the FUUUUUUU barrel sponge
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at April 19th, 2011
Taken in Tubbataha Reef, Philippines April 2011
NUDI Interview on ANC Mornings
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at April 13th, 2011Jan Acosta and I guested on ANC Mornings to talk about the fast growing underwater photography club in Manila. NUDI or the Network of Underwater Digital Imagers (check us out on Facebook and yep, here’s the link to our site) is an underwater photography club that was formed to get diver-photographers together to share techniques and experiences in shooting underwater.
The Philippines is a biodiversity hotspot and the things we find down there are simply amazing. We talked about diving as a viable hobby in the Philippines, conservation, our gallery exhibits and the SNUPS competition that we’re co-organizing this year.
Jewelmer: A Short Primer on the South Sea Golden Pearl
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at March 29th, 2011On the geeky side: I’m using the new Samson Go Mic to record the voice over for this short amateur documentary. It’s an amazing device for PHP 2,300.00. It’s small, lighr and super affordable and can very well replace your professional USB studio mic if you aren’t too meticulous.
Transcript and photos follow.
AQUA OBSCURA at La Regalade
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 21st, 2011
Might I suggest a nice date place for you and your special someone? There’s a three star Michelin chef that runs the kitchen at La Regalade along Pasay Road, Makati. It’s a French Bistro. Good food. Serious wine. It’s also an art gallery. And between now and March 2, I will help provide the eye candy for your romantic evening with an underwater photo exhibit.
From left to right: myself, Jan Acosta, Marie Lat, Wowie Wong, Joshua Castro, Jules Terrado
Together with five other friends who shoot underwater, we’ve set up a 6-man exhibit titled “Aqua Obscura.” Opening night was a huge success with one of my photos being reserved for purchase. If you’re craving for French cuisine or just want to chill over a bottle of wine, I invite you drop by and have a look at the exhibit. It’s up till the 2nd of March.
In this issue of Dispatch Magazine
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 17th, 2011
The next time you step into R.O.X. at Bonifacio High Street, do check out the newly reformatted Dispatch Magazine with Toby Martin as EIC. It’s now smaller and thus easier to bring around. Just in time for Sinulog, this issue of Dispatch is all about Cebu in the Visayas. In this issue, I have a three-page guide on SCUBA Diving in some of the best sites in Cebu with photos by Jan Acosta.
I’m also quite proud to be a contributor for a magazine that has partnered with National Geographic Channel for producing content about the Philippines. Check it out! There’s lot of really good stuff on Cebu written by veterans such as Chip Childers, Sandy Kiamko and Mona Polo.
Worse than a needle in a haystack
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 11th, 2011This article first appeared UNO Magazine’s December-January ’11 issue
Pygmy seahorse by Jan Acosta
What does it really take to shoot underwater photos?
“Are the pygmies still there?”
The spotter nods, implying something that Jan and the rest of the group already know. At about 80 ft deep, there is a white fan coral about 1 meter high in full plumage. There’s a pygmy seahorse somewhere there. That’s what we’re looking for today.
Take a grain of rice, split it in two, and then throw one half into the ocean. That grain, split, is roughly the size of one of nature’s smallest creatures. In all irony, they’re also one of the more territorial, with their tails clasping on to the veins of fan coral, their natural habitat. To add to the frustration, pygmies take on the color and texture of the host corals. Jan, the group’s fearless leader checks his buoyancy control device, fins, straps, and tank, making sure everything’s in place.
It’s out on Travelbook.PH: A “Zero to Deco” Guide to Diving in the Philippines
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 4th, 2011
Over the vacation I compiled a 3 page guide to diving in the Philippines. This primer is geared towards Filipinos who have always been curious about diving and launch into the deep (duc in altum!) with this new endeavor. It addresses questions such as rates, how to choose a dive instructor, where to begin, and even addresses concerns about knowing how to swim and if sharks will eat you. They also linked to some of the videos I took.
The article, as well as a series of trip files are all located in Summit Media’s new destination guide and directory, Travelbook.ph. It is managed by a fellow blogger, Betty Tianco, who I really respect for building Southbound.ph and making it THE authority for south-based (i.e. Las Pinas, Alabang, Bicutan, Sucat) cravings.
Hope you pick up something from it. This is a “living article” so it is bound to be improved through time based on the comments from people who want to learn to dive and from actual divers and dive masters / instructors. To fellow divers, if you have things to add, please hop on to the site and leave a comment.
Photos for the article were taken by Wowie Wong.
Remembering 2010: Marking 102 Dives with video
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at December 28th, 2010Probably the best investment I made this year was for a decent underwater video camera. I accumulated over 42GB worth of raw underwater footage and I must say that documenting my dives is easily the most rewarding experience this year, perhaps ever! As a volunteer for WWF Philippines I also donate all my videos to their coral triangle efforts.
So here they are, my top diving vids for 2010:
*Viewing advice*
Watching all of these videos could take a while. If you have time to spare, do grab a bag of chips and a drink. Enjoy!
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Anvaya Cove Clam Seeding: How to rehabilitate a coral reef with giant clams
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at December 7th, 2009
The video above documents the clam seeding activity in Anvaya Cove. 79 giant clams were brought in on Friday, December 4 2009 and went through acclimatization in the shallow water a few feet from the shore. The next day, all the clams were tagged and measured. Out of the 79 clams, there were four mature “daddy” clams at about 8 years of age that would be responsible for inducing spawning.
Video footage taken using a Sony Cybershot DSC W230 with Marine Pack. Footage edited with iMovie.
There are only about 37,000 giant clams (tridacna gigas) left in the Philippines and they’re almost all grown from the UP Marine Institute in Bolinao. Realistically, giant clams are already extinct mostly because they become victim to human intervention. Giant clams are a delicacy. They are also used in the construction of holy water pedestals in Churches and ornamental bathroom sinks. Just to give you an idea, the Philippines has seven out of the documented nine species of giant clams in the world, and the tridacna gigas is the biggest.
On December 5 2009, Anvaya Cove (an Ayala Land Premiere development) in Subic organized a giant clam seeding program to rehabilitate their house reef. A total of 79 giant clams were seeded. I joined a group of volunteer divers for the seeding program.
I met Louie and Chen Mencias of Bluewater Consultancy, the guys in charge of the clam seeding operation in Anvaya. If you’ve ever been to Dive and Trek in Bauan, Batangas and Twin Rocks in Anilao, these were the same guys who seeded clams in those sites earlier this decade.
Here’s an example of a giant clam that was seeded around 2003 in Dive and Trek. They’re now really big. I like kicking up the water above its mantle to make the clam open up:
REEForestation: How clams actually rehabilitate reefs
Giant clam seeding is the fastest method to rehabilitate a reef. The concept is really simple — these clams are hermaphrodites which means that when they reach sexual maturity of 8 years (male) and 10 years (they become female), they can release either sperm or eggs into the reef. When one clam spawns, other clams will also start spawning millions of sperm and eggs. The fish love this because this is what they eat. The more clams spawn, the more fish become attracted to the reef. Small fish eat the clam spawn. Big fish eat the small fish. And that’s the circle of life underwater.
Because of competition underwater, fish will start to branch out around the sanctuary, and this is the area where fisher folk are allowed to catch. Give it a few years and a barren reef will flourish.
P.S. Thanks to Rosan for the photo of me gearing up!
Underwater with an INON Strobe
Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at November 30th, 2009
Months ago I brought a Sony Cybershot W230 underwater with its appropriate casing. This weekend, I was able to borrow an INON strobe light courtesy of Jan. Since the Achilles’ heel of Sony cameras is the inability to customize your white balance underwater (it only has 3 presets), shooting with a strobe really changes the game.
Read on below for sample photos.
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