Build Meaningful Meatspace Conversations Through Blogging” on Thursday, May 25th, in Redwood City, California.  It’s part of the 100 Geek Dinners in 100 Days series of events.  At the venue, they’ll have cases of Stormhoek wine, signed copies of Keith Ferrazzi’s Never Eat Alone, and other prizes to give out.  I’ll also be raffling off some of my prints.  for an invitation, if you want to come.  See you there!

Due to recent cancellations, Wetpixel still has spots open for upcoming expeditions! 

We have three new spots open for the Sardine Run Expedition in South Africa (June 21-30, 2006, 10 pax maximum). The Guadalupe great white shark trip with Eric Cheng and Norbert Wu has booked full. 

FiNS Online has posted the special “Fly & Dive” travel packages offered by Nemo Travel during ADEX last weekend.  The reduced local pricing was originally restricted to ADEX members for booking during the expo, but we convinced Nemo Travel and FiNS to extend them to Wetpixel members for an additional week.

Specials include deals to Indonesia, Sabah, PNG, Palau, Australia, the Philippines, and more.  Rates are listed in Singapore Dollars (1 USD = approx 1.6 SGD), and are quite good. If you’re planning a trip to the Asia Pacific, you should definitely check out these deals!  You must contact Nemo Travel by April 30th in order to get the discounted fares.  Tell Nemo you were referred by Wetpixel.

ADEX is tiny compared to shows in the United States and Europe, and I was told beforehand by more than one person to “not expect much.” But what I discovered when I arrived was a tight network of dive operators, tourism representatives, manufacturers, distributors, publishers, editors, and photographers working together to further the industry as a whole (for the most part). Three days hardly seemed like enough time to meet and befriend all of the people I wanted to see, and evenings were spent out dining and hanging out at bars, often into the early hours of the morning…

Wagsy has posted information about the upcoming Amphibico underwater housing for the new Sony HDR-HC3 HDV camcorder.  The housing looks absolutely tiny, and comes with a 70° lens, with 80° and 120° lenses available.  The information pages are dated end of May, 2006, but we’re not sure yet when the housing will actually ship.

Am I allowed to toot my own horn?

Stephen Frink interviewed me last month after I posted the tiger shark videos online (which you should obviously go check out RIGHT NOW); the interview has been posted as a part of Scuba Diving’s 2006 PMA report.  As part of the interview, I updated the video page to include full-resolution screen grabs from the 1080i footage, which you can download if you are interested.

Wyland: to most the name is synonymous with aquatic paintings.  However, a one dimensional man he is not.  Wyland Foundation, The Cousteau Society, Wyland Ocean Challenge, the Scripps Institute; these are a few of the environmental foundations and charities he is involved with.  From humble beginnings as a struggling painter to the world renowned artist he is today, Wyland strives to spread the message of environmental awareness. 

Sea & Sea has announced the DX-D200 underwater housing for the Nikon D200 digital SLR and the DX-5D housing for the Canon 5D.  Both housings feature a newly-designed shutter lever, which is large and is supposed to indicate when it’s pressed halfway.  The AE/AF lock lever is nicely positioned so it can be pushed while still holding on to the grip.

Ever since I migrated to Canon from Nikon I have had a problem with one particular lens.  My 17-40 zoom is one of my most versatile focal lengths, but it has a series of concentric circles around the front of the lens as part of the design.  For a topside shooter, no worries.  But for an underwater photographer with a dome port, it is the four rings closest to the lens that causes the issue.  The paint is kind of shiny, and it reflects against the inside of the dome when pointing into the sun.  I was spending so much time Photoshop correcting the reflections, I figured there HAD to be a better way…

On Xmas Eve I posted a series called “Peace on Earth and Goodwill Toward Manatees”. Since then I’ve had the good fortune to encounter the wonderful creatures, again numerous times. It has been a good year for observing manatee just north of where I live, in Crystal River, Florida. Lots of short “cold snaps” have brought record numbers of manatee in to the springs of Crystal River.

Unfortunately my joy of seeing so many manatee and optimism about their future was tempered by two headlines in our two major newspapers last Saturday, January 21st…