News
Relative newcomer scoops award for the British & Irish Underwater Photography Championship 2020
Forty one competitors submitted ninety four images in BSoUP’s annual British & Irish Underwater Photography Championship, a tough on-the-day competition that demands competitors to take, process and submit images taken anywhere in UK and Irish waters in the space of only 24 hours.
Judges Paul Colley from the UK and Diarmuid O’Donnavan from Ireland were impressed with the quality of entires, particularly in the category for Mankind’s Impact on the Environment, which has now started to attract serious interest from competitors. Entry numbers were up on the previous year, although down on historical norms, possibly due to the impact of the pandemic and ongoing restrictions with social distancing, which has made boat diving in particular more difficult.
Some well-known faces continue to show their ability, including three-time champion Trevor Rees who took top spot in both the close-up and environment categories, Mark Kirkland who once again took the runner-up position for the wide-angle category, and a fist full of other photographers who are well known on the UK and Irish circuit. However, it was relative newcomer Georgie Bull, only narrowly missing to qualify for the newcomer category, who produced a stunning image of sunlit seagrass to take top marks from both judges and scoop the title BIUPC champion 2020.
Due to a combination of competitors and images failing to meet the strict vetting criteria for this unique on-the-day competition that has electronic image verification procedures to allow submission from anywhere in UK and Ireland, there were a significant number of spoiled entries, particularly in the newcomer category, which accordingly was not awarded this year. But the full list of winners, runners-up and highly commended images shows quite clearly the impressive results that can be achieved in just one day’s diving.
At the on line awards ceremony hosted by the British Society of Underwater Photographers, Georgie expressed her huge enthusiasm for our underwater world and her delight and surprise at winning. She was awarded with the Peter Scoones trophy in memory of one of BSoUP’s founding fathers, a BSoUP trophy to keep for life and a certificate embellished with her winning image.
BIUPC 2020 Roll of Honour
Wide-angle winner and BIUPC Champion 2020: Georgie Bull
Close-up winner: Trevor Rees
Restricted Camera winner: Grant McCarry
Mankind’s Impact on the Environment winner: Trevor Rees
Wide-angle runner-up: Mark Kirkland
Wide-angle highly commended: Mike Orth
Wide-angle highly commended: Rick Ayrton
Close-up runner-up: Kirsty Andrews
Close-up highly commended: James Lynott
Close-up highly commended: Jonathan Bunker
Restricted Camera winner: Grant McCarry
Restricted Camera runner-up: Ronan Murray
Mankind’s Impact on the Environment runner-up: Rob Bailey
Mankind’s Impact on the Environment highly commended: Rick Ayrton
For more information about the BUICP visit the BSOUP website by clicking here.
Gear News
Scubapro Free Octopus Promotion 2024
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
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Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
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SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
Blogs
Northern Red Sea Reefs and Wrecks Trip Report, Part 3: The Mighty Thistlegorm
Jake Davies boards Ghazala Explorer for an unforgettable Red Sea diving experience…
Overnight, the wind picked up, making the planned morning dive a bit bumpy on the Zodiacs to the drop point on Thomas Reef. There, we would dive along the reef before descending through the canyon and then passing under the arch before ascending the wall with a gentle drift. The site provided great encounters with more pelagic species, including shoals of large barracuda, tuna, and bigeye trevally.
Once back on the boat, it was time to get everything tied down again as we would head back south. This time, with the wind behind us, heading to Ras Mohammed to dive Jackfish Alley for another great gentle drift wall dive before then heading up the coast towards the Gulf of Suez to moor up at the wreck of the Thistlegorm. This being the highlight wreck dive of the trip and for many onboard, including myself, it was the first time diving this iconic wreck. I had heard so much about the wreck from friends, and globally, this is a must on any diver’s list. Fortunately for us, there was only one other boat at the site, which was a rarity. A great briefing was delivered by Ahmed, who provided a detailed background about the wreck’s history along with all the required safety information as the currents and visibility at the site can be variable.
Kitting up, there was a lot of excitement on deck before entering the water and heading down the shoreline. Descending to the wreck, there was a light northerly current which reduced the visibility, making it feel more like the conditions that can be found off the Welsh coast. At 10m from the bottom, the outline of the wreck appeared as we reached the area of the wreck which had been bombed, as our mooring line was attached to part of the propeller shaft. Arriving on deck, instantly everywhere you looked there were many of the supplies which the ship was carrying, including Bren Carrier tanks and projectiles that instantly stood out.
We headed around the exterior, taking a look at the large propeller and guns mounted on deck before entering the wreck on the port side to take a look in the holds. It was incredible to see all the trucks, Norton 16H, and BSA motorcycles still perfectly stacked within, providing a real snapshot in time.
Overall, we had four dives on the Thistlegorm, where for all of the dives we were the only group in the water, and at times, there were just three of us on the whole wreck, which made it even more special, especially knowing that most days the wreck has hundreds of divers. Along with the history of the wreck, there was plenty of marine life on the wreck and around, from big green turtles to batfish, along with shoals of mackerel being hunted by trevally. Some unforgettable dives.
The final leg of the trip saw us cross back over the Suez Canal to the Gobal Islands where we planned to stay the night and do three dives at the Dolphin House for the potential of sharing the dive with dolphins. The site, which included a channel that was teeming with reef fish, especially large numbers of goatfish that swam in large shoals along the edge of the reef. These were nice relaxing dives to end the week. Unfortunately, the dolphins didn’t show up, which was okay as like all marine life they are difficult to predict and you can’t guarantee what’s going to be seen. With the last dive complete, we headed back to port for the final night where it was time to clean all the kit and pack before the departure flight the next day.
The whole week from start to finish on Ghazala Explorer was amazing; the boat had all the facilities you need for a comfortable week aboard. The crew were always there to help throughout the day and the chefs providing top quality food which was required after every dive. The itinerary providing some of the best diving with a nice mixture of wreck and reef dives. I would recommend the trip to anyone, whether it’s your first Red Sea liveaboard in the Red Sea or you’re revisiting. Hopefully, it’s not too long before I head back to explore more of the Red Sea onboard Ghazala Explorer.
To find out more about the Northern Red Sea reef and wrecks itineraries aboard Ghazala Explorer, or to book, contact Scuba Travel now:
Email: dive@scubatravel.com
Tel: +44 (0)1483 411590
Photos: Jake Davies / Avalon.Red
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