In order to go below the average depths and set myself apart from other photographers I wanted to go deeper. There were two options, either go for trimix or extended range which is 55 meters on air.

 

Since I am currently active in Indonesia and helium for trimix diving is not the easiest gas to get I chose the TDI deep air course.

Also, helium is rather expensive to dive with at those depths because of the amount of gas you are going through with each breath. 

 

I did my TDI extended range with Samuel Mason from Trawangan Tech on the Gili islands. I have been with them since my first technical diving course and really. I have not found a better instructor yet!

 

The course itself was exhausting, both physically and mentally. Mentally I had serious problems with the narcosis level. The intense level of it plays with your mind. It even scared me in the beginning and it tried to trick me with overconfidence later on. But in the end, I was able to manage it. I learned much about myself at those depths, much more than I thought I would…

 

Working the camera and your subject or model and simultaneously managing your bottom time makes it some of the more challenging dives as a photographer. None the less I love the results and have more fun delivering them!