MAY 16 CLUB MEETING

Please join us in the Times Mirror room of the Natural History Museum at 7:30pm, Wednesday May 16, where we will be joined by this month’s speaker Dr Stephen Dunbar, from the Protective Turtle Ecology Center for Training, Outreach and Research (ProTECTOR).

ProTECTOR is an organization with the goal of expanding our understanding of sea turtle biology and ecology through research, in the country of Honduras. Projects include the Turtle Awareness and Protection Studies (TAPS), which is tracking juvenile turtles along the coast of Roatan. TAPS also provides opportunities for public support of this research through the Turtle Adoption Program. Other projects include satellite tracking (SatTrack), the development of a national Nesting Beach Monitoring Network (NBMN), Health Monitoring of Captive Sea Turtles (HeMoCaST) and a series of Honduras Sea Turtle Active Research workshops (HSTAR).

MAY COMPETITIONS:

We have two competitions at the meeting this month:

Photo competition: Portfolio: Submit up to 5 images that will make up a portfolio. Your portfolio could show off a particular style, a favorite subject, a recent trip, or any other theme you choose.

Video minicomp, “Speed”: Submit up to two 40-second videos, each of which may comprise up to 3 clips.

Please submit your images or videos using the upload form.

This form will ask you to enter your information and choose a competition first, then will give you the appropriate number of upload boxes.

Upload your files before 11:59pm MONDAY May 14 (note extra day early to give us time to deal with portfolios). Images received after this deadline will not be eligible for competition.

JUNE SHOOTOUT

We still have spots on our June 2 trip to Catalina on the Magician! If you’re a member, this trip will also be a shootout competition - but non-members are always welcome to join us! Sign up at our boat dives page.

New to LAUPS? Check out our new club video, edited by Brett Kotheimer with video contributions from various club members showcasing the local diving!

Click here to see the full-size version on Vimeo.

Thanks very much to Paula Butler, who came to our meeting last night to talk about Wakatobi Resort! Wakatobi is a sponsor of the LAUPS International Underwater Photographic Competition, and a favorite destination for many of our members.

Before we were treated to Paula’s presentation, we voted on our April minicomps:

April 2012 Minicomp Gallery

STILLS (”Sunballs”):
1st Place - Kelly Bracken
2nd Place - Kelly Bracken
3rd Place - Kevin Lee

VIDEO: (”Action!”)
1st Place - Nannette Van Antwerp
2nd Place - Walter Marti
3rd Place - Nannette Van Antwerp

Congratulations!

1st Place April Minicomp: Kelly Bracken

Finally, don’t forget to sign up for the next LAUPS shootout: June 2 on the Magician to Catalina. We still have a lot of spots available, so bring a friend or three! You don’t have to be a member (or even a photographer) to come along. Please sign at our boat dives page.

Please join us in the Times Mirror room of the Natural History Museum at 7:30pm, Wednesday April 18, where we will be joined by this month’s speaker Paula Butler, Guest Experience Manager for Wakatobi Dive Resort & Pelagian Dive Yacht.

Wakatobi Wow! Featuring a slide show of imagery and video presentation, overview of Wakatobi Dive Resort and Pelagian Yacht, followed by a Q&A and trip sign-up.

In a peaceful and undeveloped corner of Indonesia, just a little over two hours by private air service from Bali, you’ll find yourself at the center of the planet’s most extraordinary dive areas. Wakatobi Dive Resort is on a small island called Onemobaa in Southeast Sulawesi.

Home of the world’s most pristine reefs, Wakatobi offers what many claim to be the “best diving in the world.” Wakatobi resort alone boasts more than four-dozen dive sites and the first class dive yacht, Pelagian, offers access to dozens more. Between the two, you’ll visit new, unexplored areas and encounter more marine life, with a greater variety, than you’ve ever seen before.

Please join us to learn more about one of our favorite photography destinations!

April Minicomp: “Sunballs” (stills), “Action!” (video)

Please upload your entries for this month’s competitions by 11:59pm Tuesday, April 17.

As of March 31, all the prizes and certificates for the 2011 International Underwater Photographic Competition have been hand-delivered or mailed to the winners.

Winners and Prizes

Congratulations again to all our winners - and of course a huge thanks goes out to our sponsors, who make this competition possible!

First, we want to thank last night’s speaker, Glenn Allen, for a very cool presentation about working on a production crew in the Antarctic and Panama. Please check out Glenn’s work with Schoolyard Films, which produces free short format educational films (available on iTunes U).

Also, don’t forget to sign up for the first LAUPS shootout: April 1 on the Peace. We still have a lot of spots available, so bring a friend or three! You don’t have to be a member (or even a photographer) to come along - and Anacapa has been gorgeous recently, so we’re expecting a really nice day! Sign up at our boat dives page.

Last night’s winners have been posted in our gallery:

March 2012 Minicomp: “Crabs”

OPEN:
1st Place - Kevin Lee
2nd Place - Jeff Laity
3rd Place - Bill Van Antwerp

NOVICE:
1st Place - Nannette Van Antwerp
2nd Place - Ferdinando Meli
3rd Place - Nannette Van Antwerp, Ferdinando Meli

VIDEO:
1st Place - Anastasia Laity
2nd Place - Nannette Van Antwerp
3rd Place - Anastasia Laity

Congratulations!

1st Place March Minicomp: Kevin Lee

Please join us in the Times Mirror room of the Natural History Museum at 7:30pm, Wednesday March 21, where we will be joined by this month’s speaker Glenn Allen.

What do the Antarctic and Panama have in common?

Not a lot… but Glenn Allen has been working as part of a production team in both locations for diverse clients and film projects. He will share a “Behind the scenes” take on diving on the subcontinent and his 42 days on the Antarctic Peninsula (for a Korean broadcast television special) … and in working at high altitudes (12,000′) on the rim of a Volcano for a Panamanian “Immersive Theatre” ten-screen experience.

The Antarctic underwater team concentrated on Leopard Seal predation of Penguins, filming underwater in close proximity with the pennipeds and also topside. Severe weather and rough seas but unparalleled scenery. The team also dove with Bubble-net feeding Humpback whales.

The “Panamarama” project is now in its initial stages of a year-long filming effort. The (5) RED-Camera based MultiCam rig is a beast, but will provide a screen dynamic nearly three times the size of IMax!

About Glenn:

Glenn is the former Director of the Undersea Technology Department of Brooks Institute of Technology in Santa Barbara, California. He is an educator, consultant and multimedia producer focusing on marine photography and the environment.

Glenn has filmed all over the world on many prominent broadcast shows and documentaries. His clients include a range of shows from “Sesame Street” to the BBC’s Emmy winning “Blue Planet” and “Planet Earth” series. Recently, Glenn spent almost two months working in the Antarctic for a new 2012 South Korean wildlife TV series.

Glenn works with Schoolyard Films to produce FREE short format films for K-12 education. Glenn is currently based in Florida and California and is working on a complex year-long Multi-Camera Panama filming project.

March Minicomp: “Crabs”

Please upload your entries for this month’s competitions by 11:59pm Tuesday, March 20.

This year, LAUPS has again scheduled three charter boat dive trips to local waters. There will be a photo competition (shootout) following each trip where members may enter still images and/or video footage taken on that trip at a subsequent club meeting. Contest winners will be given points, and the points will be cumulative to determine overall standing for the year, with awards given out at our annual banquet next January.

Two of the shootouts have already been scheduled, and you can sign up at our boat dives page:

• Shootout #1: Sunday, April 1st: Peace (Ventura); 4 dives on Anacapa and/or the east end of Santa Cruz; limited load of 24 divers; $130.
• Shootout #2: Saturday, June 2: Magician (San Pedro); 3 dives at Catalina; limited load of 20 divers; $125
• Shootout #3: TBD (probably September)

Please sign up soon, and invite your friends - you don’t have to be a member to come dive (though you must be a member to compete in the shootout), and it’s a great way to introduce the club to people!

Additionally, this year we’ve chartered half of the Peace for a two-day trip to the outer islands on Friday/Saturday September 21-22. This will not be part of the shootout; just a chance to relax and do some dives with your fellow photographers at some of our favorite dive sites. Information about pricing and signups will be posted on the boat dives page soon.

Last night’s winners have been posted in our gallery:

February 2012 Minicomp: “Couples”

OPEN:
1st Place - Scott Webb
2nd Place - Nikki Pieper
3rd Place - Kevin Lee

NOVICE:
1st Place - Ferdinando Meli
2nd Place - Ferdinando Meli
3rd Place - Nannette Van Antwerp

VIDEO:
1st Place - Nannette Van Antwerp (spotfin gobies cleaning house)
2nd Place - Walter Marti (frogfish)
3rd Place - Anastasia Laity (Cuttlefish)

Congratulations!

1st Place February Minicomp: Scott Webb

Please join us in the Times Mirror room of the Natural History Museum at 7:30pm, Wednesday February 15 for our first meeting of 2012!

Speaker: Kevin Lee, on diving in the Arctic

Kevin will be sharing stories and photographs from his trip to Svalbard, Norway last year.  Come learn what it’s like to dive 600 miles from the North Pole!

Photo by Kevin Lee

Kevin Lee is an Orange County resident and frequently dives SoCal waters. After learning to scuba dive, Kevin took up underwater photography to share the wonders of the ocean with others. Recently, he traveled to his 7th continent, going below the Antarctic circle, and scuba dived in 29-degree waters. Kevin’s images have been featured in magazines, newspapers, academic literature and numerous dive related publications.

You can visit Kevin’s website at http://www.diverkevin.com/.

February Minicomp: “Couples”

Please upload your entries for this month’s competitions by 11:59pm Tuesday, February 14.