Retail dive shows are great because there's always something new, unexpected, and special. This past March in New Jersey I stopped by the Blackbeard's Cruises booth and heard about a test-run South Bahamas itinerary from Exuma to Hogsty Reef. Perfect! Sign me up.

I started mentally packing for the trip back in June. Size matters when considering a camera system that you will be flying with, diving with and—ultimately—sleeping with. This time I was determined to scale down and make more out of less. So I abandoned the beloved Digital SLR rig in favor of a high-end point-and-shoot.

Like so many photographers lately I picked up the Canon Powershot G9. Of course I paired it with our TTL Housing with optional port, W-20 Wide-Angle Lens and a couple of SubStrobe DS-160's hot off the presses. I ended up with a sophisticated and powerful yet compact and unobtrusive bunk-mate.

The DS-160's kept up beautifully in no-nonsense TTL mode. The built-in LED modeling lights were perfect during the day as focus lights and shone brilliantly as primaries on night dives. The addition of a wide-angle conversion lens proved essential when photographing sharks, divers, and 8-foot-tall barrel sponges. (Note: That freshly charged camera battery is also essential when attempting to photograph pristine walls that are only seen by 50-100 divers each year.)

I also brought my Olympus Stylus SW1030 pocket camera—which goes everywhere I do. Advertised as waterproof and shockproof, it is perfectly suited for seven days on a boat. When installed in our ULTRAcompact digital housing it is fully operational to 200' (60m). This camera is made for vacation and fun to shoot whether surrounded by sharks on the reef (left) or palometas at the beach (right).

It was an amazing week of traveling flat calm seas and diving in remote locations. I'm back in Indianapolis now and I can't stop looking at photos from the trip. As photography becomes more accessible every day, it has never been easier to share the underwater world with family and friends. In fact, it's our duty to them! Hopefully one or two will be inspired to go out there and see it for themselves.

Big thanks to our crew on the Morning Star: Capt. Grayson, Tom, Pancho, Scott, and Charlie. And thanks to everyone at Blackbeard's for putting this great trip together. Looking forward to next year!

Consider Blackbeard's Cruises for your next getaway!