DivingIDC News - Dive Instructor Training with Des Paroz

Tuesday

02Feb2010

EFR & Emergency O2 Instructor Courses at Dive Imports Australia Erina

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 8:30AM

Over the weekend of 30/31 January I conducted an EFR Instructor Course and a PADI Emergency Oxygen Instructor at Dive Imports Australia Erina.

All dive instructors should be first aid/CPR instructors for several reasons.

It allows them to offer a complete range of courses to their students
It allows them to teach courses that can make a difference
It provides them with additional income opportunities

The EFR Instructor qualification allows them to teach a range of layperson oriented first aid/CPR courses. Additional training to become an EFR First Aid at Work Instructor allows the instructor to also teach a range of workplace oriented courses that are Nationally Recognised Training in Australia.

Provision of emergency oxygen is a critical aspect of the first aid for an injured diver, as well as for individuals suffering other medical emergencies. By becoming a PADI Emergency Oxygen Specialty Instructor, PADI Instructors can teach this simple and beneficial program to divers and non-divers alike.

Congratulations to Lisa on completing these programs.

Please contact us for more information on these and other training opportunities for dive professionals.

Des Paroz |

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EFR,

Teach Diving,

Teach First Aid/CPR

Tuesday

02Feb2010

Wreck Dive on the Coolooli

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 8:25AM

Last Friday I had a lovely dive on the wreck of the Coolooli, located off the suburb of Long Reef on Sydney's Northern Beaches.

The Coolooli is the scuttled wreck of an old bucket dredge, and has a large number of buckets on a conveyor belt. It is quite a large wreck, and starts at 38m, dropping down to 48m or so. It is a great site for completing PADI TecRec courses such as Tec 45 and Tec 50.

Conditions were good on the day, with temperatures from 17C on the bottom to 22C from the surface down to 35m or so. Visibility was also great down to 35m, dropping off to 5-8m below that. There was some fish life around.

A nice dive for those qualified for tec diving.

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Dive Log

Thursday

28Jan2010

DivePhotoGuide.com Launches Free Online UW Photography Tutorials

Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 1:49PM

With The Growth in Popularity of Underwater Photography, A Community of Esteemed Professional Photographers Respond By Developing A Series of Free Online Underwater Photography Tutorials to Help The World Learn About Underwater Photography

In response to the global demand from photographers, scuba divers, surfers and snorkelers around the world, leading underwater photography website DivePhotoGuide.com has launched a highly anticipated free series of comprehensive underwater photography tutorials and guides to help the world learn underwater photography. Never before has there been such a growing interest in underwater photography. Affordable digital cameras have made underwater photography more accessible, and social media has made it easier than ever to share photos with your friends, family and the world.

The underwater photography guides offer easy-to-read tutorials for photographers all levels to learn how to take great underwater photos.

The tutorials are written by professional underwater photographer Jason Heller and DivePhotoGuide.com editor Matt Weiss, along with contributions from several world renowned professional and award winning underwater photographers, such as National Geographic photographer David Doubilet, Martin Edge, and Alex Mustard. Each tutorial includes beautiful underwater photos and equipment set-up shots that illustrate each technique.

Underwater photography can be incredibly rewarding, but it does pose unique challenges and requires an understanding of basic principles and techniques. Beginners will find the Getting Started Guide very intuitive, including the top ten basic principles of underwater photography and how to select your first underwater camera system. Other tutorials include macro, wide angle, super-macro, composition, lighting, surf photography and a number of creative techniques. New and advanced techniques and tutorials will be added on a regular basis.

iPad for Dive Instructors

Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 7:53AM

Following today's launch of the Apple iPad, I am taken by the possibilities for using this device as a key part of the dive instruction experience. In fact, I reckon that the fact that "iPad" is an anagram of "PADI" is more than a coincidence!

Apart from the fact that is one classy looking device, the fact that it can run apps like iWork (including Keynote and Pages) means that it can be used for delivering fantastic presentations. Although Keynote and Pages are Mac formats, these apps can run MS Powerpoint and Word documents.

So a dive instructor can teach small groups (perhaps 1-2 people) informally using this device for our PADI Prescriptive Lesson Guides and other presentations. Or we can hook the iPad up to a display or projector for larger groups.

Its a lightweight device (less than 1kg), and it should be a great device for carry PDF versions of our various teaching tools like the PADI Instructor Manual, PADI Specialty Instructor Manuals, EFR Instructor Manual, DAN Instructor Manuals and so forth (subject to availability of course). I'd like to see PADI release a PDF version of the wonderful new PADI's Guide to Teaching in PDF format. With this device we can have ready access to our teaching materials.

The iPad is designed to have great battery life (10 hours), and an external keyboard as an option. This will allow us to do paperwork onsite once the teaching is done. With Wifi built in, and an option for 3G wireless connectivity, we can also have access to the internet in the field.

All in all this is going to be a great device for many mobile professionals, and for dive instructors who tend to move around to various sites, the potential is fantastic.

I've embedded a copy of Apple's introduction video below. Take a few moments to have a look. It tells the story perfectly.

Des Paroz |

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Sunday

24Jan2010

PADI IE Success!

Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 6:16PM

Congratulations to Lisa and Jin, who completed the recent PADI IDC at United Divers Wollongong, on exceeding expectations at the PADI Instructor Exam in Sydney this weekend. Both did really well, scoring highly on all presentations and exams, and did themselves proud on all counts.

Lisa will be teaching at Dive Imports Australia in Erina after completing her EFR Instructor Course next week, while Jin will be heading off to travel and teach in exotic locations.

Well done Jin and Lisa!

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PADI IE

Saturday

23Jan2010

The Cove Movie

Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 9:46PM

Having missed its limited cinema screening in Australia, I was pleased to finally receive a copy of The Cove Movie. Today I had a chance to watch this movie, and can only say that I am in very deep thought at what I saw.

The Cove tells the story of dolphin hunting and killing practices in the township of Taiji, in Japan's Wakayama Prefecture. It is a rather amazing story, and features shocking scenes of a secret cove where the slaughter occurs. The waters are deep red with the blood of the dolphins, and it is nothing short of shocking to see these creatures slaughtered for what appears to be senseless reasons.

Along similar lines to the fabulous movie, Sharkwater, The Cove investigates the backstory, with interviews with Japanese fisheries officials and renegade council officials from Taiji.

There is amazing footage of world champion free divers Kirk Krack and Mandy-Rae Cruikshank placing underwater cameras and sound recording devices in the middle of the night.

The Cove is a extraordinarily thought provoking movie, and I highly recommend it for all divers and others interested in marine conservation issues. I also think that it is worth watching as you consider the whaling activities currently being conducted by the Japanese in the Southern Ocean.

Purchase The Cove on DVD from Amazon.com (aff.)

Des Paroz |

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Environment,

Marine Life,

Project AWARE

Wednesday

13Jan2010

New PADI Instructor Manual

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 10:29PM

I received a copy of the new PADI Instructor Manual today - the printed version with the binder (picture on right). I've had the digital version since the CD Update at DEMA in October, but getting the printed version really reinforced for me just how much of a great step forward the new manual is.

Printed on 160 half-sized pages, compared to the 1000+ letter sized pages previously, the new manual is compact, simple to navigate and straight-to-the-point. Information on standards and procedures is supremely easy to find, and it really is a joy to use.

Even though all PADI members will receive the digital version free next month, I strongly recommend all PADI Instructors to get a copy of the printed version.

There's plenty of room in the manual for a log book and other notes, and I believe this tool will be a key resources for PADI Instructors in the future.

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Dive Training,

PADI

Friday

08Jan2010

The Sinking of the Ady Gil

Friday, January 8, 2010 at 9:30PM

Pretty interesting footage that seems to show both a view from the Japanese ship and the other Sea Shepherd vessel.

It certainly looks pretty damning for the Japanese, but regardless of fault, its time to stop this stupidity. Most Japanese people, in my experience, don't eat whale meat. This pointless "research whaling" has no real scientific basic, and the damage to the oceans, whales and human lives is intolerable.

Japan - stop it.

Des Paroz |

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Environment

Tuesday

29Dec2009

Man stung by deadly jellyfish in North Queensland

Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 2:39PM

According to SMH.com.au, a man was stung by a potentially fatal irukandji jellyfish in North Queensland. He was apparently swimming off Long Island in the Whitsunday Island group. After being airlifted to hospital, he is now in a stable condition.

Irukandji and other jellyfish are potentially fatal to human, and prompt first aid can make a huge difference. Even in southern waters where we don't get the potentially fatal variety, stings from marine stingers are more prevalent in the summer months, and can lead to painful wounds.

All divers should be prepared to assist with any diving injury, and should take a course in Emergency Oxygen (such as those offered by DAN and PADI), as well as general first aid. One special course people can take is the DAN First Aid for Hazardous Marine Life Injuries course. During this program, you learn to provide first aid for a variety of injuries from marine life, including stings, bites, envenomations and poisoning.

I can offer the DAN First Aid for Hazardous Marine Life Injuries Instructor Course in conjunction with DAN Oxygen First Aid Instructor courses. This would be a great course to add to any instructors resume.

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Marine Life

Saturday

12Dec2009

PADI AI Course at Dive Imports Australia, Erina

Saturday, December 12, 2009 at 2:53PM

Over the weekend of 4-6 December I conducted a PADI Assistant Instructor Course at Dive Imports Australia, Erina, on the NSW Central Coast. With two candidates (Lisa and Jason) doing really well, this was a fun course that saw us in the pool and also diving down at the picturesque Terrigal Haven.

Jason and Lisa did really well at all challenges they faced, and I am proud to have had the opportunity to have worked with them as they furthered their PADI Professional training.

Dive Imports Australia is a professional dive operator serving the Central Coast, and I am pleased to have kicked off programs with them. In 2010 we will be scheduling a range of programs at Dive Imports Australia, including a full PADI IDC, EFR Instructor Course and a variety of PADI Specialty Instructor Training Courses.

Keep an eye on our Course Schedule for more information, or please feel free to Contact Us.

Des Paroz |

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More than Tutorials