Jul 19, 20234 min read

Come Dive with Us Photography Workshop with Phil Medcalf : Puerto Galera May 2024

Updated: Jul 20, 2023

We're excited to announce our new partnership with Phil Medcalf of Alphamarine Photography with a Photography Workshop at Scandi Divers in Puerto Galera Philippines in May 2024.

Phil has been scuba diving for over 30 years and has been taking digital pictures underwater for over 15 of those. In that time he’s dived around the world including the UK, Egypt, Indonesia, the Maldives and Australia. Along with his wife Anne he turned his interest into a business in 2017 and now they own Alphamarine Photography Ltd an underwater photography training and retail company. They have a highly rated blog on their website alphamarinephoto.com and a Facebook Q & A group with over 2000 members worldwide. They’ve written on underwater photography for Scuba Diver magazine and have presented on the subject at every Go Diving show since the event started. Their workshops and online courses on underwater photography and photo editing attract students from around the world. Phil’s expertise ranges from getting the best from budget friendly compact cameras to using the latest high end mirrorless options. His experience as a retailer gives him a much broader knowledge base than many underwater photographers when it comes to the equipment in use.

Before running Alphamarine Photography full time Phil worked in health care for over 25 years. During that time much of his role involved teaching skills to adults and he brings this experience as well as Anne’s expertise as a university lecturer to how the workshops are designed and taught.

Phil will be hosting our first underwater photography workshop at Scandi Divers in May 2024. With a blend of formal and informal coaching, Phil will conduct both group and one to one instruction. A daily talk will cover topics such as Understanding Exposure, Composition and Lighting, Shooting in Manual Mode, Equipment and Post Production. Phil will make himself available to answer questions, give advice and conduct ad hoc teaching sessions throughout the workshop. He will also have some demo equipment to try such as wet lenses and strobes. And everyone participating in the workshop will have the opportunity to have one on one time with Phil where he can review your images and give you specific advice. The aim of Phil's workshop is for everyone to be happier with the pictures they are getting at the end of the trip than they were at the start.

We could think of no better place to kick off this new partnership than Scandi Divers in Puerto Galera. Situated on the Verde Passage, Puerto Galera is widely recognised as one of the most bio-diverse bodies of water on the planet. It contains more varieties of fish than the Red Sea, and more varieties of hard and soft corals than the Great Barrier Reef!

The water temperature in Puerto Galera averages around 29°C throughout the year, and the visibility is excellent. Surrounded by beautiful reefs, thriving with marine life, Puerto Galera has an abundance of amazing dive sites, most of them within a few minutes boat ride of the resort! There are wrecks, caves, muck dives, shallow coral fields, and drift dives. Plenty of opportunities for both wide angle and macro photography!

We visited Scandi Divers in April 2023 and absolutely loved it! The diving was spectacular, the food was scrumptious and the people were sensational! You can read our full trip report here. The resort is located on Big Lauguna Beach with over 40 rooms. The Sky View Restaurant & Bar, where we ate most meals is on the second floor allowing for great views . The Beachfront Restaurant in on the first floor and offers a great spot to meet your dive buddies for happy hour! Both offer the same menu with international, Filipino and western cuisine. We were on a full board basis and never disappointed with any meal!

The onsite dive centre has a five-station camera room for underwater photographers. The dive package for the workshop includes up to 4 dives daily. Two morning boat dives are offered after breakfast followed by one afternoon boat dive after lunch back at the resort. Dusk and night dives are also an option. A Verde Island day trip is Included as well as a blackwater dive. NITROX is available on a per tank or weekly charge and we analysed our tanks with between 30 and 32 and had great fills over 200bar plus during our last stay.

We are thrilled to be going back and as aspiring underwater photographers, we're looking forward to learning from one of the best! So if you're looking for an amazing dive holiday... Come Dive with Us and Phil Medcalf!

Photography Workshop with Phil Medcalf

Scandi Divers - Puerto Galera Philippines

10 night itinerary

departs Saturday 25 May 2024

Itinerary highlights :

Return flights London Heathrow to Manila vis Dubai on Emirates Airlines departing 25 May 2024
1 night accommodation in Manila
9 nights at Scandi Divers Resort in selected room type with full board
8 days diving with 3 boat dives and 1 night dive per day
Verde Island excursion with lunch and one hour massage session included
Photo Workshop with Phil Metcalf of Alphamarine Photography with daily talks, group and one to one coaching, ad hoc teaching sessions and advice
All transfers and taxes