Russian diver IRINA BRITANOVA lives her surreal dream, with photography by ANDREY NEKRASOV
HOORAY – IT’S HAPPENED AT LAST! From the moment I entered the diving world, the idea of being photographed with sharks while wearing a dress would not leave my mind, not only during the day but at night too.
I was looking through the photographs of “mermaid” Hannah Fraser with tiger sharks not only in admiration but with envy. I examined her movements, I studied the different emotions on her fantastic face, and I was sad to think that it would just be too difficult to organise a similar experience for myself.
My first open-water dives had been on a safari at St John’s in the Red Sea in 2010. My leaking mask had been a huge problem, and my buoyancy still wasn’t the best, but despite all that I felt as if I was inhabiting a fairy-tale. No HD TV screen can do justice to the range of colours, the textures of the corals, the beauty of the reef inhabitants or that cosmic zero-gravity feeling.
As our live aboard moved further from civilisation, so the sites became evermore interesting and the volume of marine life rose. I was feeling anxious about my first encounter with sharks, which didn’t occur until my fourth dive, when a long-finned oceanic whitetip approached us at Habili Ali Reef.
When I saw this elegant beauty moving gracefully towards us my fear vanished, leaving only enormous admiration and happiness. I realised that this sea-raptor meant me no harm, and the adrenaline flowing through me was of the positive kind. The shark was looking into my eyes as if trying to hypnotise me.
On that first dive-trip I spent time with big shoals of fish, small turtles and even dolphins, but that Longimanus inspired the most incredible feelings.
Denne historien er fra August 2017-utgaven av Diver.
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Denne historien er fra August 2017-utgaven av Diver.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Appointment with Dr Anemone
It seems that marine-life could hold the key to improving many aspects of human health. Which is fine as long as the creatures we dive to see don’t have to be sacrificed in the process, says LISA COLLINS. They might not have to be
The Wreck Of The Zenobia: Disneyland For Divers
The Zenobia is one of those wrecks most divers have heard of, even if they haven’t dived it, but what is that makes some return to Cyprus year after year to revisit the site? DAVID BAKER, Chairman of Richmond Sub Aqua Club, has been asking around
Well And Truly Tested
MIKE WARD does the honours as a new Apeks regulator hoves into view – and for the rest, it’s all a matter of shedding light, with new products from Mares and Weefine
Man Jailed For First- Time Diver's Lake Death
THE OWNER OF A WELSH online company that sold golf balls retrieved from lakes has been jailed for 32 months for manslaughter, following the diving death of an employee.
God's Pocket
This coldwater Pacific classic can create dilemmas for photographers, says MARK B HATTER, torn between tiny rockfish and huge ‘GPOs’ in British Columbia.
In The Glassy Ripples
Tonga is a place of myths and traditions, and until 1978 whales were welcomed there only as food. Now things have taken a very different turn, as JENNY STOCK, only slightly hampered by her wetsuit, relates.
Baby Diver
Father-to-be HENLEY SPIERS decided that he needed a better understanding of diving and pregnancy.
Sumbawa
It’s alway good to feel that you might be ahead of the pack – we often hear about Bali and Lombok on one hand, and Komodo and Flores on the other, but what lies in between? JOHN LIDDIARD finds out.
Nudi GB
When you get your eye in you realise that colourful sea-slugs are not confined to the tropics – southeastern Scotland, for example, can also be a happy hunting-ground for macro enthusiasts. RICHARD ASPINALL drops into the Scottish Nudibranch Festival
Early Learning With Alligators-That's So Sick
The arrival of children can change divers’ lives – you don’t know if they will share your passion as they grow up or – inadvertently – stifle yours. So CHARLIE OLDFIELD went through a range of emotions when son Dylan announced that he wanted to dive…
