I was seriously thinking about a trip to Bonaire last fall and decided I first needed more experience using a new digital camera and underwater housing. I have moderate experience with snorkeling in freshwater, but no ocean experience or underwater photography. Then I got this invite to Hawaii and thought why not? So, I just got back from a trip to Oahu. A cousin has a condo there and I saw it as a chance to try out my new rig and get some experience with ocean snorkeling. Since Oahu has 80% of the population and a fair number of people who spearfish, the inner reef off my cousin's condo was difficult for photography as the fish life was small and skittish. Luckily, a marine preserve, Hanauma Bay was 15 minutes away.

Hanauma has lots of fish and they are mature, large specimens. The water inside the reef is relatively shallow and, if the surf isn't pounding, it was clear. The deeper water around the reef edge was somewhat cloudier while I was there. My technique was to float on the surface and hold my camera at arms length to get it as close as possible to the subjects. Most of my shots were in water less than 6 ft, but some were deeper. Those deeper shots didn't work out so well, as the water wasn't clear enough. The shallower water pictures did come out well when the subjects were well positioned and I shot at the right moment. My camera has a lithium battery, so power was never an issue. I used a 2 GB card, so space was never an issue. I did tend to shoot a lot in hopes that some pictures would come out good. At times I couldn't see what was on the LCD because it was too far away and my mask kept fogging. I was using defogger, but maybe I was just too excited! The fish life was amazing! The coral life was not much. I didn't make it to the outer reef as the surf was a little rough and the two channels connecting the inner and outer reef areas develop a current...a rip current, as the surf increases.

I tended to do a lot of floating...I didn't want to scare away my finny subjects. I'm real happy I had a full wetsuit (3 mm) as the water temp was 77-78 deg. I was out for 90 to 120 minutes at a time. I never did try to dive down, but don't feel I missed much as I kind of wonder how I could approach fish slowly while diving and not scare them away and get a good picture. I see that as something to practice in freshwater over the summer.

Anyway, my question is this....how does Bonaire snorkeling compare to Hanauma Bay? Anyone been to both (under good conditions)? Where can a snorkeler get good pictures of fish from the surface on Bonaire? Bill Gates just asked that question....but I will ask it again. How tame are the fish on Bonaire? I have pictures that were out of focus at Hanauma because the fish were too close! Yeah, I could have switched to macro mode...if I was thinking more clearly. I need to get better with my camera, so when a belted wrasse chooses to sit 5 inches off my camera, I'm ready.

Any comments would be appreciated...I'm hoping my next trip will take me to Bonaire, maybe in the fall or early winter.

We have been to both and although I love Hawaii, it doesn't even come close to Bonaire! My 10 year old daughter took awesome pictures of fish in Bonaire and some will swim right up to you! I'm sure many others will chime in here, you will not be disappointed in Bonaire!I will also say Oahu is not my favorite island and the snorkeling was far better off of Maui.

I agree with Dark Side of the moon for RosAnne 100%. The snorkeling in Bonaire is so much better than Hanauma Bay it is not even in the same league. Hanauma Bay is not even on our top ten places to snorkel, Bonaire is #1 for sure, Maui and the Big Island are also better than Hanauma Bay for snorkeling but still far behind Bonaire.

Snorkeled both. Bonaire is by far the best. We were on Hawaii 3 years ago. The last two on Bonaire. For fish spotting, diving, snorkeling it's Bonaire. For topside it's Hawaii especially Maui

We just got back from St. John. Yes it was extremely beautiful but my husband and I still agree, even though we've not been to Hawaii, that over several island trips in the last 7 years there is nowhere like Bonaire for snorkeling. It is the only place where I've been inked by an octopus because it was on a rock close to shore! The water is so clear and so full of diversity that it will always rank #1 for us. (In the Carib ocean that is). The shore entry access from nearly anywhere on the island makes it super special too.

Thanks for the responses. I'm guessing that water visibility is generally higher in Bonaire. As Bonaire is also protected, the fish should be equally tame. What I didn't know was how many fish can be found in shallow water that someone snorkeling can take pictures of in Bonaire. It doesn't do much good for a snorkeler if the fish are down 20 ft or more. Yes, you can dive down...but that's more like work if you have to do it a lot. Also, the bigger fish will still show up in your pictures taken in deeper water...but the standard advice to get close and then get closer is difficult for a snorkeler if the fish are deep.

That said, if there are plenty of fish in water less than 15 ft deep, then I'll be satisfied. I still need to work on my camera skills this summer.

I've been to Hanauma Bay on a couple different trips but mostly dove the deeper water beyond the shallow reef. The water inside the crater is too shallow and too crowded.
As for the diving, calmer and clearer water, Bonaire gets my vote hands down.

Daniel, why don't you try a Discover SCUBA dive while on the Island? You might deside to get certified... Ron

Hi Daniel and Welcome to BT.

On the Hawaiian Islands, Kannapalli, Maui and Kona, Hawaii are my favorite locations for snorkeling -- Kona for the turtles and Maui for the abundant fish and especially the Humpback whales. On both islands the Humuhumunukunukuapua'a [a fish that I don't believe you will find on Bonaire] is quite common. It's the state fish and note worthy because of its long name. Heres a picture of it ...



That said, I would choose Bonaire almost any-day for snorkeling. I believe that the visibility on Bonaire is consistently better than that at shore accessible sites on Hawaii. Hanauma Bay, Oahu is an exception where the water [on the inside of the reef] is generally clear and calm and the fish are varied and abundant -- likewise the people -- lots of people!

My experience is that many of the shore accessible locations around Hawaii get stirred up and remain that way for a week or two at a time. Often the visibility is downright poor and when the visibility is poor, you will not get good pictures. Boats can get you to locations where the visibility is good and the fish abundant, but often the water is deep [Molokini] and the cost is high.

As far as shallow locations on Bonaire that have a variety of fish there are a number that I have been to and can recommend. These include [in no particular order] 1. The Plaza [south of the Tipsy Seagull]; 2. Drectly across from the Airport entrance road. 3.. Cha-Cha beach along the rocks to the North [especially at night]; 4. The piers at the Divi [the Cement Pier being my favorite]. and 5. anywhere along the coastal road between It Rains Fishes and the Yellow Submarine. Personally, I always try to arrange to snorkel with Renee. and highly recommend her. She knows where the critters live and always finds ones that I would have missed.

For picture taking, there is actually an alternative to Shallow Water and that is the drift over at Klein. The reef between Ebo and No-Name Beach is easily accessible [Water Taxi or Woodwind] nearly at the surface and you can drift right along the edge of it no more than a foot or so away. Lots of good photo opportunities within arms length. On your first visit, I recommend taking the Woodwind as Dee and Ulf provide a fun outing and are great hosts. They will also make a second stop at Andreas or Pietre.

Pictures on the three galleries linked below are ones that I have taken on Bonaire with various cameras at the above mentioned sites. Nearly all were taken while lying on the surface with the camera at arms length and aimed in the general direction of the critter. I generally use aperature priority set to f5:6 or f:8 [to maximize depth of field]. I shoot with the camera set on Macro. The biggest problem that I have other than getting close is focus. The combination of bright sun-light, low to very low contrast, and not being able to see the critters on the display screen adds to the challenge of getting good sharp pictures. Take a lot of shots, concentrate on getting close, and most will come out medicore; some pretty good and a few very good.

A few other comments: In the water, I have lousy eyesight which combined with the bright light from the sun means that I cannot see the display screen other than to tell that the camera is on or off. To compensate, I shoot reasonably wide-angle [to increase the likelyhood that the critter will be in the resultant picture] and to increase the depth of field. I generally crop extensively and post-process most pictures in Photoshop Elements II. Works for me.

By the way, I rarely dive down to get a picture. Why? well ..
1. The camera becomes a moving platform reducing the odds of achieving focus.
2. The critter gets scared at the commotion of my attempted surface dive and turns tail and heads for deep water or a hiding spot. The combination of a moving target and a moving camera platform drastically reduces your chance of achieving focus.
3. I am just not good at surface dives. I'm 69 and have enough trouble getting my breath after two flights of stairs. I just don't do well 10 feet under the water. I often come up blubbering. Do I miss good shots? Absolutely! My sea-horse is from 15 feet above it [cropped so much you can see the individual pixels] and I am yet to get any really good picture of the elusive Spotted Drums and Queen Angels. I've seen lots of both [only one sea-horse] but they manage to stay out of my range.

Well, sorry this got so long winded. A combination of PBD and I'm trying to delay working on income taxes.

Here is a link to some photos.

www.falls4sale.com/Galleries/Gallery3.html

Gallery 3 is the most recent and all shots there were taken on a two hour snorkel with Renee. Galleries 1 and 2 were from a one week visit last May and can be linked to from Gallery 3. .

Dan
I have snorkeled at both and no doubt Bonaire is far superior. Much larger variety of fish and related aquatic life. The visibility is overall so much better on Bonaire most of the time. Hopefully the crowds you see at Hanauma will not be duplicated on Bonaire, what with the anticipated growth and the many cruise ships now visiting.
But then again that is a local issue to be resolved solely by the people of Bonaire, not us tourists.

Bill,

Thanks for the great comments! I wish there was a book with the title something like "Advice on techniques for underwater photography useful for snorkelers". Most books on underwater photography seem to concentrate on divers. I did not try to chase fish underwater while at Hanauma, but even from the surface, it didn't seem to work well. It's better to catch them swimming by than to chase them down...unless you like shots of caudal fins. However, I do have to take you to task for the drawing of the "former" Hawaii State fish...here's a picture I took at Hanauma:



I will note that I couldn't tell for certain that Autofocus had locked on either. My eyesight isn't bad, but my mask was fogging and I was holding the camera out there at arms length most of the time. On top of that, I was attempting to use the zoom. My camera seems to take longer to lock in to focus in that mode, on top of the fact that if the subject was not centered, then...the camera will focus on something else. The upshot...it's a tricky business. One thing that would help is having a means to really review your shots each day with the hopes that you can spot problems and do something before the trip ends.

In any event, with more practice I should improve, and hopefully I will get that practice before visiting Bonaire.

Ron,

I do have a gift certificate to an Aquatic Center that I plan to visit this summer and use on an "Intro to Scuba" course. If I decide to get certified, I would prefer to do it here and get somewhat comfortable before practicing in Bonaire.

While I don't want to muck up the boards with non-caribbean fish pictures, but here's another shot of that elusive Humuhumunukunukuapua'a:

Hi Dan,
I've been to Maui and the Big Island so I had to put my 2 cents in. There are many fish endemic to Hawaii and that makes a trip there worthwhile. Otherwise, Bonaire has it all over Hawaii. So many pluses - leave the wet suit at home, a skin is all you need - less impact on your credit card - as far as I'm concerned better dining - no tourist traps - great local people and since I'm in Florida, a lot closer!