Hi, we're trying to put together a last minute trip to Bonaire. Heard lots of good things about Buddy Dive and want to try them. We'd like a two bedroom unit; does Buddy have those? Also, if we stay at Buddy, where is the best/most convenient place to get slide film developed?

thanks,
Linda

Hi Linda, I can't really answer your questions about Buddy Dive but,I just wanted to tell you that your SPUD pictures were fantastic!! Thank you for sharing them..
Freddie
PS Capt. Don's has nice two bedroom two bathroom cottages...with kitchens..

Hi Freddie, Boy, it's a small world! Glad you liked the pictures. I've got a couple more batches I want to send to Dave Read, but I'm going to wait. I don't want to dominate the queue!

I've been looking at the cottages at Capt. Don's, and they are an option for us as well. If we do that, then I know there is slide processing on the premises.

Thanks!
Linda

Buddy does have 2 br units. We have "reserved" a 2 br the last couple of years but 2 of 3 years we actually had a 3 br at the 2 br cost, not complaining mine you. Lions Dive next door has 2 brs and Sand Dollar on the other side has 2 brs as well. All 3 are nice places.
There are 2 places down town that process film (one Kodak and one Fuji)that I am aware of. I don't know if they do slides but I suspect they do.

Linda,
We stayed in a two bedroom, two bath cottage at Capt. Don's last April. We're returning next week and that's the best recommendation a property can receive ...repeat guests!

Buddy's may develop slides, not sure. They do service cameras there.

There are 2 places within walking distance of Buddy Dive that I know of - Fish Eye Photo at Sand Dollar and Exposures at Captain Don's Habitat. Both do E6 processing for slides.

There are also 2 places in Kralendijk - Kodalux in the Harbourside Mall and Paradise Photo in Les Galleries.

Linda C., you can dominate the queue anytime you want. They were some great pictures.

Linda, I advise you to take your film home with you to process. The prices for developing slides here are simply outragous (and are prompting me to make a switch to digital soon, hopefully), plus the outcome is always a big suprise... often a negative one.

Paradise Photo downtown develops both film and slides. They have a 1 hour service. Buddy's doesn't develop any type of film. I think Captain Don's uses Paradise.....you can drop it off and they take it to Paradise(don't know if I am 100 % accurate on this).

Best to ask any of the on-property dive ops if they develop film there or take it to town. I believe most use off-site developers. Not economical for each to do their own. As Marc says, the cost is higher than home.

Hi dive_cecil! Glad you enjoyed the photos. I'll put more in soon.

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! Appreciate the pointers to Fish Eye and Exposures, and the two places in town. I'm not concerned so much with cost (I'm used to liveaboard rates) as with quality. Would like to hear more about specific problems. Color cast, debris, mixed up C41/E6 or what? I've used the processing at the old Sand Dollar photo shop (before Lenny) and had no problems, but that was a while ago.

Habitat develops their own.

The other slide film (ektachrome?) has to be sent to Curacao.

Well, I've seen pictures come back with a definite green cast over them. I talk to one professional (wedding) photograper who told me he had had several films messed up, as in destroyed completely. My guess is the minilabs that are being used here just don't get serviced as much as they ought to.

Marc,

There are at least three places on island which do E-6 slide development (plus it's easy enough to develop your own slide film too). Kodalux has one hour service, Habitat has daily service in the afternoons (can be one hour if you time it right). I think Paradise Photo is one day - not sure though.

Two places which will do C-41 negative development (Kodalux and Paradise), and I know that Kodalux does B&W negative film and APS too. Not sure if Paradise handles APS and/or B&W on-island or sends it to Curacao.

Which one of the above places ruined this photographer's film? (In other words, don't blame one shop's failings on all of them...)

Price wise - I agree that developing negative film (C-41), and especially getting prints, is double or triple what a regular photo place (not a discount place) would charge back in the U.S. Slide film development, at about NAF 20 is only a little bit more than what I used to pay in the U.S. ($11 but it included mounting all my slides - I pay about the same here, but for a strip, at Kodalux - and after probably about 70-80 rolls of slide film (E-6) developed I've never had one damaged or ruined by them).

Jake

Linda here is a picture of a slide that was taken in Sept and developed at Habitat..Unfortunately I cannot take credit for this shot..

Email me if you want the unsized version so you can look more closely at the quality..
Scubahb@optonline.net

Jake, this photographer (don't know his name) said it didn't matter where he took them, he'd had trouble with all of them. Of course, this is hearsay

Marc, maybe his film had been exposed to too many xrays..they say it gets cloudy when that happens