The Photographer on the Reef Crest
You are leading a group of 10 certified divers at a coral reef marine protected area. The site has a shallow reef crest at 4–6 m with fragile branching coral, a sandy channel at 12 m, and moderate surge. A mooring buoy is available. One diver has a large camera rig and asks to kneel on a 'bare patch' to photograph a turtle; another diver, certified only two months ago with four logged dives, is visibly overweighted and has been dragging fins across the coral. A local fishing boat is anchored near the mooring, and you can see its anchor chain lying across live coral. The group has 50 minutes of no-decompression time remaining at the planned depth. You must brief and manage the dive.
1. What do you include in the briefing and how do you manage the group?
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Brief for conservation and control at the same time. Include: (1) site boundaries-stay over the sandy channel and mid-water, not on the reef crest; (2) no touching, kneeling, standing on, or holding coral; (3) buoyancy-neutral, horizontal trim, no fin contact; (4) buddy teams and a maximum spread; (5) the mooring plan-descend and ascend on the line, no anchoring; (6) photographer rules-no solo detours, no kneeling, stay with buddy. Manage the group by pairing the new diver with an experienced buddy and keeping the photographer in a buddy pair, not letting them lead. If surge increases, move the group to the sandy channel or end the dive. Keep the group above the coral, not on it. Use a pre-dive head count and a post-dive head count.
2. How do you respond to the photographer's request and the overweighted diver?
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Photographer: say no to kneeling on the 'bare patch'-in a living reef, bare patches are often recovering or fragile, and a camera rig can crush polyps. Offer an alternative: hover horizontally with good trim, use a reef-safe distance, or photograph the turtle from mid-water. If the photographer cannot hold position without contact, they need to improve buoyancy before bringing the rig onto the reef. Do not shame them; give a specific skill cue. Overweighted diver: before the dive, check weighting and adjust. If the diver is dragging fins during the dive, signal stop, have them establish neutral buoyancy, and move them above the sand. If they continue to contact coral, end their dive with their buddy and escort them to the mooring-conservation and safety justify ending the dive. Report the incident to the instructor or supervisor if it is a course.
3. What action is appropriate about the fishing boat anchored on coral?
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Do not confront the crew aggressively or remove the anchor yourself-that can create a safety incident and may be illegal. Record the boat's name/registration, position, time, and photos if safe. Report it to the marine protected area authority, harbour master, or local enforcement. If the crew is approachable, a calm educational word-'the anchor is on live coral; the mooring is available'-may help, but only if safe. Brief your divers not to anchor and not to mimic the behaviour. If the anchor chain is actively crushing coral, note the location for follow-up; do not touch live coral to 'rescue' it. The divemaster's role is to model and enforce no-contact rules within their group, and to escalate site damage to the proper authority, not to police other vessels alone.